worship musician! magazine / julyaugust 2010

Songchart: Beautiful Things • “Awesome” and Other Vanishing Words

JULY/AUGUST 2010Volume 8, Issue 4

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Record ReviewsALM: uk • Andrew Peterson • Carlos WhittakerHillsong Live • John Mark McMillan • Yancy

Product Review

Ultrasound PRO 250 and DS4

DTX900 SeriesElectronic Drum System

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DTX-MULTI 12 Electronic Percussion Pad

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DTX900 SeriesElectronic Drum System

The One to Beat!We’ve combined our expertise in

acoustic drums with our latest digital

sound technology to create the new

Yamaha DTX900 Series electronic drum

system - featuring the new DTX-PAD

with Textured Cellular Silicone (TCS)

heads. For quiet practice, playing live,

or as a controller, the revolutionary

new TCS head's playability and feel

combined with Yamaha’s acclaimed

digital sound technology make the

Yamaha DTX900 Series electronic

drums the one to beat.

DTX-MULTI 12 Electronic Percussion Pad

Whack it! Slap it! Tap it!The DTX-MULTI 12 electronic

percussion pad features 12 pads and

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sounds - many from the legendary

Yamaha MOTIF. The DTX-MULTI 12

is the first product of its type playable

with sticks, hands, or fingers and has

the ability to load up to 64MB of

samples to the built-in flash ROM.

©2010 Yamaha Corporation of America. Yamaha is a registered trademark of Yamaha Corporation. All rights reserved. www.yamaha.com/usa

AEDRUM014 DTX900 M12 EM ad_Layout 1 2/24/10 3:31 PM Page 1

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Lately I’ve been feeling like I’m walking on a high wire tight rope and at the same time the safety net below has been re-moved. It seems I have a need to focus more on what I am doing and apply more faith - all at the same time. The moving forward is exhilarating but the risk of a possible dramatic failure is more pronounced, especially when you look down and not straight ahead.

Maybe I should have been walking this way all along, I’m not sure. In the physical sense there is an ancestral precedent

for me to feel more at ease walking the tight rope as my grandmother Baba (Victoria Codona Adolph) known as the Queen of the Circus on my father’s side was a slack wire tight rope walker who performed all over the world with Ringling Brothers as part of the fa-mous circus act called “The Flying Codonas”. Baba’s brother was the fa-mous flyer Alfredo Codona, the first man to perfect the “triple” on the tra-peze. I know I run the further risk of some of our read-

ers saying, “Circus folk – that explains a lot about Bruce right there”, but it is true.

In fact in the first of the Tarzan series that Johnny Weissmuller stared in it is in fact my relatives from that famous circus act swinging on long vines through the jungle dressed in gorilla suits. This also explains an innate desire I have to wear gorilla outfits (actually I just made that part up but it sounds more fitting to the story don’t you think?).

My father strongly wanted to legally name me Tarzan when I was born (as a tribute to the family accomplishments I guess). My mother (being in her right mind) was firmly against it. She tells me that she was sitting in the hospital reading through a

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Website: www.worshipmusicianmagazine.comPublisher/Editor: Bruce Adolph

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Worship Musician! is published bi-monthly by The Adolph Agency, Inc.

JULY/AUGUST 2010 vOLUMe 8, iSSUe 4

Features8 Product Review

By Michael HodgeUltrasound PRO 250 and DS4

10 From the Drummer’s PerspectiveBy Carl AlbrechtChoosing All-Purpose Cymbals

12 KeyboardBy Ed KerrCheck Your Pulse

15 BassBy Gary Lunnit’s the Little Things that Make a Big Difference!

16 VocalsBy Sheri GouldA Few of Our Monsters

18 Tips for Tight TeamsBy Sandy HoffmanPutting the “Meant” in the Mentor (instigating “internal investment intentionality”)

30 Record ReviewsBy Heidi ToddALM: ukAndrew PetersonCarlos WhittakerHillsong LiveJohn Mark McMillanYancy

34 Foh EngineerBy John MillsTalk Back

36 Ministry + Artistry = Profitability? Creating your MAP™

By Scott A. ShufordFan Development

38 Authentic WorshipBy Michael GonzalesWhat if i Have No More Bullets?

40 GuitarBy Doug DopplerFrom Good to Great in Ten eASY Steps…

42 The BandBy Tom LaneAim For Glory!

46 Product ReviewBy Mitch Bohannoninteractive Worship Live

47 CameraBy Craig KellySo You volunteered as a Camera Operator At Church – Uh Oh, Now What? Part 1

48 Guest RoomBy Grant NorsworthyAwesome” and Other vanishing Words

51 MandolinBy Martin StillionLeaning on the everlasting Arms

52 LightingBy Greg SisleyLighting Helps us Hear

54 A Few Moments With…By Manuel LuzFive Dreaded Words

Editor’s CornerRemoving the Safety Net…

Interviews

Gungor 20Beautiful Things on the Road Less Traveled

Continued on page 44

Johnny Weissmuller as Tarzan

WORSHIPMUSICIANMAGAZINE.COM JULY/AUGUST 2010 7

I’ve been looking forward to reviewing these amps for weeks! I was introduced to this line of acoustic guitar amps a few years ago at Summer NAMM. I was impressed, though at the time, I mainly played electric live, and acoustic only in the studio. As I and my amazing wife Carrie have focused on leading and teaching worship, however, I’ve discov-ered that it is much easier to lead a team on acoustic rather than electric. You have a better capacity to control what’s going on musically, since you are holding down the fort on acoustic, rather then playing cool textures and delays and riffs, etc. on electric (which I love as well!).

So…WHY an Acoustic amplifier?My biggest challenge playing acoustic

in a band is simply being able to hear the guitar. Vocals and other instruments steal all the room in a monitor mix unless you are using in-ear monitors. My solu-tion has been to run a line out of

my acoustic d i r e c t box into a sepa-r a t e l y p o w -e r e d Mackie-t y p e monitor cabinet so that I can have a s e p a -r a t e s o u n d

source to hear the guitar. S o m e t i m e s , I need to run two direct boxes because of grounding issues. It gets interesting! The Acoustic Direct

box I use is very nice, but the powered moni-

tor has limited EQ control and doesn’t sound all that good; though again, it is great to hear the guitar! Another chal-lenge with playing live acoustic guitar is that you have to deal with low end issues and feedback. If you are a finger stylist, it can really be frustrating.

Enter the acoustic guitar ampli-fier.

Acoustic guitar amps are not new. I’ve checked them out at music stores from time to time and some of them are pretty good – not amazing – and often weird-looking. Between all the pickup systems and amplifiers on the market, there are a wide range of options. Until now for me at least, the extra monitor cabinet still seemed like the best choice.

Let me now introduce the Ultra-sound Pro 250 and DS4.

UltraSound has been making profes-sional amplifiers for over 20 years. Dean Markley bought this promising company a few years back.

When the Pro 250 and DS4 amps ar-rived, I noticed the shipping boxes were well constructed. If you are a frequent online shopper like me, you will greatly appreciate this attention to quality! My first impression was that the retro cabinet and grill cloth would look cool on stage. These amps are compact closed-back combos, not too heavy to carry, and you can tell they are well constructed. Stain-less steel corners, and solid jacks and switches show attention to quality. The Pro 250 comes standard with a tilt-back handle underneath. It’s also an option on the smaller DS4.

The Pro 250 is the newest model in the Ultrasound line. It’s a Tri–amped combo amp with a 10” Eminence Special design speaker, a 4” Ultrasound speaker and an Eminence Super tweeter with its own sep-arate level control. The DS4 is a smaller and lighter 50 Watt with 2- 8” Eminence special design coaxial speakers.

The recessed control panels on top of the amps are simple to understand and are user-friendly. There are two channels on the Pro 250, each with an indepen-dent Alesis digital effects unit and selector. There are sixteen different effects, in case you want to get creative. The DS4 has two channels as well, with one digital ef-fects unit that can be used on either chan-nel. Both amps have a dedicated guitar input channel that takes a ¼ inch cable or XLR. The XLR input also has phantom power for your DI, if you need it. What a great feature, since many acoustic direct boxes do take phantom power. The con-trols on the top panel are Volume, Bass, Treble, an 18 db Notch Filter from 100

to 350hz (to control feedback at high vol-umes), and an EFX level knob & EFX selec-tor with 16 different choices. There is also a small Shape switch that basically cuts the mid-frequencies and boosts the high and low ones. This is commonly referred to as a “smile” EQ setting. This Shape switch also enhances the function of the Bass and Treble controls in a cool way.

The second channel on both amplifiers is actually designed for a microphone, which is fantastic if you are doing a small intimate gig. You could also plug in an-other guitar with different settings. The Pro 250 adds a separate Horn volume con-trol for the Super Tweeter, as well as an added Midrange tone control. A nice fea-ture on both amps is the Overload LED, which lets you know if you are pushing the input too hard. This is a great way to protect your amp from blowing up due to a overpowering direct box, etc.

In the “we thought of everything” cat-egory, both amplifiers add another stereo input for a drum machine, iPod, CD play-er, or whatever. I am really impressed with the back panel of the amp. You will find XLR and ¼ inch outputs for each chan-nel, both individual and combined. There are two Aux inputs as well as footswitches to mute the EFX units or EFX loops. These loops are external EFX sends and returns, one set for each channel. The PRO 250 also has a slave feature to link two amps together. How cool is that!

Plugging In:I first tried the PRO 250 with a new

YAMAHA NCX1200R Nylon String. I was amazed at how transparent it sound-ed. With a little reverb, it was as good a direct sound as I have ever experienced. Both amps did well with the nylon. They were loud and clear. The PRO 250 with the additional Horn control was especial-ly nice. In a live band situation, it could help cut through the clutter.

Second, I plugged in a McPherson 3.5 Spruce-top acoustic. These are amazing guitars, so I expected it to sound really good. I was not disappointed! Both amps were very transparent and sounded great. You can dial in the “wood” of the guitar, and easily get away from that upper mid-range thing that makes an acoustic sound metallic and nasty. The PRO 250 has the unfair advantage of 200 more watts and being Tri-amped of course, but the DS4 is quite loud and clear. The DS4 will be enough for most small live gigs, and the ability to tilt back with the optional feature as a monitor is fantastic. If you lead or play acoustic in the band, you will love this amp. I found it hard to stop playing through the amps at this point, because

By Michael Hodge

Ultrasound PRO 250 and DS4

PRODUCT RevieW


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Finding the right cymbals for your style of playing can be one of the most chal-lenging and frustrating tasks for a drum-mer. With so many options you might feel like it’s trying to find your favorite tree in the forest. You end up with that feeling of being totally lost in the woods. Well come along with me and let’s go cymbal hunting. I’ve walked this trail before.

Let’s first decide what you want to ac-complish. Do you need cymbals for a heavy rock band or a jazz trio? Is your style more latin or classical? Or maybe you just want a great “all-purpose” set of cymbals to do everything.

I would definitely recommend hav-ing a set of cymbals that will cover all the bases. Don’t think of getting weird “special effects” or “style designed” cym-bals if your budget is limited. Look for a good ride cymbal, a couple of crashes, a splash, and a great set of hi-hats. You can add to your collection later, but use this as a starting point.

What company makes the best cym-bals? To be honest, all of the major cym-bal companies are making great instru-ments. And they all offer a large variety of cymbals to choose from. So I say, “Play what inspires you.” I personally prefer MEINL cymbals. But I am also aware of what the other manufacturers are making. I just happen to be very happy with what I’m hearing from Meinl.

Here is what I look for in a “gen-eral purpose” set of cymbals. They have to sound good in all the styles of music I’m playing so they can’t stand out individually or have a tone that is identified with a cer-tain style.

For instance in jazz the cymbals are often lighter and sound dry and dark. In rock music they are usually heavier and sound cutting and harsh. That’s not always the case, but just a general reference. So in my “all purpose” set up the cym-bals are a medium to medium thin weight. And the sizes are what would be considered the current stan-dard. A 20” Medium Ride, 18” and 17” Medium crashes, a 12” splash, and 14” Medium Hi-hats. This is what I call the modern standard package.

I use the Byzance series from Meinl; very similar to the classic A series from Zildjian. You could probably compare that to the AA series from Sabian or the Signature line of Paiste cymbals. All of these models are the top of the line for each of the companies I mentioned. And along with that comes the top of the line price. When buying cymbals you can not cut corners. I recommend buying fewer pieces and getting better ones if your budget is tight. When buying drums you can spend a little less money and still get a great sound with good heads and proper tuning. Cymbals are a whole dif-ferent story. So with the set up I’ve listed you could easily spend $1000 or more.

To save money you could buy used cymbals but be sure to test them and in-spect them carefully. Hold them up to a light and look for any small cracks. Also look for sales at your local drum shop or shop on line. There are some great web sites that have tons of drums and cymbals to choose from. Take your time and don’t feel pressured to buy.

If this adventure is new for you ask the salesperson to show you a large variety of cymbals to try out. Most drum shops will have a room where you

can play every cymbal that’s for sale. If a store will not let you test cymbals don’t buy from them. *You wouldn’t buy a car without test driving it. But don’t abuse the privilege either. Once you’ve played a cymbal for a while move on to another. You should be able to hear pretty quickly what sounds you like or dislike.

So what are we listening for? We want to find a set of cymbals that sound good as an ensemble, not just great individual instruments. I play a cymbal all over its full surface. I hit it on the bell, on the edge, and every where in between. I’ll tap soft rhythms and then build into pretty hard “slices” across the edge to hear how it sounds as a crash cymbal. Yes, even on the ride cymbal! When I hit a crash I’ll let the sound decay as long as possible and listen carefully to how the tone fades. It should have a smooth, shimmering de-cay. If it sounds like it’s flanging or making a wave tone I’ll try something else.

When playing “ride” patterns, does the cymbal maintain good stick defini-tion or does it start to “wash” out? Crash cymbals will probably do that anyway, but I try to find at least one that could be used as a ride cymbal too; maybe the 18” crash. Ride cymbals should definitely stay controlled. They should flow with the intensity of your playing. If you love the tone of a ride but it wants to wash out too soon you could put a little tape on it. I’ve got a couple like that; they sound great but I had to put a little tape underneath to “dry” them out a bit.

Once I’ve found individual favorites I’ll set them up together. I’ll play patterns

on the whole set and listen carefully to see if they sound great as a

group. You should notice very distinct pitches. Ride to

crash; splash to crash; top hi-hat to crash, etc.

By Carl Albrecht

Choosing All-Purpose Cymbals

FROM THe DRUMMeR’S PeRSPeCTive



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As a songwriter Ed has written over 100 songs with Integrity Music. He has a Masters Degree in piano performance. Ed and his family live in Washington State. Ed plays a Yamaha’s Motif XS8. www.kerrtunes.com

Yesterday, like many of you, I included “Revelation Song” in my set of worship songs at church. Amazing song! When we begin the intro, playing that mystical, rich chord progression, you could feel the crowd’s anticipation build toward the first lyric, “Worthy is the Lamb Who was slain…”. As the band vamped on those chords, I realized that I needed to check my pulse.

Huh? You do, too. Many of our most well-known worship songs are ballads, songs played at a slow tempo. Songs like Mighty To Save, How Great Is Our God, Your Name, Here I Am To Worship. Presentations of these songs often feature the chords played with a quarter note pulse. And that’s where you and I as keyboard players, along with everyone else in your worship team’s rhythm section, have some decisions to make. We need to check our pulse.

The most basic issue your team needs to settle is which band member is going to provide the basic pulse. In the case of this song, each chord is heard for a full bar. The chords are:

A frequently heard arrangement will have a keyboard player establish the pulse with an acoustic piano sound. Works nicely. Establishes the mood. Sets up the vocalists. Looks like this, ex-ample A:

If this is how you present this song or other ballads, check your pulse. There’s clearly nothing wrong or inappropriate about playing exactly what I’ve written above for your intro. Repeat it for your verse. After repeating the activity a few times, though, let your musical radar alert you to the fact that it’s prob-ably time to change the activity.

Remember that in this song the same progression is used throughout the song so it’s important for everyone on your team to consider what they’re going to do to contribute to the musical momentum of the arrangement. A million options.

The first option I want to show you is a simple variation of what’s written out ahove. This option will feature a quarter note, half note, quarter note pattern. Nothing is played on beat 3. Like this, example B:

This pattern of short note, long note, short note utilizes a con-cept I call the “internal clock”. As a part of a rhythm section, I want to respect the fact that everyone listening to the music I’m

making has an internal clock. They don’t need a steady flow of notes of the same value, as in example A, to get the meter of the song. The listener’s internal clock will fill in that space on beat three, shown in example B. Play example A a couple of times. Then play example B a few. Hear that internal pulse on beat 3? You’re not playing it, but it’s strongly felt.

Experiment with this concept in your next worship team re-hearsal. I bet you’ll all feel it, and the exercise might help you recognize that you tend to fill your measures with activity rather than respecting your audience’s internal clock. Listen to your fa-vorite worship recordings looking for examples of this principle. They’re everywhere.

Here’s another of the many variations possible for what your keyboard part might be. In it I’m using the notes shown in the right hand of examples A and B to create a melodic, linear pat-tern. Note that I’m still placing a half note on beat 2 of each measure, playing nothing on beat 3. The internal clock concept influences the part for sure. Example C:

Notice, too, that the left hand only plays whole notes, the root of each chord held through the whole measure. Checking your pulse suggests that you scrutinize any activity you’re playing. Because the right hand is active, that long note in the left hand complements it nicely.

If you’re like me, the band you’re playing with includes at least one guitar, usually two, an electric and an acoustic. Al-ways remember that you and your 88 keys, or however many your keyboard has, don’t have to provide the main activity. Someone playing an electric or acoustic guitar could definitely play the activity here. A pattern like what you see in example C above would work nicely when finger-picked on an acoustic. If that’s your arrangement, call up a pad or legato string sound on your keyboard. Example D:

With this example I’m beginning to go beyond the chart, adding color tones to the chords. When playing pad sounds, this is especially effective. I played the C as a C2, leaving out E, the 3rd, and adding D, the 2nd. I added the 4, C, to the Gm7. I made the Bb a Bbadd2, adding a C, and made the F an F2, leaving out A, the 3rd, and adding G, the 2.

These few examples give you a tiny glimpse into the infinite variety that you and your team can give these four chords or the chords of any of your songs. Check your pulse, you and every-one else in your band, and you’ll see the musical momentum you create grow significantly. Visit my website, kerrtunes.com, to hear audio examples of what you see here.

By Ed Kerr

Check Your Pulse

KeYBOARD


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It shouldn’t mean sacrificing performance for the sake of convenience. Trading frequency response, features, and

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Attention!Every musician in the worship team

must learn to pay close attention to sig-nals given by the worship leader. Watch their eyes, hands, and body language to discern what they want to do next. Learn their hand movements on their instrument. It will make it easier to tell where they’re going chord-wise. Try and position your-self where you can see their left hand, being mindful of dynamic changes before they occur.

Gary is a session player/producer/writer in Nash-ville, playing sessions and at his home studio. Find him on face book or at www.myspace.com/lunnbass.

In just about every type of art it is al-ways the little things that set one artist apart from another. With a singer it can be the subtle edge that he or she has. With a painter it can be their use of dif-ferent color intensities juxtaposed on a canvas that can set that particular artist apart, stylistically. I believe that the same applies to bass players so much so that you might find it hard to tell exactly what it is, but whenever you hear a particular song with that player on it, you absolutely know who it is. So, why is that? I’d like to discuss some of the possibilities for that in an effort to inspire you to “come in to your own” (if you haven’t already). Then again, the effort to come into our own will continue until we go to heaven, hopefully!

It’s in the HandsAs I have stated before, in my opinion,

about seventy percent of a bassist’s tone comes from the shape of his fingers and the way he plucks the strings, mutes, etc. That is probably the least subtle of nu-ances that give a bass player’s identity away. You can line up 10 guys to play the same bass and it will sound like 10 different basses. That fact right there can really set bass players apart, at least from a tonality aspect.

Note Value(s)There are very subtle differences to

various note characteristics that really make different players sound stylistically different. For instance, the distance vari-ances between the notes that we play will always have a small degree of “swing” to them. No matter how “straight” we play them there will always be tiny but different degrees of distances between the notes, creating our very own groove, orstyle.

Another factor in our individuality is in the way that we shape notes differently. Some bass players pluck the strings from the tips of their fingers, creating a faster attack time for each note. Others pluck from slightly down the front side of their fingertips, creating a slower, more grad-ual attack time for each note. This can make one’s playing feel “bigger” since it aids the downbeats in feeling “wider” and broader. Of course, finger shape af-fects both of these approaches.

Related to plucking style, the string-height (or action) on the instrument played can greatly affect a player’s tone. For me, greater string height allows me to have

BASS

a harder touch that gives me a more de-fined tone, but all of my basses are not set up that way. Some are set up with lower action and lighter strings which requires that I play with a softer touch, utilizing the tips of my fingers more. It is a mindset that I must establish with every instrument I play. This actually keeps things more inter-esting for me, inspiring me to play differ-ently on each instrument from a creative standpoint.

Setting Yourself Apart for the Kingdom

At any job there are always little ex-tra things you can do to perform better, to leave a better impression, and to help the person you are working for (or with) feel like they are better taken care of all through the job. As a bass player there are many things you can do as part of the band, not only to bless the worship lead-er, but to bless your fellow band mates as well. It’s always good to leave a great impression of servanthood and humility with people you encounter as you play.

Think ProfessionallyPlaying consistently is a necessary skill

to develop. By consistent I mean your vol-ume level. You want to play evenly and smoothly at all times, without the ‘sound man’s surprise’; painfully loud bass notes suddenly blaring! Also, it helps to try and play with a consistent finger pressure (+ or - 10%)! And during sound check make a conscious effort to give the front-of-house engineer 98% of your “real” loud-est bass volume. It is a very professional and considerate thing to do

Be as prepared as you can as to your level of familiarity with the music you’re playing. Practice and learn signature lines that may be applicable to particular songs and be mindful of the song’s the-matic or “expected” lines. Write them out if you can’t commit them to memory.

“Take a Chart”Dictation (the ability to write a chart

by ear) is a skill that is only learned with practice, and can be extremely handy if you happen to find yourself in a setting where a new song is being played, either spontaneously or from a song-change in-spiration by the worship leader. Always keep a few extra pieces of paper and a pencil nearby whenever a new song is played.

By Gary Lunn

It’s the Little Things that Make a Big Difference!

Painting by Janet Hyun www.Janethyun.com

Set a partIn choosing the right bass part an im-

portant aspect to consider is to take care not to play lines that are too “pattern” con-scious and to strive to play those that are more “part” conscious overall. Consistency in a bass part is key; dynamic range in a planned fashion can really impact a song. Try playing in a higher register, as songs generally start “small” and finish “big.” At-tempt to “save” the big notes on the fifth string (if you have one) for the last chorus or vamp section. The low power the fifth string offers when used at the right time can greatly affect the overall impact of a song and really help move the spirit in the worship. Be richly blessed!


http://www.myspace.com/lunnbass

http://www.myspace.com/lunnbass

www.Janethyun.com

Sheri Gould has a BS in Music Education (Vocal/Choral) from the University of Illinois. A church music director (Choir/Worship Leader) since 1985, she also teaches vocal techniques at various workshops around the country. Send your questions to: [email protected]

vOCALS

I found this cute little dialogue from “The Wizard of Oz” quite appropriate for my topic this month. And not only this dialogue specifically, but the whole way in which the problem of the Cowardly Lion is set up in the movie and resolved. His struggle is one of courage, which in some ways is not so very unrelated to us as singers dealing with “nerves” or what used to be commonly referred to as “stage fright.” So let’s have a look at how his problem hindered him and how he found resolution to see if we can’t find some help for ourselves along the way.

Why do we get nervous when we’re about to sing in front of people? Like the Cowardly Lion, our nervousness is directly related to fear. It might seem silly to us if we break it down. We’re not feeling afraid of anything per se, right? What’s the worst that could happen? It’s not like we’re in any real danger. But most of the time, I think that our fear is related to the possibility of failure. Just like in the case of the Cowardly Lion, though, our fear is not based so much on truth as it is in a few scary monsters. A few of our monsters might be:

sounding awfulforgetting the wordsbeing out or tune

running out of breathbeing judged…etc

Are these monsters real? Maybe, but maybe not. The more important question is, what can we do about the fears?

Be Prepared!The biggest step you can take toward

alleviating nervousness is to be com-pletely prepared. The better you feel about the song(s) you’re singing, the less nervous you’ll be. Think about it: if you KNEW you were going to stand up there and sound amazing, you wouldn’t be nervous, right? That is nearly 100% true, so be prepared. Know your words. Know your stuff. A good rule of thumb is never sing anything in public that you haven’t sung at least 100 times at home. That will also help ensure you have the

song memorized—please, please don’t insult your audience by singing a song with music in front of you (unless you’re playing an instrument). It communicates a lack of preparedness and investment in your audience, which translates to a lack of caring about your audience.

Work through the difficult passages un-til they are no longer difficult—or at least until they become manageable. If you just can’t smooth out a certain section of a song the way it’s written, and you can’t switch the song, then consider a slight re-write; the overriding principal here is that it is better to do something well then to be 100% true to the original. “Mak-ing it your own” surely is a better option than singing it exactly as the original, but poorly. To better prepare those difficult passages, try breaking them down to a simpler form. For example, try singing through the passage on just one vowel. Try slowing it wayyy down; if you can’t sing something slowly then you can’t sing it sped up correctly either. You probably just think you’re singing it correctly!

Record Yourself!One of the best tools we have with re-

gard to preparing ourselves. One way of taking some of the ‘unknown’ factor out of the performance is to record ourselves. A good audio recording is worth its weight in gold to a singer. It will also help you to mentally prepare yourself for exactly what will happen during your performance. There will be less to be nervous about because you’ll know exactly what you’re going to sound like. Some of you may be cringing right now at that thought! Lis-ten, the reality is that you’re most likely already singing in front of people right? They already know what you sound like! They asked you to sing anyway, so what sounds foreign to you is acceptable to them. Listening critically to a recording can also help you to ‘fix’ some things be-fore you actually sing the song in front of people. So take the time to employ this very important tool.

Mental Mindset“The only thing we have to fear is fear

itself!” There is so much truth in these words. Please take some time to re-think how you approach the world of public singing. We tend to elevate the people in our audiences/congregations to some sort of status that really isn’t accurate. They are just people like you and me. They are looking to experience something (what that is exactly, depends on your set-

ting), not to judge you on your singing ability. All you need to do is the best job you can at helping them to experience what they came looking for.

Your message is what sets you apart from the instruments, so make sure your have clear in your mind what exactly you’re trying to communicate—then com-municate it. Think less about singing and more about communicating. That can take some of the fear out of it—you know how to get a message across right?

Stuff HappensI hate to say it but it’s true. Even with the

best of intentions and preparations, things can go wrong. In my younger days, danc-ing was a big part of my life. My danc-ing partner was my older brother. For one competition we worked especially hard. Weeks and weeks of preparation left us standing in the spotlight completely pre-pared to do our amazing routine. The mu-sic started and we stared blankly at each other. We both froze. We had both com-pletely forgotten the routine in a momen-tary blank out! What were the chances of both of us forgetting t the same time?! Here’s is where out preparedness paid off: we simply began to improvise. Our skills had been honed and though we had temporarily forgotten the correct order of steps, we still had the skills to dance well. In the end, our “improv” dance won us first place (and a bunch of sweaty clothes and frazzled nerves!). It was our overall skill level that in the end saved the day. So, work on your overall singing skills on a regular basis, so that when push comes to shove, you have what it takes.

In the end, once the truth of the Cow-ardly Lion’s fears was exposed, he was better able to deal with them. With confi-dence in his ability, he was better able to tackle whatever came his way. Similarly with us, although we can’t eliminate ner-vousness altogether, we can take a big bite out of it and its ability to derail us.

Oh, and did I mention PRAY!!!???

By Sheri Gould

A Few of Our MonstersCowardly Lion: I’d be brave as a blizzard... Tin Woodsman: I’d be gentle as a lizard... Scarecrow: I’d be clever as a gizzard... Dorothy: If the Wizard is a wizard who will serve. Scarecrow: Then I’m sure to get a brain... Tin Woodsman: A heart... Dorothy: A home... Cowardly Lion: The nerve!


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Sandy Hoffman serves The Grace Community Church in Santa Fe, NM, where he is the Minister of Worship Arts. Check out his new instrumental acoustic guitar CD, “Sereno,” at: www.EssentialWorship.com

By Sandy Hoffman

Putting the “Meant” in the Mentor (Instigating “Internal Investment Intentionality”)

TiPS FOR TiGHT TeAMS

It just happened again! It was “Bye-bye Mike,” this time. Could just as easily have been Ryan or Raymond or RJ or Matt or Mark or Jen or… you get the picture. Somebody’s gone. History has repeated itself. Gone. A person I’ve believed in, encouraged and equipped to be their very best in a life of worship ministry. A protégé, a mentee, a twenty-first cen-tury disciple. Someone I’ve learned I can depend upon to offer consistent, quality contributions to the weekly worship min-istry. Now they’re gone at the behest of One Who’s plan supersedes my own. My “scheme,” to get everything on the worship team working just perfectly, then freeze it in perpetuity, appears to have been askew. Why does it seem that those in whom we invest the most are often the most likely to be Divinely relocated? Per-haps it’s because they’ve been properly prepared, and the Lord is now ready to release them into His greater plan for their lives and the lives of others they’ll impact. I’d really like to think that’s it!

The departure of someone we’ve helped to grow into a vital worship min-istry partner can be a real “head scratch-er!” The good news? Often times the joy of seeing a protégé released into a min-istry of their own, their gifts and calling used to the max, far outweighs the pain of letting them go!

Out of a JobDuring the most grueling worship minis-

try interview I can ever remember, I made a comment which very nearly cost me the job opportunity. When asked about some of my goals for personal worship minis-try, I answered that my number one goal was to always be working myself out of a job. I found out later the Board simply didn’t “get it.” This nearly disqualified me from the candidate list. As Ricky Ricardo used to say on “I Love Lucy,” I had some “splaineen” to do! My potential employ-ers wanted to understand what it meant to work myself out of the job. I looked to the Gospel for the “splaination.”

In the Book of John 4:34 & 35, Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months and then come the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the

fields, for they are already white for har-vest!” In verse 38a, Jesus follows with: “I sent you to reap…” NKJV

In these verses, there are obvious steps which the Lord takes in the process of working Himself out of His earthly job.

1- First, He stated clearly that “His [job] was to do the will of Him who sent [Him]...” After this, He demonstrated to the disciples how to get the job done through His use of miracles, teaching, debating and down right living love.

2- Next, He worked alongside them, encouraging them to see for themselves the “white fields ready for harvest.” This step allowed the disciples to begin to take owner-ship of the job themselves, while still providing them the safety net of Jesus’ physical presence.

3- Finally, He “sent them to reap…” He released them to do the job He had prepared them for. Jesus taught by example, freely allowing others to assume the job He was perform-ing on earth. His position as God/man was not threatened by em-powering others to participate with Him in the mission He had already begun!

Hindrance Schmindrance!In some way or other, even if you’re not

the designated leader, you can become a great mentor too, releasing members of the worship team you’re serving into full use of their gifts. Good mentors, dis-ciplers, managers and trainers seem to have at least one wonderful thing in com-mon: they are always working to raise up others to equal or exceed their own level of expertise. The hearts’ desire of a men-tor should be to give the mentee the tools he or she requires to rise to the heights of their abilities. The mentee is then released to do what they were created to do; se-cure in the fact that they’ve been believed in, invested in and encouraged by some-one who’s pulling for their success.

The greatest hindrance to this type of input into the lives of others (you may al-ready have guessed) is PRIDE! If we live in fear of loosing our own position as the “best,” “most professional,” “expert,”

“king of the hill,” we can begin to imag-ine a threat to our worship-turf. Worst case scenario, we may even suffer from what I would call “paralytic procrastina-tion.” This basically means we become like deer in the headlights; frozen in our own tracks by our desire to stay on top!

But look at the heart of Jesus as He en-couraged His disciples in John 14:12b:… the works that I do [you] will do also; and greater works than these [you] will do… NKJV Notice that pride never entered His picture; just the sheer pleasure of seeing others released into their full, Godly po-tential. This is the true heart of a mentor!

Content to Ment’I’ve just returned from the annual Wor-

ship Mentors Network Gathering (www.worshipmentor.com). I am more deter-mined than ever that I must continue to always be working myself out of the job! How about you? Wouldn’t it be cool to become an “intentional investor” in the lives of those the Lord leads to you? If your answer is “Yes,” here are four fun-damental steps which will help to get you started:

1- Identify potential mentees through observations and conversations which result in revelations.

2- Approach the potential mentee and present the possibility of mentor-ship.

3- Relate with the mentee on multiple levels. Emphasize listening first (on your part) then speaking. Remem-ber: God created us with two ears and one mouth!

4- Release the mentee to “be what they be!” Just as Jesus did, send them out to reap.

Identify, approach, relate and release. These four points, coupled with your hearts’ desire to serve and encourage others, will enable you to put the “meant” in your mentorship. No longer will your investment in others be by happenstance. Instead, you will become intentional, in-stigating input infused with Divine inspira-tion and the wisdom of Godly instruction. Yes, it will break your heart to see ‘em go. But you’ll wave good-bye knowing they’re taking a part of you with them into a future which God has planned!

Meant to Mentor,Sandy


www.EssentialWorship.com

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GungorBeAUTiFUL THiNGS ON THe ROAD LeSS TRAveLeD

Remember back in the third Indiana Jones movie when Indy reached the chasm and had to take that “step of faith” into seemingly nothingness—and then bam, his foot landed squarely on a stone bridge that had been camouflaged? In a similar way Gungor has followed their heart and created a work of art that is a step into the unfamiliar with both their new recording “Beautiful Things” and the performance events that compliment it. Just like Indy, Michael Gungor seems to have found a firm foothold in the yet-to-be-explored, and it works well.

20 JULY/AUG 2010 WORSHIPMUSICIANMAGAZINE.COM

An interview with Michael Gungor by Aimee Herd

Aimee Herd: Michael, I’ve got to tell you I love it when something crosses my desk that sparks the eclectic nerves in my brain, and your album Beautiful Things, did just that. To start with, talk a little about the concept or the theme of this project.Michael Gungor: “Beautiful Things”—

that God can bring beautiful things from dust, and makes beautiful things out of us—is a fairly common theme throughout the album. In noticing and experiencing the pain that can be part of life, a lot of the album was written out of some times of pain that were experienced personally and with people in our community. But then [the album explores] the other side of that which is hope; that God is not distant from our pain. I think that’s the story we see on the cross, with Jesus. God is not “out there” watching from a distance, but in Jesus, He actually shares with us in our sufferings. And,

He can also make

something out of our pain and the chaos of the world—there’s a direction and a story to it. Somehow He makes beautiful things out of the dust. AH: I want to ask specifically about

some of the songs on this recording, but first—sonically—this album seems to be on a whole other level in uniqueness, even from previous projects you’ve done. What brought about that direction?MG: Well, first of all, I produced this one

myself for the very first time... that was one change...AH: Was that a challenge for you?MG: Oh yeah, it was hard. (Laughing)

It was a lot of work. We basically rented a house, brought gear up, set up and just

started making noise. It was fun, I really enjoyed

it. But, doing all the editing

mysel f—all the string

photos by Ben De Rienzo

JULY/AUG 2010 WORSHIPMUSICIANMAGAZINE.COM 21

arrangements—it was just a lot of work. I guess another difference between this

and some of the stuff we’d done before is that, with this record, I really took the art of it seriously. It became part of the message. I think sometimes in Christian music, the message is so important to us that often the art takes a secondary place. I think when we do that, it kind of makes the art feel like propaganda, like it’s just a means to carry the message. Rather than realizing that art, within itself, is a sacred thing. The crafting of it and the forming of it is creation, and what it means to be human and to worship God. So, the art of it was just as important to me as the message it was carrying. I really tried not to compromise in that area.For Ancient Skies I wasn’t terribly mindful

of Christian radio, but I was more mindful of it. It did come up—“is that a little too much for Christian radio?”...etc. For this record, I didn’t care at all. (Laughing) I just made what felt right in my heart. I’ve always

had this

balance—because I’m a worship leader—of not just doing this for myself, but helping others worship and experience God. But, there’s a tension, because I also feel that I have to be faithful to what God’s called me to be. So, this record was more “let me make what moves my soul and maybe others will also be moved.” I took my liberties. (Laughing)AH: Well, if you think about it, God is

the Creator and the ultimate in creativity. So, when you’re creating art, you’re kind of hooking up with Him, it seems natural. As someone listens to Beautiful Things in

sequence, they’ll be met head on with the first song, Dry Bones...MG: I think the two sections of the song—

the verse and the chorus—were written at different times. It starts with the classical guitar and dissonant sounds of “My soul cries out...dry bones cry out for You...” That’s really what I was experiencing when I wrote it, just a really dry time, wanting

to feel again, wanting to experience God’s presence again.

And then, the chorus, I think, was

written during a more hopeful time when I was probably feeling a little bit more of His love. I made them work together so there is a flow to the song. AH: What about the song Cannot Keep

You?MG: I feel like it’s so easy for us to form

an image out of God. The Bible says we were made in His image, I think sometimes we try to make Him in our image—an extended version of ourselves (maybe a better version). Idolatry has been around forever. Whether it’s actually crafting an image or just having these concepts in our head where we contain God. God is infinite—there is nothing that can define or box Him in.We travel a lot, ending up in a lot of

different churches, and I’ve heard a lot of sermons where God is neatly packaged and figured out, and the “infinite” seems lost. So, Cannot Keep You kind of deals with that: “They tried to keep You in a tent,

they tried to keep You in a temple,” talking

about old

time idolatry and trying to limit God. Even in these times I’ve heard people using the Bible—which beautifully helps you dive into the infinity of God—to neatly figure out the limitation of God. AH: The Earth Is Yours seems to echo

strains of Psalm 29, but did the move to Colorado, and the scenic imagery there also help lead to the writing of it?MG: I think that is also part of why the

album sounds differently from previous ones; what works in Colorado for our community—the kind of life we live and the people around us—is quite a bit different than it used to be. I think the places where we live always impact us, and that comes out through our music.AH: So, the music on Beautiful Things

is born out of songs written for your community there, or where they written specifically for the album?MG: Most of the songs were written

for our community first. Some that are more artistically-driven I wasn’t able to find a place for, but almost all of them had a place in our service. A lot of them were written about things we were going through together. We Will Run to You—we were talking

about repentance at church, and I realized we didn’t really have a song about repentance to sing. I was teaching on that subject that night at the church, so I said to my wife, “Lisa, I need a song. Write me a song about repentance.” So she went in and wrote Run to You. AH: Now, Lisa—your wife—sings and

plays keyboards and more in the band, and you often write with her. How does that process go, in co-writing together?MG: We live in the same house, so if

she’s playing the piano I hear it, and if I’m playing the guitar she hears it. A lot of

GUNGOR: Beautiful Things on the Road Less Traveled continued


times we’ll be writing and have ideas and just share them, “Hey what do you think about this?” Once in a while I’ll say, “Just give me a few minutes with this alone...” But, most of the time, at some point I’ll say, “Hey come here, let me get your ear on this.” It’s nice; I’ve collaborated with her more than anyone else. Of course early on, we had to learn about throwing out ideas and having them shot down, not letting it get personal. I think we’ve learned how to do that pretty well.AH: That’s good because it could be a

touchy thing. You also collaborated with Israel Houghton on Say So... MG: I tried to make the album a little

eclectic; however, there are some boundaries that would be a little ridiculous to cross on the same album. But, I love to get way outside of our boundaries sometimes and do some jazz stuff like Israel’s band. I enjoy diversity myself; I studied jazz in school and I like opportunities to think outside of my normal thinking.AH: Speaking of thinking outside the

box, I really enjoyed your blog entry titled “There’s No Such Thing As Christian Music.” You’ve gone through some transition and transformation over the years in your paradigm of Christianity and Christian music... share a little about that.MG: I grew up only listening to what

we labeled as “Christian music.” While I’m glad I avoided some of the music that did trip up some of my friends and seemed to make them darker, I feel like I missed out on some good music. There was a lot of music that my friends were inspired by that I never got to be inspired by. As I’ve grown, as my understanding of the Gospel has broadened a bit, and as I’ve just walked this journey...I saw the way that I grew up, how small ideas and limited concepts of God had boxed Him

in and limited Him. I hadn’t realized that all beauty comes from Him, and that all creativity comes from God. And then, as I was starting to walk into

the Christian music industry, I realized that not everyone there was in it for the purest of motives, and that not everyone was even a Christian. It is a business, and there’s nothing really “holy” about the Christian music industry. There are some people in it that are great, as I’m sure there are in the mainstream market that are great. I saw the lines blur, and realized that music itself can’t follow Jesus—it’s made of sounds and vibrations. There have been a lot of people who use lots of “Jesus words” but don’t believe anything they say. There’s a passage in Scripture where God says, “...away from Me with the noise of your festivals... I hate the sound of your music...” I’m sure they were singing all the right things, and had the required “J.P.M.” (Jesus-per-minute) count to their lyrics... (Laughing)AH: I like that... “J.P.M.” (Laughing)MG: Well, I guess Jesus wasn’t on the

scene yet so I guess it wasn’t that...AH: It was “Y.P.M.” then: “Yahweh-per-

minute!”MG: That’s great. (Laughing) But, despite

all that, the music was still ugly and gross to God [who looks on the heart]. A Christian accountant doesn’t keep the books then scribble “Jesus” over all his work. In the same way, just because you’re a Christian songwriter, it doesn’t mean you always have to put Christian lingo throughout every song that you write. Just be a musician; write songs and do what you do, and love and follow Jesus. I’ve seen too many musicians apologize

saying, “Yeah, I’m a musician, but it’s not really Christian music...” I just want to shake them! (Laughing) “What are you talking about? You’re doing a beautiful thing, where’s your heart at? Do what you’re doing but do it well. You’re the Jesus-follower, not the music. You don’t have to apologize for who you are and who God made you to be—you don’t have to fit into some little box that the industry made up, to feel like you are really serving God with your talent.”AH: So then, what are some of the ways

that Believers, who have been immersed in a church culture for so long, can begin to expand their worldview in a way that doesn’t compromise their walk with God?MG: Well... read good books that

challenge your mind, not just ones that agree with you all the time. Watch your heart while you’re reading though, sometimes if I read too many books that are jaded, I can sense my heart getting harder and more cynical. ...Listening to, and associating with people that aren’t exactly like you. …Anything that will

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enlarge your heart and mind for people that you wouldn’t normally come across.AH: Michael, you chose to sign with

a mainstream indie label for Beautiful Things, what led to that decision? MG: In the same mindset as I approached

the [writing of] the record; I didn’t want to be forced into any kind of box. When I met the Brash guys [Brash Music], there was just something so refreshing about them. I can talk honestly with [Steve Jones] the president of Brash, and he doesn’t pretend...he’ll tell me, “I don’t know what the worship music thing is all about, you’re the one who knows how to do that. I’m not going to tell you what to do or how to make the record.” He gives me freedom to make the kind of record that I want to make; he’ll give me his opinion but he doesn’t claim to be an authority on leading worship. It just felt right, so I went with them.AH: And, changing your name from

“Michael Gungor Band” to just “Gungor”... what was the reasoning there?MG: The name “Michael Gungor Band”

was never very intentional, it just kind of happened. We were always getting introduced as “Michael Gungor and his


GUNGOR: Beautiful Things on the Road Less Traveled continued

praise team” or something like that, because I was a worship leader and I had a band. So, we changed it to “The Michael Gungor Band” so I didn’t ever have to hear “...and his praise minstrels” ever again! But, I never really liked that name; it felt really “about me.” I wanted to find a way to make it less concretely about me, without losing all recognition from the ones who did know us, so “Gungor” seemed the way to go. Basically, I wanted people to come to a show, not to “see Michael Gungor perform,” but to take in a transcendent experience that’s much bigger than one performer. It feels better to me.AH: What about the

venues where you play, are you still playing in churches or are they becoming more neutral now, considering your direction?MG: In the past, we’d

get hired into these gigs where they set the tone, and it’s their event, and we try to serve them within that culture. Doing that is fine, but I always feel like

there’s something I would do differently. I wanted to get more purposeful with creating the kind of experience that I have in my heart to create when we do a concert. So that was the birth of the Beautiful Things events, shortly after we released the record. They are basically my dream gig. I was the promoter; I booked mostly in theaters. In the past we’d have to focus more on

the congregational, more “churchy” songs on our record, which left the more artistic side of our record untouched. So, this [Beautiful Things events] was leaning more the other way; we decided to dive into the art. We bring our whole team on the stage—there are like 10 to 12 of us—on the stage. There are strings and this giant scrim that has this dimension video with visual content going on. There is poetry, and it’s comprised of three movements. We’re formally dressed and it almost feels like a kind of worship recital. (Laughing) The idea was; we took this worship music out of the church, and just worshiped. You know, if you went to see Sigur Ros, it’s to experience something. I wanted it to be like that. I wanted to create that transcendent movement from the moment

people walk in the door. It’s been unlike any worship experience

that I’ve been a part of, but I love it! We hardly talk through the whole thing, there are these long musical movements and it’s interesting to see people’s reactions. They don’t know what to do sometimes, they’re just staring, and then other times they become overwhelmed and throw their hands in the air worshiping. People have been really moved, and have experienced the worship in a kind of different paradigm. AH: Have you done these concerts

across the country yet, or are you just starting to do that? MG: We’re just starting to do that. I

paid for the first five myself; we did those in cities where we knew a lot of people and had a lot of friends. We’re about to add a couple more in Nashville and Pennsylvania, and we’re trying to get some booked in Canada and a few on the East Coast. AH: Are you really into gear, and what

do you prefer? MG: Gear-wise, electric-wise, I have a

Strat and a 335 that I also play live on. I had a beautiful Gretsch that got smashed by United Airlines (thank you very much, United).AH: Uh-oh another video saga of a

smashed guitar.MG: Yeah, no kidding! And then,

pedals; we use a lot of Fulltone pedals, I have a Cusack Screamer that I get most of my overdrive with. But, I’ve never been the major gear guy. Brad—our guitar player—is kind of the “gear-nerd.” My acoustic is an Olson Guitar, which is not “cool looking” at all, but it’s just magical to me. I’ve had it since I was 15, and it’s my baby to play. AH: Do you have any future plans

besides the Beautiful Things events that you have planned? MG: We’re still engaged in our local

church, “Bloom”; I try to get back as much as I can (we do Sunday night services). And Lisa’s pregnant...AH: First one?MG: Yeah, first baby—a little baby girl’s

coming. I know I’m going to have some good balancing to do here—wondering if the baby will travel with us or not.AH: Yes you will, but that’s exciting,

congratulations!

Learn more about Gungor, and read Michael’s blog at:

www.gungormusic.com

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SONGCHART

LISA and MICHAEL GUNGOR

KEY OF

Beautiful Things

Copyright © 2010 worshiptogether.com Songs (ASCAP) (adm. by EMI CMG Publishing) All Rights Reserved. Used by permission. CCLI Song No. 5665521

[D]G A/G D Bm7 D/F# Daug F#m

All this pain;

VERSE 1:

G A/G D

I wonder if I’ll ever find my way?

G A/G DYou make beautiful things,

CHORUS 2:

D

I wonder if my life could really

G A/GYou make beautiful things out of the dust.

Change at all?

Bm7 D/F# G A/G DYou make beautiful things,

All this earth;

G A/G DYou make beautiful things out of us.

Daug

Could all that is lost ever be found?


G

Could a garden come up from this


Ground at all?


D

You make beautiful things out of us!

You make beautiful things,

CHORUS 1:

D D F#m G D F#m G D

You make beautiful things out of the dust.

You make beautiful things, You make me new, You are making me new.

BRIDGE:

D F#m G D

You make beautiful things out of the dust. You make me new, You are making me new.

D F#m G D

(continue BRIDGE, overlay CHORUS lyrics)

All a - round

VERSE 1:

G A/G D

Hope is springing up from this old ground;

G A/G D (repeat BRIDGE and fade)

Out of chaos life is being

G A/G

Found in you.

Bm7 D/F# G A/G D


KEY OF

Beautiful Things



All this pain;

VERSE 1:

G A/G D



CHORUS 2:

D



Change at all?


All this earth;


Daug



G



Ground at all?


D



CHORUS 1:

D D F#m G D F#m G D



BRIDGE:

D F#m G D


D F#m G D


All a - round

VERSE 1:

G A/G D




G A/G

Found in you.

Bm7 D/F# G A/G D


KEY OF

Beautiful Things



All this pain;

VERSE 1:

G A/G D



CHORUS 2:

D



Change at all?


All this earth;


Daug



G



Ground at all?


D



CHORUS 1:

D D F#m G D F#m G D



BRIDGE:

D F#m G D


D F#m G D


All a - round

VERSE 1:

G A/G D




G A/G

Found in you.

Bm7 D/F# G A/G D


KEY OF

Beautiful Things



All this pain;

VERSE 1:

G A/G D



CHORUS 2:

D



Change at all?


All this earth;


Daug



G



Ground at all?


D



CHORUS 1:

D D F#m G D F#m G D



BRIDGE:

D F#m G D


D F#m G D


All a - round

VERSE 1:

G A/G D




G A/G

Found in you.

Bm7 D/F# G A/G D


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’TIS SO SWEET TO TRUST INHOW GREAT IS OUR GOD

THE POWER OF THE CROSS

GLORIOUS DAY

AMAZING GRACE (MY CHAINS ARE GONE)

HERE I AM TO WORSHIP

SAY, SAY

BLESSED BE YOUR NAME

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COME, THOU FOUNT OF EVERY BLESSING

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GOD WILL MAKE A WAY

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of the church. One in particular would be “The Magic Hour”, making poignant the gathering together of the saints. It’s a reminder of how sacred our time is as a congregation of believers.

Andrew Peterson has a distinctly old school country vein – many of the songs sound like a train traveling down the tracks. He’s relaxed but focused, so even though the instrumentation is top notch, be sure to pay attention to the lyrics. You’ll be encouraged.

Carlos Whittaker“Ragamuffin Soul”TRACKS (personal picks bolded)1 Rain It Down2 Can’t Start This Fight3 God Of Second Chances4 We Will Worship You5 No Words6 Because Of You7 Shine On8 Grace Already Won9 Jesus Saves10 In Your Presence11 Your Name12 We Will Dance

Carlos, a vo-cational worship leader, blends his experience as a seasoned leader with his pursuit for a new song. Although the arrangements in-

clude some superfluous effects and trend toward a digital sound, the songs will translate well into a church setting.

Worship writers have a difficult bal-ance to strike; writing lyrics of interest and originality while still remaining relatable to a wide range of participants. Carlos has found his balance and it’s evident that he’s concerned with being authentic and inclusive at the same time.

I believe people will be hearing and singing his songs with greater and greater frequency as his exposure broadens. His ability to build a song lyrically and instru-mentally keeps his album interesting while still leaving room for a worship band to make it their own. Worship leaders will greatly appreciate the flexibility to include his songs whether they have a full band with a strings section or are leading solo with one instrument.

The lower marks in the first category are not because of the heart or intent be-hind the lyrics. They are only because I put such a premium on thought-through, original words without excessive repeti-tion. However – to argue against myself – often times what we feel as a result of the power of God is “Jesus loves me this I know”. Simple doesn’t mean it lacks integ-rity just as complicated doesn’t mean it’s of higher quality. It’s a preference thing.

ReCORD RevieWS By Heidi Todd

Overall impressionAverage person could learn/participate on the first hear

Can be learned/adapted by a band of average skillLyrical creativity and integrity

ALM: uk “Name Above All Names”Andrew Peterson “Counting Stars”Carlos Whittaker “Ragamuffin Soul”Hillsong Live “A Beautiful Exchange”John Mark McMillan “The Medicine”Yancy “Rock-n-Happy Heart”

highest marks

ALM: uk“Name Above All Names”TRACKS (personal picks bolded)1 Great And Glorious2 God Is For Us3 Be Glorified4 Name Above All Names5 Take My Life6 Back To You7 My God Reigns8 Forever Be Praised9 You Are10 First Love

Hi marks for a cd full of songs that focus on exalting the Lord. And though it’s in keeping with sounds often found in modern worship, they added an ethereal quality to an otherwise straight forward approach. Worship leaders Jonathan James, Matt Hooper and Mark Stevens set a great example for their peers; hav-ing a mature understanding of who God is while making your music inviting. One doesn’t have to substitute the other.

Their band is great and the album is mixed well. Everything is clear but sounds real, not over-processed. The instruments are carefully balanced – and whoever their drummer is, hits hard and isn’t shy. Cool.

Regarding their approach, it’s com-pletely appropriate for where we find ourselves in worship history – they are on the forefront of a higher focus. Their lyrics acknowledge that they are coming from a flawed human experience, but where they dwell, is in the areas where God is “other than”. It is on Him that we rely and in Him that we place our hope so it’s fitting how they have kept that in focus when writing their songs.

There is definitely a youth strain in this album, but not at the expense of sound lyrics. You can see how many of the tracks will become anthems for a young generation of worshipers. And for those of us slightly more seasoned (smile) their songs will be our songs too.

I found it difficult to narrow down only two personal picks, which is the number I try to stay true to on reviews for equity’s sake. I appreciate the obviously personal expression of adoration and respect giv-

en to the Lord in this cd and look forward to some day worshiping God with the ALM team live and in person.

Andrew Peterson“Counting Stars”TRACKS (personal picks bolded)1 Many Roads2 Dancing In The Minefields3 Planting Trees4 The Magic Hour5 World Traveler6 Isle Of Skye7 God Of My Fathers8 Fool With A Fancy Guitar9 In The Night10 You Came So Close11 The Last Frontier12 The Reckoning (How Long)

The first time I had ever heard of An-drew Peterson was when my sister in Ari-zona read some of his lyrics to me over the phone. And not surprisingly, we were

both in tears before she got done with one song. Even so, the first time I fully ap-preciated Andrew was when I saw him in person. He was on a cd-release tour for his last album and was playing shows free of charge in little venues all over the place. My sister actually flew up from Phoenix to join her best friend and me in Portland, OR for a concert in an intimately sized church. He brought along a friend and musician from Nashville and the two of them had all of us packed into that little chapel, totally spellbound. And at times during the concert, men and women alike, of all ages, were either laughing out loud or sobbing.

His voice is clear and pure, but isn’t what necessarily captures you; it’s the words. And it’s the way the music girds up what he’s trying to say without compet-ing. Andrew is an avid reader, of the Bi-ble and of good literature of all kinds. He is a studied individual, which accounts for the wealth he has to draw from lyrically.

While most of the songs on this cd aren’t congregationally-friendly, you may be able to adapt a chorus here and there to get these lyric-rich songs in the hands



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“In Your Presence” captures, poignant-ly, the power of God’s presence in a worship setting. Carlos, if you ever read this, please know I regard you highly as a leader and it’s clear that you are no stranger to the presence and power of Jesus. I look forward to more in the future.

Hillsong Live“A Beautiful Exchange”TRACKS (personal picks bolded)1 Our God Is Love2 Open My Eyes3 Forever Reign4 The One Who Saves5 Like Incense/Sometimes By Step6 Greatness Of Our God7 The Father’s Heart8 You9 Love Like Fire10 Believe11 Beautiful Exchange12 Thank You13 Forever Reign (Radio Version)

With hundreds of songs under their belts, spanning decades, it makes you wonder – when are these guys ever go-ing to slow down? Not likely. They’ve done a great job remaining relevant over the years. And regardless of your person-al music preference, they’ve earned their props once again.

Having long appreciated their willing-ness to platform multiple worshiper lead-ers, the variety of voices on this cd is great. They are distinct from each other, each bringing their own story to the table.

What can become wearisome is the seemingly irresistible urge Hillsong writers have to build and swell each song. It’s rare that a song that starts with a sense of lingering ever stays that way for long. A song on an earlier release “Found” is a rare exception and I find myself looking for that again.

What used to be the signature sound for the Hillsong United band, has become the new norm for Hillsong worship as they have embraced the necessary evolution of their creative efforts. They are prolific and a shining example of their genre.

Big thanks to a legendary worship team. “A Beautiful Exchange” is sure to continue Hillsong’s legacy of capturing and inspiring worshipers and writers around the globe.

John Mark McMillan“The Medicine”TRACKS (personal picks bolded)1 Reckoning Day2 The Medicine

3 Skeleton Bones4 Carbon Ribs5 Dress Us Up6 Death In His Grave7 Belly Of The Lion8 Philadelphia9 Out Of The Ground10 Ten Thousand11 Carolina Tide12 My Only13 Between The Cracks14 How He Loves (Single)

Do not be fooled by the lower marks in the second and third category – while this is not a church congregation “sing-a-long” cd, the qual-ity is unquestionable.

Where do I start?

First of all, John’s voice is unique and natural. He sings like breathing – effort-less but right on point. Even though there are 14 tracks on this release, it stayed fresh throughout. The style of music is consistent, but each song is an individual thought.

Second of all, there is plenty of inter-est in the instrumentation. That is, in part, why my guess is that the average musi-

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Heidi’s background is primarily in worship ministry, joining her first team at age twelve. She’s been a part of the Puyallup Foursquare staff since 2001, with an emphasis on team building and live production. She enjoys and makes time for the ongoing learning process as well as pre-senting and speaking. You can email her at [email protected].

By Heidi Todd

cian isn’t going to be able to mimic it or adapt it without losing some of the integ-rity of the songs. I don’t think a cd like this is meant to be duplicated, rather, inter-preted. The majority of the songs would illustrate a sermon, series or communion beautifully.

Which leads me to the third thing; lyri-cal quality. This is true story telling, both of a walk in faith and a walk in humanity, which is why in part, these make great “featured” songs in a church service more than a congregational sing.

This cd is very personal; if you were ever to shake hands with John, you might feel like you already know him to some degree. Many times while listening, I imagined he and his band sitting around in an old southern roadside gas station/café with a rusty soda machine outside, just playing for the sheer enjoyment of it.

Did I mention I liked the cd? I think you will too.

Yancy“Rock-n-Happy Heart”TRACKS (personal picks bolded)1 Super Start2 One Of A Kind3 Shout!

4 My Savior My God5 Paid In Full6 I’m Really Happy7 Always Be8 Dreams Will Come True9 I Can’t Stop10 With All My Heart11 It’s Not New12 No Other NameBonus Songs13 Paid In Full Remix14 Shout! Remix15 Dreams Will Come True Remix

“Rock - n -Happy Heart” is a fun kids’ album and is being rated on the basis of how it will translate to a young audi-ence. Yancy made a crisp light-hearted

album full of songs that are sure to be fa-vorites of many a tween the world ‘round. And you can easily imagine little kids jumping up and down and sing/scream-ing the words right along with her. As a parent, I appreciate any artist who helps kids know that joy in worship is not only appropriate but essential.

As an adult listener, you can’t take yourself too seriously when you’re en-joying music like this; it’s ideal for your

silly, joyous side. But in case you’re envi-sioning bubblegum monotony, not so of Yancy. She has incorporated a bit of an edge with gritty guitar tones and plenty of rhythm. In addition to the driving, let’s jump around together songs, she includes ballads and even a hymn.

Parents can appreciative the fact that the driving force of this album is what’s true about God. She utilizes her music to teach and reinforce hope in Christ – not only that we should hope in Him, but in which ways and circumstances we can count on Him to be more than enough.

While my kids are probably too old to add this release to their iPods, it’s a sen-sible purchase for kids in their early teens or younger. She has also created a kid-friendly devotional that is worth checking out. Good going Yancy.


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FOH eNGiNeeR

This article is going to throw out some cool tricks for “talk back” setups with ear monitor systems.

What is a “talk back”. Simply, it is a microphone the sound

guy uses to talk to the band. It is very useful during sound check to clarify their needs. It is also useful during a service where we need to get a message to the worship leader. We can just wait for a pause in the music and say something like, “Excuse me, but the pastor just called me from his cell phone, and apparently he is locked in the restroom. I think you should do another song or two while we sort this out.”

How do they work?The straight-ahead “talk back”.

Some consoles have a mic built in with a few buttons that enable you to talk to certain aux mixes. This is often the sim-plest and best approach. I’d much rather use a channel strip to setup my own talk-back. Just plug a mic (a cheap one with a switch works and is more than adequate) into the last channel on the board. Do not assign it to the main speakers. Only route it to the ear monitors or personal moni-tor systems. This approach is a little more versatile than most “built in” systems. The only downfall of this setup is that there is no way for the leader to respond to us without the congregation hearing him.

The simple “talk back” to the BAND setup. (see figure 1) In this setup we route the worship leader’s mic through a little box called the Panic Button (by www.Pro-CoSound.com). This box has 1 input and 2 outputs. Think of it like a Y cable with a toggle switch for each output. Output 1 will be sent to the house speakers via a channel on the console until you step on

the switch, then it mutes output 1 and sends au-dio only out output 2. We setup output 2 to only route to the moni-tor system and not the house.

Follow the wires and look at the house faders and aux sends to under-stand just what I’m talk-ing about. Take special notice of Aux 2’s set-tings. Instead of taking the input to your monitor system from the Direct Out of the worship leader’s channel strip, we’ve used an aux send. This way the personal mixer will only need 1 input for the lead vocal, the leader’s “talk back”, and our “talk back”.

This system adds the ability for the wor-ship leader to give messages to the band that the congregation does not hear.

The really cool, secret “talk back” to EVERYONE setup. So up to this point we have the ability to talk to the band and/or worship leader with our mic, the wor-ship leader can talk to the band, but how can he get us a message at FOH. We could just solo his channel and listen on our headphones, but sometimes we’ve missed the message by the time we get our headphones on.

But what if we could also add a way for him to step away from his main mic and still talk to the band & us. This setup should be pretty self-explanatory if you di-gested the last one. Take a look at figure 2, we’ve got basically the same setup as figure 1, only this time we added a wireless lapel on the worship leader, and instead of using a Panic Button we are us-ing a Power Mute (also by ProCo). One thing to note about the Power Mute is that it is capable of a bunch of different op-tions. Consult the manual and set it up so that it is in push-to-talk mode. That is, it only turns on the mic when the footswitch is held down. It mutes again when your foot is taken off.

In this setup the worship leader is free to step back away from his vocal mic, and “talk into the air” so to speak. When he does that, he hits the Power Mute and we can hear him through the monitor rout-ing we setup earlier.

Now check out the the little powered monitor in the bottom right corner of figure 2. For it to be unobtrusive try to locate it somewhere near your ear at FOH. I’ve had good success setting mine on the rack just to my right, which happens to be just about ear level. I don’t have to run it very loud at all. The little monitor gets it input from the direct-out of the channel with the worship leader’s “talk back”.

The key to these setups are the little foot switches. You could just wire a few XLRs to a switch but you’ll most likely get a pop every time the switch is clicked. The way these boxes work is by inserting a 40db pad on the output. In effect it just turns down an output instead of unplugging it.

On another note, the worship leader is not necessarily the one who needs this system. We could dedicate one of these systems to, say, the keyboard player. It could then be their job to take cues from the worship leader, and relay them to the band, FOH engineer, and video depart-ment.

Tip: Make sure to spend a good deal of time during sound check getting this up and calibrated. For those musicians listen-ing to the “talk back” aux send remember that it is silent until “talk back” is pressed. So, from their perspective they might all of a sudden hear the voice of whoever is talking at an unreasonable volume in their ear monitors.

I think you can see, with a little thought, there are some pretty neat ways we can open up communication to and from the stage. A team that can communicate gives a lot of freedom for the worship leader to actually lead instead of feeling constrained to the program.

Till next month, John

By John Mills

Talk Back

John is an 18-year vet-eran of the road. He was a frustrated Electrical Engineer who hated college. Left school to pursue a career on the road as a drummer, ended up as a sound engineer, and after being blessed to work for many of the top level Christian worship leaders including Chris Tomlin, Lincoln Brewster, Shane and Shane, Paul Baloche, and many more, has landed at a job as an audio engineer for a design firm. He says, “I guess Mom was right, she always knew I’d finally got a real job.” Check out www.EliteMultimedia.com and www.TechTraining101.com for more about what John is up to.


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Scott has led classes for us at NAMM and the Christian Musician Summit. He was recently featured in Adweek and is the CEO of FrontGate Media, the #1 pop-culture media group reaching the Christian audi-ence (www.FrontGateMedia.com) and is the co-founder of Creator Worship: online radio for worship leaders (www.Creator-Worship.com).

MiNiSTRY + ARTiSTRY = PROFiTABiLiTY? CReATiNG YOUR MAP™

Welcome to the second of a multi-part series on marketing for worship leaders. I’m prayerfully excited about this dialogue with you in the hope that God will bring us together to help extend your reach in worship music and the arts.

In the last issue, we talked about one of the most frequently asked questions I hear: “How do I make it in the music industry?” I’ve heard that question stated in many different ways, but the common thread is about making ends meet. For me, that is M + A = P which is the MAP™ I think I have for you. Can Ministry + Artistry = Profitability? Absolutely. Last time we talked about your mission. Now let’s talk about Fan Development.

Power Shift There has been a massive power and

opportunity shift within the music industry. I know you’ve seen it. The CD is breathing its last gasps. Billboard Magazine’s Sales Charts are topped by albums selling tens of thousands of albums in a week, not hundreds of thousands. Music labels are in a tail spin, working hard to figure out how to survive. And yet, music consump-tion has not decreased, it has most likely increased. Unfortunately for those of us who like albums, the industry’s tendency to put out 10 mediocre songs along with 2 great ones finally came back to haunt them. When the digital age provided consumers with a way around paying as much as $16.99 for a CD, they did. There is a whole generation of consumers who have never purchased a CD. CDs won’t completely die, but you can expect them to become more like vinyl is today.

At the same time, MySpace paved the way for Twitter, YouTube and Facebook to give artists the one thing they didn’t have before: direct contact with their con-sumers. One of the my most profound disappointments in our industry is seeing the great artists of the Jesus Music move-ment come out the other end of the label and distribution systems having very little or even zero idea who bought all those records, tapes and CDs. They have next to no direct connection to their own fan-base.

Where the label and distribution sys-tems have lost power through declining sales and retail outlets, artists and art-ist managers have gained tremendous power to reach out and harvest their own fans. This has created exponential growth for any artist, especially a worship art-

ist who has a church base to start from. Disclaimer: I’m not a label-hater. The la-bels and distribution systems can provide artists with great value. Quality produc-tion, radio servicing and tour support are things most artists either can’t or don’t do well.

Fan DevelopmentAs artists, we need to stop thinking

about how to sell our CDs. Instead we need to think about how to develop fans. Isn’t that what you’ve wanted to do all along? Don’t you want to write and play music that connects people to God? We are leading people in worship. Leading requires relationship, so the real question becomes “How many ways can I have relationship with my audience?”

Imagine if you had 1000 fans that over the course of one year spent $100 with you or donated $100 to your ministry? I bet you could work with a $100,000 an-nual budget! Start thinking about all the things you can offer your fans, then think about which of them you can monetize. A big part of your relationship in Fan De-velopment will be free offerings that pour into your fans. Devotionals, encourage-ment, teaching, leading at your church, leading in your city: all great. You may decide that giving away your music is part of your Fan Development. Instead of selling an average 10-12 song CD, maybe you give away your top 5 songs, but sell an enhanced CD and download

By Scott A. Shuford

Fan Development

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stick with more songs or more content? Look at your lyrics. What is really impact-ing your audience? Can that message be put on t-shirts, bracelets, art on a wall, temporary tattoos, anything else that al-lows fans to both remember and evange-lize that message? Would they benefit from time spent with you through a VIP buy in of some kind?

Think outside the CD case and let me know what you come up with.

First we talked about mission. Now we’ve talked about Fan Development. Next time we’ll talk about why you should seriously considering being a non-profit organization rather than a business. Email me your comments or questions to [email protected].


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system breaks down, or there are chang-es we all must face? The notion of flex-ibility seems less of an alternative. Even worse, what happens when we’ve put out everything we’ve got, only to realize we cannot put anymore? “I’m out of bullets.”

People talk about a downturn in the economy, and those changes affect every facet of our lives – including the mecha-nisms in place for worship. It may mean doubling up jobs as church staffers are laid off. It may mean cutting one service instead of having two or more Sunday services. It may mean not being able to pay for a worship leader’s full-time staff position or cutting down to a part-time role.

Let me suggest some things to help you work through times when, for whatever reason, you are out of bullets.

The main thing is to be teachable. You have a gift, but you are also under or-ders. When you are told, “Change of plans,” be flexible. Have a Christ-like attitude. Be gra-cious. This is not the time for you to send out an e-blast to your fellow staffers of how cruelly you have been treated. Remember, the “ministry” is not about you.

Don’t go to the dark side. “I am not worthy.” Doubting yourself is not a good solution. Just because you are in a season of speed bumps doesn’t mean you need to get off the bus. What hap-pened to your conviction and all the sacrifices that led up to finally getting those great worship lead-ing opportunities? Are you now questioning God as well?

If a request from a Senior or Execu-tive Pastor seems unreasonable, there is nothing wrong with bringing up your concerns.

Another thing you can do to protect yourself is to get your worship team be-hind you. The worst thing that can hap-pen is when you encounter a problem, and you take out your pistol and yell, “Let’s take that hill,” you turn around and there

is no one there. Let your worship team be your backbone. Don’t let a Levitical High Priest attitude fool you. If you think you are better than anyone else on your wor-ship team, that attitude will come through loud and clear and when you need help, no one will be there to support you. Let’s face it, no matter how talented you are, you are still a sinner saved by grace. It is better to walk in humility in Christian service rather than live a life of pleasure and egocentric satisfaction. Having an attitude of, “That’s beneath me,” doesn’t help anybody.

Realize that what you were called for requires you to sometimes be the medic. Remember those documentaries or dra-matic movies where a soldier is calming down a wounded buddy and he cries out, “Medic!” Be on call. Know that part of your purpose is not just to

lead in music but to serve as

a minister. The min-istry de-m a n d s of our abi l i ty to step out of c o m -p l a -c e n c y a n d into ac-tion.

Finally, use the su-

perna tu ra l strength that

God’s Holy Spirit has re-

served for you. That will make you

a mighty warrior, not because of anything

you have but because you are willing to do whatever it

takes to serve Christ—even if it means picking up rocks.

By Michael Gonzales

What if I Have No More Bullets?

AUTHeNTiC WORSHiP

I have shared this story be-

fore when I have spo-ken in pub l i c , but I re-member a time w h e n my dad

was serv-ing in the

U.S. Army, 7th Cavalry

in Korea. He told me of a time when this

platoon was ordered to hold

their position at the base of a

hill. After days of being embedded,

the young lieuten-ant receives an order

to take the hill. The problem is, they are

understaffed and low on ammunition. But an order

is an order, so the brave leader takes out his revolver

and yells out, “Let’s take that hill!” The men, already exhaust-

ed from fighting and having low morale, are not inclined to move except for one. A soldier bends down and be-gins searching for something. His buddy asks him, “What are you looking for?” Knowing that he is low on ammo, the first soldier replies, “I’m looking for rocks. Just gimme a rock and I’ll kill ‘em.”

These days in some churches, it might be rare to find a worship leader, or some staff people, willing to have that kind of attitude. I know someone in Southern California who would have a fit if he was asked to step out of his comfort zone. He might protest, “I wasn’t hired to lead wor-ship in kid’s church. What happened to Bobby? Why can’t he do it?”

Many worship leaders are effective in their ministries but some worship leaders have an attitude as if they are the talent on an ocean cruise line. “Don’t tell me what to do; I have a routine. I’ve been working this for four years now and I have a system.” But what happens when the



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ing any challenging transitions before you get to rehearsal.

3) Contrast is keyAs you’re on your way to rehearsal,

start to think about how the rest of the team will be inclined to play the piece and make some decisions beforehand about what patches and sounds you are going to use. Playing it just like the re-cord is not always appropriate, but can serve as a great benchmark. Increasingly, I’m hearing worship teams take liberties with the original parts, so don’t be afraid to make something easier if you need to. People would much rather hear you play an easier part well than a tough one poorly.

At Rehearsal4) Come early, stay late

My favorite musicians are the first to ar-rive and the last to leave. A worship team really benefits through fellowship, and rehearsal is the perfect place for that. It’s also a great time to help the vocalists set up their mics, in addition to getting your own gear ready for the downbeat. Once rehearsal has finished, help others with their gear – on a Sunday when you’re late getting to Church the dividends can be VERY worthwhile!

5) Line of fireEver stand in the crosswalk and have

someone blow their horn at you? That’s how vocalists feel when you point your amp at them. If you can, get your ear at speaker level and make sure you know what the people in your line of fire are ex-periencing. This is a HUGE blind spot for way so many guitar players. I’ve gotten the best use out of amps stands with wor-ship teams – they really make for a much more positive experience for everyone.

6) Don’t noodleWhen vocalists are trying to find their

parts would you pick up your cell phone and start having a loud conversation – didn’t think so. What a lot of guitar play-ers don’t realize is that vocalists often have to hear their notes before they can sing them. Give them the room to do that, and you will earn MAJOR points on the musicianship board!

7) Bring a pencil and make notesI cannot say it enough times - most

musicians make the same mistakes over and over. If you notice where you make a

mistake, circle that spot on the chart, and then make a note on the set list, and you will make WAY fewer mistakes. When people hear you making fewer mistakes they’ll presume you’re getting better – be-cause you are!

8) Tempo and dynamicsRehearsal is also where you can re-

ally focus on developing great dynamics. When I’m learning a new song I’ll mark up the chart with a number from one to ten indicating how quiet or loud that sec-tion should be. Once you’ve done that, you’ll probably find that most worship teams have a tendency to drag on the lower dynamic parts, and speed up on the higher ones. Another key benefit of consistent band dynamics is that your vo-calist will love the fact that they don’t have to strain their voices trying to be heard over the band.

Sunday Morning9) The earlybird catches the word

Most teams rehearse just before the first service, so this is another great time to show up early to help others, get in tune, and have a last minute chance to go over your notes before rehearsal starts. The notes do a tremendous amount to help you be a better support to those around you, and this is one area where we can all really serve one another. By making a few notes on the set list, at a glance I can remember the few things I’m inclined to otherwise forget. Sometimes I’ll even put the first chord of a new song – just in case! When we play our parts more ac-curately, it does a lot to drive a continuity in the arrangement as well.

10) Play it againIf at all possible record the service so

you can learn from your successes and your challenges. Take notes on where you made mistakes and/or could make im-provements. You’ll be amazed at how will the process can work to take a good gui-tar player and make them into a GREAT worship musician. God Bless!!!

Doug Doppler tours the world as an instrumentalist, has played on two Guitar Hero video games, and along with his wife Melissa works to help worship teams develop their gifts for the glory of God.

By Doug Doppler

From Good to Great in Ten EASY Steps…

GUiTAR

Thought that might catch your attention! I think that many guitar players would confuse technique for playing well, and IMHO the two are often mutually exclu-sive. Whether you’re looking for some new ideas, or just plain stuck in a rut, the following are the best possible ten sug-gestions I could come up for making you a GREAT guitar player for your team...

Before Rehearsal1) Learn with your ears, not your fingers

We all know that life and extra prac-tice time are vying for our attention. The best musicians I know learn a song with their ears, not their fingers. The more time you can dedicate to listening to a song (iPod, iTunes, CD) before you get to re-hearsal, the more natural it will feel as you go to play the parts.

2) The chords, nothing but the chordsNot all teams are great at getting the

music out to the team, so in a pinch a chart can be a great tool in prepping for rehearsal. If you don’t know the song, simply play through the chords, one beat per chord. Think of it like musical Google Maps – you may not have been there yet, but at least you’ll have a road map in

place. This process is also great for reveal-


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Nashville, TN is home for Tom Lane though he is involved in ministry and mu-sic around the world. As a singer, songwriter and guitar player, Tom has been teamed with many worship leaders and artists. He continues to record his own work, lead worship, and writes regularly for various worship publications worldwide.

This has been a year already full of reminders that life is a short stop on the way home. This week we lost another friend and pioneer of Christian Music, Dana Key. The group Degarmo and Key helped define the genre of Contempo-rary Christian Music. Dana was a great player, singer, and was still serving faith-fully as a Pastor. I met Dana in 1983, as I packed up my Monte Carlo and set sail from Florida to Tennessee (likely lis-tening to a “Cassette” of D&K), arriving in Nashville as an extremely passionate and driven seventeen-year-old. There are a good many people I’ve known on my

27-year journey here who now know the glory of heaven and being with The Lord. Death is a part of living but only the beginning of Forever! It helps bring life into better focus and reminds us hopefully of what living is all about.

For a young and zealous Muso, life was all about making my music and liv-ing the dream. I drove up and down Music Row in my late teens and had it all mapped out. Then life happened! Here’s my little summary of the road well graveled! For most musicians I know in Nashville, the road started out as an all-consuming quest fueled by an insatiable desire to play and create, which led to a thought: I might actually be able to do this for a living. Which led to a roadway that nobody expects to be as littered with pain and reality as it truly is. Because: most won’t be able to make a living mak-ing music, and if you’re not grounded in who you are to start with, the person you can become in the process is someone you may have never wanted to be. Our town is full of disappointed and unfulfilled creative people. It’s illusive and danger-ous when who we are depends on how well we do according to the industry’s or some other’s standards.

A number of artists have reached the top, but those who stand out as excep-tional are those who’ve managed to keep their lives, marriages, and families intact. We spend a fair amount of words talk-ing about how to do music and ministry; there’s a seminar a minute for everything. But I’d like to say a bit about the impor-tance of maintaining life well! Not be-cause I’m an expert, but because my own road is paved with lots of hard lessons. When I got to Nashville, I knew how to play and sing, but what I was pretty clue-less about was real integrity – not only “doing what you say” kind of integrity, but personal boundaries and character where it really counts. Choices I made early on affected me years later; it all adds up. What I’ve found is, God will let you run your path and even think you’re doing it for all the right reasons, only to wake up one day and be way off course. Notoriety and success can’t give you a ministry; a steady and faithful walk will!

What good is it really to gain the world and lose the soul? What impact do we have really if people know our names and music but our lives are so full of holes that we live opposite the way we are called to? I read an interview with a

well-known actor who was asked about how great her life must be and she com-mented, “Yes, it’s great, but I can’t feel it!” If our issues, sins, pains, addictions, etc. drive us, then we’ll drive ourselves crazy. No matter how great life may be, we won’t feel it either and the bad will overshadow the good. I spent years one season in a deep depression, not even knowing it, and was trying to give out and minister the whole time. You can do it only so long, and then you run out of steam completely. In my case, a divorce and heart attack stopped me dead in my tracks. I lost some good time along the way, but thankfully we serve a redemp-tive God. I’m now remarried to my wife, which is a whole other miraculous story in itself! He turns our mourning into danc-ing without a doubt.

None of this is to make you feel worse about anything you deal with, I prom-ise! Let’s make our music, be free and creative as God made us to be, but pay close attention to the condition of our lives and well being. We cannot sustain or keep up in our own strength alone. And unless we able to contain the wine God desires to pour into our wineskin, we’ll bust eventually. We need to be made new every second of every day. That’s why Paul made such a deal of choosing to walk in the Spirit. It’s not a one-time thing – we have to choose it constantly.

Let us aim for Glory! God intends for His glory to shine through our lives. How we serve one another, what we choose to chase, and how we live behind the scenes determines whether or not His glo-ry can and does shine. The good news is you don’t have to be anyone but you; God is very cool with you as you are already! We’re going backwards when we try to dress up and become someone we’re not. Glory shines best through au-thenticity, purity, humility, and brokenness. If we want our talents and gifts to be used to the fullest, then we have to deal with our hearts first.

By Tom Lane

Aim For Glory!

THe BAND

Dana Key — 1953 - 2010


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“Baby Names” book and picked “Bruce” be-cause she did not know one person at the time named Bruce. This also tells me that she only read as far in the alphabetically arranged book

to the “B” section; but at least she got through most of the “B’s” (thanks Mom, you know I love you). The naming must not of made it to the hospital staff however as to this day my birth certificate reads Boy Adolph… just my gender for a first name. Which is really ironic when you consider that in the Tarzan movies, Tarzan’s only son was named Boy.

Why I am telling you this much family his-tory? I guess to illustrate this walk of faith that we all are on. While faith is a gift of the Holy Spirit, we can choose to be ac-tive or not in our faith. We can choose to allow faith to perme-ate our words and actions; to encourage us in times where nothing else can. No safety net can replace faith. In fact if we always walk around saying, “Don’t worry, if this doesn’t work out you can always trust in this, that or the other” instead of really putting our faith and trust in Him, then we really aren’t walking in faith are we? We would be hoping for God to come through but all the while planning our exit strategy if he doesn’t. Is that the kind of faith I have been harboring? How bout you?

I’m not pitch-ing you the notion to be reckless or thoughtless about things… the Lord gives us wisdom and common sense can protect us. But just between you, me and the fence post… who are we trusting in? The living God or the safety nets we have put in place?

In His Grip!Bruce & Judy

editor’s Corner Continued from page 7they both sounded so good! Time flies when you are having fun!

Because these amps can get LOUD, you might consider engaging the Notch filter and lowering the bass a little to prevent feedback. I had fun experimenting with different EFX, al-though I ultimately went for the traditional light verb.

Because of the XLR outs, these amps don’t re-quire a separate direct box, and sound really nice through a large venue PA. I love having this amp leaned back at me as a monitor. I also like being able to dial in just the amount of EFX that sound good to me – no offence to the FOH (Front of House) engineer.

Finally, just for fun, I tried a 72 Telecaster, just because it was sitting there. The Tele actually sounded beautiful – clean, with tons of head-room. These amps would be ideal for a jazz gig. I don’t know that they are going for that market, but I would grab this amp over any of my vintage Fender amps in a minute! Again, very versatile.

The Pro 250 is perfect for a small gathering or coffee house, and has the power to handle both a singer as well as an acoustic guitar. The PRO 250 especially with 2 separate EFX units is really cool if you are plugging in a guitar and vocal mic. The DS4 is also a great option, if less weight is needed.

If tone is as important to you like it is me, you will appreciate the HI-FI natural sound these amps deliver. The mic channel sounds like a nice small PA too. It is very clean and eq’s much better than what you might imagine. It’s NOT cheesy sounding at all!

Ultrasound has really done their homework with their products. They are well thought out and well constructed, and they sound amazing. They aren’t the cheapest out there, but are well worth the extra cost. And yes… I approve this message!

Blessings!

Wish list:• Cooler lettering fonts on the control panel.• Better label for EFX• Tilt legs for PRO 250 to lean back further

(like old Fender Super Reverb)• Somewhere to store the AC cord

List Price UltraSound Pro 250 $1,399.00 DS4 $599.00

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Product Review Continued from page 8

Michael is Gabriel’s dad. He and his wife Carrie lead worship together internationally. He pro-duces, does studio work & serves at Lakewood Church in Houston


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There are great products and resources out there that help and encourage wor-ship musicians to improve their craft. The magazine you’re reading is consistently one of the best; if you’re not making this available to each member of your team, you’re missing a blessing!. My friends and fellow CMS presenters, Sandy Hoff-man and Tom Lane, write articles directed to the team as a whole: “Tips for Tight

to the congregation and more of the glory goes to God!

We know that rehearsing with a met-ronome makes for better musicians; even more so, a band playing with a metro-nome makes for a tighter band! It’s becom-ing more and more popular on worship platforms to play with a “click,” i.e., a met-ronome. For obvious reasons, in-ear moni-

tors are required to do this; at a minimum, the drummer needs in-ear monitors! I have been on a quest for the past year to implement the “click” with my team. I have tried and con-templated a variety of ideas, and then I heard about a company called “Interactive Wor-ship Live” [IWL] which provides original mas-ter recordings in a multi-track format for use in Ableton Live (a music software program). I am very impressed with the capabilities and po-tential of IWL.

In the old days – and for some, even currently – soloists would purchase song track CD’s from the Christian Bookstore and perform that song as “special music” in a church service; unless that soloist was singing in multiple churches, that purchase could be only used one time. IWL provides perfor-mance product, but one that is flexible to work with your wor-ship team, and one that can be used many times throughout the year. I’ll try to make this as simple as possible, so here’s an overview

of how I use it. From IWL, songs are pur-chased and downloaded individually; different pricing/grouping options are available. The songs are then imported into Ableton Live (you can download 30-day trial of Ableton for free!); cued from

the platform, Ableton provides a metro-nome and accompanies the band. Pretty simple! For more detail, keep reading.

The songs that are downloaded are the exact songs track-by-track that the artists recorded, including their click-track. For example, the first song I downloaded was “My Savior Lives” by New Life Worship. I received all the guitars, all the keys, all the drums and percussion, all the BGV’s, etc. – just no lead vocal. Once the song is imported into Ableton Live, I can mute any track I don’t need, i.e. instruments I have playing live, and use the remaining tracks as “enhancements.” I run Ableton Live on an iMac on stage, which is con-nected to an audio interface; I’m using the Sapphire 6 from Focusrite. From Ableton, I send the click and enhancements direct-ly to the band’s in-ear monitors, and just the enhancement tracks to the FOH (Front of House). We used “My Savior Lives” for our Easter service and it went great! The band was locked together with the click track; for “enhancements,” we kept the rhythm electric guitars while I played acoustic and another member played lead. I also kept some of the keyboard layers to accompany my keyboard player and even kept the BGV’s since we are using a worship choir. These “enhance-ments” really filled out our band! If you have an incomplete band – for example, you’re without a drummer or bass player – keeping those IWL tracks open could fill the need! Or maybe you’re a ‘crusader’ worship leader going at it alone; using tracks from IWL would give you a full band instantly!

As I mentioned, IWL multi-tracks thru Ableton can provide live flexibility; Sun-day song services can be easily set up so that multiple songs can be arranged in series. Each song begins at the push of a computer key or (midi) button, whether controlled by a midi keyboard or even foot pedal. A very cool feature is that cho-rus/section repeats can be set up to be available on the fly so that your worship can still flow freely and not feel “canned.” I would say that the average worship band from adult to youth could benefit and grow using songs from IWL. I plan to continue adding songs to my library with IWL; we are currently working on three more that we’re looking forward to using with our congregation.

By Mitch Bohannon

Interactive Worship Livewww.interactiveworshiplive.com

PRODUCT RevieW

Mitch Bohannon is the Worship Pastor at First Baptist Church in Dayton, TX. He helped develop the Short Cut Capo for Kyser Musical Products. Mitch and his wife, Noelle, have the three most awesome kids in the world!

Teams” and “The Band”, respectively. There are so many elements to tie togeth-er in order for our bands to get tighter. These elements are so important because, the better we play, the fewer distractions


http://www.interactiveworshiplive.com

Television director Craig Kelly’s career has included over 3,500 live shows, events and concerts in broadcasting, corporate television, events and sports production since 1977. He is also involved in min-istry based events and concerts, and has produced or directed internationally dis-tributed DVDs.

With a background as an international free-lance cameraman, he has shot na-tional and local level sports and corpo-rate video for over twenty years. These days he is often involved in speaking, workshops, writing and talking about Television camera operators and di-recting. He recently launched the blog ZoomIT.cam at craigjkelly.wordpress.com for new camera operators and has a training DVD in the works. You can reach Craig at [email protected]

CAMeRA

By Craig Kelly

So You Volunteered as a Camera Operator At Church – Uh Oh, Now What? Part 1

take it to the next level. More than likely, someone on your team will be able to help you to learn but ultimately it will be up to you to achieve that level by practice and the desire for learning the craft.

That being said…

The duties of a television camera op-erator vary, depending on which type of camera you are operating; studio (long lens) crane or handheld. There are a few other specialty cameras too but we’ll just consider these three for now. The primary job is the same though – to get the best possible shot from the position you are as-signed to for the director’s wishes. There is usually no room for error. No matter how great of a shot or how great your follow or focus capabilities are remember this; do not take it personally when the direc-tor chooses a different shot than you think they should. The director’s commands are artistic, practical and primary… No mat-ter what the rest of the crew thinks.

That being said, there are also a few practical insights to adhere to and a few items that will help you to be the best camera operator you can be.

A camera operator is judged by a very small amount of skills and soft-skills. The four primary skills in running a camera are;

FocusPanningTitling

Zooming

Learn the difference and how to do them well without thinking which is which. It’s hard when you only get to work at these once a week but you need to find time to practice. If nothing else, arrive early and stay late to practice if that’s possible.

In all of these areas, you can get more proficient if you;

• Learn as many equipment functions as you can; location of switches, menus, knobs, etc

• Practice – focus, zooming, panning, tilting

• Observe - Industry examples, watch and compare commercial content – TV, Film, stadiums, concerts

Ready to roll VT A… and roll VT A in 5, 4, 3, 2, roll A - 1… Up on A, track A… Watching camera five on a move…Coming live in 30 seconds… Camera five start your move on 2… Counting out to live in 5, 4, 3, 2, Start your move five – 1… Dissolve to camera five… Standby to cue the Pastor… Ready four on faces – take four… Standby to cue the pastor… Standby camera two on the pastor head to toe – one - pick him up tight… Cue the Pastor… Ready two, take two… Get him one, ready one, take one… Ready five with a move out. Take five and start your move… Standby one, dissolve to one… Ready four, take four… Ready two, take two… Ready one, take one… Standby graphics, music under… Watching graphics… key graphics over. VT A out

Great open everyone.

For a point of reference, that sequence was approximately one minute long and it was a typical show/service/event opening video sequence as heard on the director’s intercom channel. In other words, that’s what you could reasonably expect to hear as a camera operator in your church’s technical arts team – or any similar video production. Of course, your church intercom chatter would be differ-ent according to the amount of cameras, size of crew, service script, director style, etc. One thing never changes though – it’s always a subjective opinion as to what your service will look and sound like.

If you’re reading this, you may have just signed your name to a list at the Wor-ship Arts Team table on Volunteer Sunday and now you want to learn how to zoom like a rock star. If you don’t know the dif-ference between pan and tilt, this series of tips might help you focus on the subject and zoom into a great source of excite-ment for you. It looks fun and it can be. The job is exciting, can be very creative, has a lot of teamwork involved, can add to the worship experience for many, can help to bring someone to the Lord that doesn’t have the opportunity to worship in any other way and can be extremely satisfying. But the job has a lot of ele-ments that need to be addressed and it takes a long time and a lot of practice to be proficient – but it can be done and ev-ery seasoned camera operator has had to learn in the beginning of their career. You’ve been chosen to be a part of the technical arts team, now it’s up to you to

• Industry knowledge – workshops, seminars, webcasts, magazines, classes, DVD’s

• Practice – focus, zooming, panning, tilting

There are only four real tools that matter to a camera operator and directly affects you performance;

LensPan Head Viewfinder

Handle controls

With all four of these items, learn the basics of how they work, make sure they’re adjusted well for your per-sonal liking and that you know how they react; tight spots, b u m p s , c h a t t e r, soft fo-cus spots, screen burns, softness in the corners, etc. Ask some of the more experienced opera-tors how they like their setups and why.

Next we’ll take a look at some addi-tional tips to help you have a great experi-ence on camera.


http://www.www.CreatorWorship.com

craigjkelly.wordpress.com

craigjkelly.wordpress.com


Formerly the bassist with CCM bands such as pc3 (Paul Colman Trio) and SONICFLOOd, Grant Norsworthy is a Grammy® nominated and Dove Award winning musician and speaker. Originally from Australia, now based in Nashville TN, Grant is also an outspoken advocate for Compassion International. For more infor-mation: www.grantnorsworthy.com

By Grant Norsworthy

Awesome” and Other Vanishing Words

GUeST ROOM

Imagine a classroom. I am an English teacher and the students are in their seats, waiting for the lesson to begin. Today I intend to teach the meaning of the word awesome. I begin the lesson with some casual banter.

“It’s awesome you’re all here.” Ges-turing to the striking footwear of one of the students, I exclaim, “Awesome boots you’re wearing!”

Then, getting more serious I continue. “Today I want to teach you the real mean-ing of the word awesome and it’s going to be awesome! Awesome is a word we use to describe something that fills us with a sense of awe. When something overwhelms us with feelings of wonder, reverence, respect and a touch of fear, it is awesome. Got it? Awesome. Have an awesome lunch break!”

This is a very BAD example of teach-ing. It’s terrible, in fact!

I firmly believe we worship leaders and musicians are doing the same ter-rible teaching with the way we misuse the word worship: worship service, worship song, worship leader, worship center, worship band, worship experience, wor-ship pastor, worship… musician.

The original meaning of the word awe-some is all-but lost because of overuse and misuse in recent years. In the same way, the intended original and powerful meaning of worship may be nearly lost to us too, but with immeasurably more dire consequences. And we are the ones creating much of the confusion. In fact, we just might be the main reason why the church is so confused about what it means to worship in Spirit and in truth!

“True worship is to be so personally and hopelessly in love with God, that the idea of a transfer of affection never even remotely exists.” A.W. Tozer

Just a few hundred years ago, the word worship actually was stated as worth-ship. It’s to whom or what I ascribe worth. True worth-ship of God is shown as I sur-render my life: my pride, my selfishness, my willfulness, my rights to lead my own existence. Surely our highest hope as we teach and lead as worshipping musicians

is to direct people to the true and original meaning of worship: The worship that is my life surrendered to ascribe worth to Je-sus the Christ.

“Therefore, bothers and sisters, in view of God’s great mercy, offer yourself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, and let that be your spiritual act of worship.” (Romans 12:1)

Nowhere in scripture is the word wor-ship used as an adjective - a describing word - as we most often use it. Neither can I find in the Bible where the word worship is used to define the act of pas-sionately singing songs to God or a meet-ing of believers. Yet, in the vast majority of occurrences, that is how we use the word: incorrectly educating those who hear us, and ourselves, with a misunder-standing of worship.

“No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible.” Voltaire

You might be saying to yourself right now, “Oh, that’s just semantics. The word worship can be used in a variety con-texts. It’s not a big deal.” Really? I believe we must acknowledge that the way we speak is of utmost importance.

Whether we recognize it or not, our words change the way we think. And the way we think changes the way we live. We would do well to remember that, like the small rudder that steers a large ship, my tongue steers me! (James 3:4-5) “The mouth speaks what the heart is full of” (Matthew 12:34). And …

“If anyone would consider himself a worshiper, yet does not keep a tight reign on his tongue, he deceives himself and his worship is worthless.” (James 1:26)

We must measure our words more carefully. Let’s start with WORSHIP!

After all of our worship leadership, it is clear, by the way most Christians speak, that we wrongly believe that worship is when I sing songs to God, or perhaps it is what happens when I meet with other Christians - usually on a Sunday morning in a worship service. Many of us are unin-tentionally educating a future generation to believe that worship is when there’s a

band on a stage and words about God on a screen.

More devoted believers might go so far as to recognize that their private times of singing, praying, fasting, Bible study or perhaps even when they do something kind for someone in need, also qualify as worship. I am sure these are valid expres-sions of worship, but isn’t worship even more than that? Our lips show we have little idea of completely surrendering our lives - being “living sacrifices, holy and ac-ceptable to God…” letting that be our “…[s]piritual act of worship.” (Romans 12:1)

“A time is coming when you will wor-ship the Father neither on the mountain-top nor in the Temple. … Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.” (John 4:21 & 23)

As Jesus’ words reveal, we are now in the time when worship is not and must not be restricted to our times in a church building nor contained within our moun-taintop experiences. Are we not teaching in opposition to these sacred words when we hang a sign above the door saying “Worship Center” or have letters on our street sign that say “Worship Service at 9am and 11am”? If I step up to a mi-crophone, guitar slung around my neck, strum a chord and instruct the people by saying, “Let’s begin to worship!,” whether I realize it or not, I must concede that I have taught, “You were not worshiping before now and you will stop when I fin-ish.” We have inadvertently taught that worship does not happen at other times and in other places.

Yes! Let’s keep singing songs of praise and adoration to God. Yes! Let’s gather together as a community of believers. Let’s do it more often, for longer and more pas-sionately! But let this be the worship we lead, teach and demonstrate: worship that doesn’t switch on and off but that is constant, ongoing and all pervading. Let’s lead and teach Romans 12:1 “liv-ing sacrifice” worship that is 24/7/365, and 366 on a leap year! This will not be possible, however, as long as we misuse the word worship to describe our on-off-on-off music and meetings.


www.grantnorsworthy.com

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FROM THe DRUMMeR’S PeRSPeCTive

Carl Albrecht has been a professional drummer & per-cussionist for over 25 years. He has played on over 70 Integrity Music projects; Maranatha Praise Band recordings & numerous other Christian, Pop, Country, Jazz & commercial projects. He currently lives in Nashville doing recording ses-sions, producing, writing and continuing to do various tours & seminar events. Visit his website: www.carlalbrecht.com or send an e-mail to: [email protected].

etc. I try to hear a broad range of tone from the set. I especially choose crashes the have very different pitches but similar timbre or character. As the sounds fade I’ll listen carefully for an “odd” tone; a sound that just doesn’t seem to fit with the other cymbals. Sometimes you have to try a different crash, or splash, or even a ride cymbal. I know this is an art and it takes time to learn. Just be patient and you’ll get the hang of it. That’s why it’s probably a good idea to try cymbals from the same series when you first do this. But after a while you’ll be able to mix and match cymbals according to what your ears are hearing and not by what you’re seeing. Even with the best design and manufac-turing processes, each cymbal is unique. The same models may be very close, but there are always subtle nuances that I think make each one an individual voice.

When mounting the cymbals, be sure the plastic sleeve is on the stem of the cymbal stand. This cushions the cymbal hole and protects it against grinding. Also check the base plate on the stem. If it’s curved, make sure it curves downward. It’s supposed to match the shape of the bell of the cymbal. And last but not least, be sure the felt washers are in place on

the bottom and the top of your cymbals. All of these elements affect the tone of your cymbals. Don’t tighten the wing nuts too much either. Crashes and splashes have to move freely to get the best tone. Ride cymbals can be a little tighter to con-trol the tone if you’d like, but the general rule is to “let them breath.” Even the top hi-hat should be able to wiggle so the tone is not choked. It only needs to be tight enough to track properly with your foot action.

The angle of your cymbals is also im-portant. No matter what height you place your cymbals, angle them to point toward your chest. This will line them up with the motion of your arms and wrists. When crashing your cymbals, use a “slicing” stroke. Do not hit straight on the edge of your cymbals. They will not hold up under that kind of stress.

All of these guidelines should give your cymbals a long life. When making this kind of investment, you’ll be glad you fol-lowed these general rules.

Over time, I’m sure you’ll want to add to your collection. Maybe another crash or splash would be nice. Whatever cym-bal you add, be sure to do the same test-

ing method. I use to take my ride and two crash cymbals with me to test the new one along side them. Now my ears can pretty much hear a cymbal to identify its character and tone enough to get a good match.

Remember though, this is still an art form. Don’t hesitate to try different types of cymbals to expand your musical pal-ate. A good set of cymbals will be a key element to your sound. As I said before take your time and choose carefully.

Blessings to you and good cymbal hunting.Carl

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Continued from page 10


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Multi-instrumentalist Martin Stillion, a 15-year veteran of worship bands, plays at Se-attle’s Bethany Presbyterian Church. In his other lives he’s a husband, father, writer, editor, Webmas-ter, composer, and musician. Learn more than you wanted to know about Martin at www.stillion.com/martin or www.eman-do.com.

MANDOLiN

By Martin Stillion

Leaning on the Everlasting ArmsAll of which led to a new hymn ar-

rangement. The Gibson wanted a tune of its own, and I had swing progressions and Scott Joplin rattling around in my head. So here’s a ragtime take on “Lean-ing on the Everlasting Arms.” With luck you can make a duet out of this with a pianist or guitarist and trade chords and lead breaks … or you can play it unac-companied.

I’m just back from Astoria, Oregon, where I went for a tenor guitar festival and wound up playing 5-string electric mandolin on a bunch of jazz songs in a coffeehouse. I’ve been working on a Scott Joplin piece in the Seattle Mandolin Orchestra. And I recently visited one of my favorite mandolin builders and picked up a vintage Gibson she had set up for me.

The indicated tempo is somewhat ambitious. Yet ragtime shouldn’t be rushed, and it’ll sound fine if you go a little slower—but it’s crucial to keep the tempo steady! Practice the crosspicking until you get it smooth. The basic synco-pated rhythmic figure is a little tricky, but once you’ve got it, you’re home free (at least, until you get to bar 25, where it’s altered slightly!). I left the chord symbols

off bars 15–22, which feature a chromatically altered melody, in case you want to reharmo-nize it. But the original progression works just fine there. Practice the stratospheric leap in bar 21—it’s OK (and probably unavoidable) to let the audience hear you slide up to that 15th fret! Bar 23 features the famous four-note “all D” chord. Work on fretting the final chords cleanly, and remember that the melody notes there are on the E string, so make sure they ring out. De-spite how it looks on the page, there’s nothing technically earth-shatter-ing here. If you’re able to use this arrangement somewhere, I hope you’ll let me know how it’s received.

Trivia answer: Colonel Sanders! Back in the 1960s or so, he outfitted a school band with new Kay mando-lins and released their LP of hymns—which reportedly was sold or given away as a pre-mium in Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants. If you want to hear it, there’s a CD reissue, naturally. Google it!


www.stillion.com/martin

www.emando.com

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Greg Sisley is on the pas-toral staff at Faith in Kent, WA. He does lighting de-sign and consultation with PRO Lighting and Sound, and is a member of the House of Wor-ship Resource Team.

LiGHTiNG

Worship SpiceI grew up in a restaurant family. Over

the years, I learned every position, from dishwasher to bartender. My favorite job was cooking. I still enjoy creating a great meal for my family or friends. One of the skills you pick up over time is the cre-ative and inspirational use of seasonings and spices. Spices can make a new dish something special. The right seasoning can make common foods come alive and be experienced in a fresh way. Lighting a worship event is a lot like that. The impact of the message can be greatly enhanced by the artful use of lighting.

As we explore some lighting funda-mentals, I thought it would be good to focus on the effect light and color has on our emotions and intellect; what are sometimes called light’s psycho-chromatic properties. Proper application of lighting will actually help people ‘hear’ the mes-sage you are sending in deeper, more evocative ways. Applying this knowledge will help you ‘cook-up’ meaningful and memorable worship experiences.

Memorable worship experi-ences.

Each individual element of a worship service contributes to an overall mosaic which in turn communicates a broader theme. Your lighting should intentionally amplify the impact and clarity of both the specific and the general themes you are trying to convey. The foremost use of lighting in worship is to assist in the communication of a message to an au-dience. Effective lighting can create an environment that enhances the reception and interactivity of the listeners and at the same time support and add dimension to the message of the communicators. There are even occasions when the lighting it-self can be used exclusively to convey a specific thought or point.

Message and MoodMany studies have confirmed the effect

that light - specifically color - has on us. It literally changes us. Various frequen-cies stimulate intellectual and emotional responses and alter the way we think and process. Light touches our minds and our bodies. It can set us at ease or agitate us. Light can make us feel focused or scat-tered. The Creator who designed us has also prescribed light and color throughout the Bible to represent or help communi-cate the attributes of concepts or entities. Let’s look at what our experience has

taught us and compare it with how color is used in Scripture. As we do, make men-tal notes about how you can implement some intentional message reinforcement in your services. The excellent worship lighting designer will combin their un-derstanding of light and its effect on our psyche, and their understanding of God’s prescribed use of color symbolically.

The Color PurposeLet’s start with most people’s favorite

worship color, blue. The scientists tell us that blue tends to make us feel calm and relaxed. It provides a general sense of well being and contentment. Deeper blues will produce feelings of happiness, love and romance. Not surprisingly, God uses blue in the Bible to symbolize the heavens, His authority, and his relation-ship to man.

Green and blue used together allows our inner emotional ‘battery’ to recharge. We can relax and become refreshed. These are also great colors to engage and focus our intellect and will increase a person’s comprehension. Biblically, green represents restoration and new life.

Red is mentioned in Scripture when describing bloodshed, intimate relation-ship, and sacrifice. When we ‘see red’, we become excited, energized, and adventurous. Red is a color of action, movement, and purpose. It calls for a re-sponse. When red and black are used together, it is to describe death, sadness, and communion.

Purple is another favorite in worship. Majesty, wealth, and Christ’s sovereignty are described by God in purple. The color purple promotes purpose, direction, and leadership.

Yellows and amber have a tendency to create a mood that is unsettled, creative and inspiring, with unfocused and mean-dering thought processes. God uses yel-low to symbolize Jesus, celebration and joy, while amber and gold are usually referenced alongside warmth, intimacy, holiness, and the glory of God.

Many other colors are commonly used in worship, and are mentioned in the Bible as well. The stress and despair we feel from black represents death, punish-ment, and slavery. For us uncertainty, dis-engagement, and frustration are the result of white, while God associates salvation,

righteousness, and the Creator to the ab-sence of color. He even chose to use the entire spectrum of light (a rainbow) to sig-nify his faithful promises.

It seems like the longer we do lighting, the more fun it is and the more creative we get. I really believe that it’s because we learn more about our Creator, and un-derstand more about His creation.

Here are a couple things to keep in mind. First, don’t change lighting moods or thoughts abruptly. Although your light-ing system has the ability to change moods quickly, your audience does not. Think about fade time and using transitional colors and effects. While the best way to the new scene may not be a straight line, be sure the cross-fade hues don’t fight the mood you are trying to achieve. Changes need to be logical and ‘walk’ with your people, not run off and leave them. For example, a rapid change from the calm of blue to the excitement of orange will usually serve to disengage the audience. It is akin to laughing one second and sob-bing the next. Rapid mood swings in your lighting are no more desirable than they are in people.

Second, as with all communication, don’t send mixed messages. White and red together are a logical combination for Christ’s blood and our new life, and their desired emotional affect calls for action and a fresh start. Combining amber with purple could potentially create a conflict-ed message.

Lighting is a very powerful tool. Use it to help you help people see and hear better as you take an active role in the message. Use it creatively and intention-ally. Most of all, use lighting with love, in an honest desire to serve those engaged in worship of the great lighting Designer. If you would like my complete reference chart of colors, their emotive results, and Biblical use, let me know.

If you want to dialogue, email me at [email protected].

By Greg Sisley

Lighting Helps us Hear



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M a n u e l Luz is a songwriter a n d c r e a t i v e

arts pastor in Folsom, California. For more

discussion on faith and the arts, check out his new book,

Imagine That: Finding Your Unique Role as a Christian Artist (Moody Publishers) or check out his website, manuelluz.com.

By Manuel Luz

Five Dreaded Words

A FeW MOMeNTS WiTH…

At some point in your ministry, you will encounter five dreaded words that make lesser men (and women) run for the near-est exit. Five words that will make you want to shirk, deflect—and yes, even lie through your teeth. They are: “So, what did you think?”

Usually it comes from a colleague or artist you know. They’ve just shown you their latest painting, or played you their latest song, or shown you their latest you-tube creation. And they want to hear your opinion. Maybe.

“So, what did you think?”

Now, if their artistic expression is good, you will simply say so. But if it is not—especially if it is very not—then you will realize you may be in a no-win situa-tion. This question is the artistic equivalent to, “Does this dress make me look fat?”

Recently, I experienced one of these moments. Joe is an aspiring playwright, and he has been throwing his passions and energies into a play that had just run at a local church. He’s been w o r k -ing on this play for the past two years, and it was obvious that he was

personally attached to it at many levels. So he sought out people in the area, “in-fluential” people I suspect, to help further his production and gain credibility.

Peering across the coffee table at me, a spark in his eyes revealing his eagerness, he leaned into his question. “So, what did you think? I really want to know,”he asked between sips of his latte. “And don’t hold back either. I want to get some good feedback that I can take with me.”

Now I had seen his play. In my humble opinion, there was a lot of work to do. The dialogue was stilted and verbose. All the characters were one-dimensional and stereotyped (does the anti-Christian an-tagonist really have to be dressed like a Nazi?). And I puzzled over the dystopian story arc, which seemed to exist only for the purpose of asserting Christian dogma upon the audience. It was preachy, con-descending, long-winded and poorly acted.

Something happens when art is used to serve primarily as a vehicle for a mes-sage. Francis Schaeffer, in his book Art and the Bible, says that this kind of ex-pression “reduces art to an intellectual statement and the work of art as a work

of art disappears.” In other words, art is simply a vehicle for a message.

And in it’s worst form, art be-comes propa-

ganda.

But there is a larger view of

art. Great art should not propagandize, but rather reflect the artist in some way—what he believes, what he has experi-enced, what he has placed his faith in, how he uniquely sees the world. In other words, the Christian artist should not strive to create “Christian art,” but rather, strive toward honest art. And in that honesty, their art will somehow reflect the creativity of the Abba Father, the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. I believe that this holds true wheth-er you are a playwright, choreographer, moviemaker, poet, or songwriter.

All of these thoughts collided in my mind like the opening stroke in a game of billiards. And as I sat in front of Joe, fidgeting with my coffee, I took a deep breath—and then I slowly and tenderly, and as lovingly as I could, told him what I thought of his play.

To his credit, Joe accepted my opin-ions with a humble heart. He took mental notes of specific things I mentioned, and agreed that there were things he could do improve the artistic integrity of his play and make it more sensitive to unbelievers. We ended up talking for quite a while about it all. And at the end of our conver-sation, we parted as friends.

When you are confronted by the five dreaded words, here is my advice: (1) Always tell the truth bathed in grace and humility; (2) Be as specific and as con-structive as possible; (3) Remember that your opinion is simply that—an opinion; and (4) As in all things, do it with love.

I don’t know if Joe will do anything with my feedback. I don’t know if this will change anything he does now or in the future. But I tried to be honest and grace-filled with him. And as artists, that is al-ways what we must strive for.


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