shoosh.
today was one of the toughest band practice ever...
imagine. I've reached a point in my life as a synthesist that people just throw me sheets of papers with words written on it, without chords, without notes, just the lyrics alone, and I'm expected to be able to play the song from my skill alone.
I'm quite honoured.
very honoured in fact.
but matters got a bit out of hand when I felt like I was in a sinking ship.
B was the drummer -
Notwithstanding, B is quite a gifted drummer, he picked up the drums 15 months ago, and now his skill has reached a substential level. One weakness though is, instead of being the metronome for the band, he relies on the worship leader and musicians to guide his rythm.
J was the guitarist -
erm. what to say leh? He's been playing the guitar for quite some time already, but somehow, he simply lacks the confidence to own the music and mould it to a certain purpose.
Like what I always say, music is mallable. And every key, every note and every sound made has a story, a meaning and a purpose. Unless you own the music, the music will own you.
OWNAGE
N was the bassist -
He is one with a powerful gifting for predicting notes. It has been only a mere 2 or 3 months since he joined the band when he picked up the bass guitar so quickly that it blew me off. I knew from young that he had talents in music, but this being so, its quite unbelivable. He has reached half of Dave's stage which Dave took quite some time to obtain.
This being said, unlike David, he's over-confident and tends to move ahead without listening properly. Humility is a factor which all band members must have, because without humility, each band member will not treat the band as team and strive for their own ambition instead of the team's ambition.
ok. this is like the appraisal for the band members that I played with today.
there are 6 team players in each band practice for the youth :
today was one of the toughest band practice ever...
imagine. I've reached a point in my life as a synthesist that people just throw me sheets of papers with words written on it, without chords, without notes, just the lyrics alone, and I'm expected to be able to play the song from my skill alone.
I'm quite honoured.
very honoured in fact.
but matters got a bit out of hand when I felt like I was in a sinking ship.
B was the drummer -
Notwithstanding, B is quite a gifted drummer, he picked up the drums 15 months ago, and now his skill has reached a substential level. One weakness though is, instead of being the metronome for the band, he relies on the worship leader and musicians to guide his rythm.
J was the guitarist -
erm. what to say leh? He's been playing the guitar for quite some time already, but somehow, he simply lacks the confidence to own the music and mould it to a certain purpose.
Like what I always say, music is mallable. And every key, every note and every sound made has a story, a meaning and a purpose. Unless you own the music, the music will own you.
OWNAGE
N was the bassist -
He is one with a powerful gifting for predicting notes. It has been only a mere 2 or 3 months since he joined the band when he picked up the bass guitar so quickly that it blew me off. I knew from young that he had talents in music, but this being so, its quite unbelivable. He has reached half of Dave's stage which Dave took quite some time to obtain.
This being said, unlike David, he's over-confident and tends to move ahead without listening properly. Humility is a factor which all band members must have, because without humility, each band member will not treat the band as team and strive for their own ambition instead of the team's ambition.
ok. this is like the appraisal for the band members that I played with today.
there are 6 team players in each band practice for the youth :
1) The worship leader
The worship leader's role is to ensure that each musician knows what he or she is doing. They are the one at the forefront of the band, making sure that everything is done according to how they want it to be. More importantly, the worship leader must be in tune with the Spirit, to be led by the Spirit to lead the people.
2) The backup singers
The backup singer's role is to support the worship leader by providing accompanyment and vocal backup to for the song itself. Unlike the worship leader who is able to command the musicians, the backup singer him/herself is like an instrument and has to watch out for the commands of the worship leader.
They also provide vocal-backgrounding when the worship leader is going into free worship or praying.
3) The guitarist
The guitarist is the rythm controller in praise songs and the melody accompanyment in some worship songs. Because of the guitar's inherent ability to play solid sounds, they are usually the "backbone" of most songs - in other words, they are usually the one who owns the song. Mood is changed with their style of strumming or plucking, and a change of hands could be a signal the synthesist or the bassist to take over or back down.
4) The synthesist
Also called the keyboardist, the role of the synthesist is to provide environment and closure to the melody. Being the most flexible instrument, the synthsist must take into responsibilty the harmonics of the vocals (i.e. if they go out of tune). What is environment? Environment means the effects in general, and the "wow" factor in most songs. They manipulate the mood subtly by joining all the instruments together in one binding key. What is closure? In keyboard terms, closure is the keyboard's accompanyment. The synthesist must make sure that there is no gaps in the melody, and every "hole" must be filled up, either with accompanying notes or effect (unless, of course, its meant to be that elsewise).
5) The bassist
The bassist role, no matter how simple it may look, is one of the key players in a band. Why? Because the bassist is the primary rythm maker. (Note: not rythm controller). The bassist provides a margin for where the synthesist and the guitarist can control within. Any chords outside the bassist's accompanyment is a fast route to mistakes. The bassist must be independent of the drums, yet dependent on the rythym of the music, this is because the music and the drums may not flow together, and that's when the bassist is most helpful. Usually, in praise songs, the bassist's prowess is the most prominent, while they take a less aggresive approach in worship songs.
6) God
The most important factor in every, I mean EVERY worship team. Without God in mind, there is no point playing in a worship band. There would be no purpose at all. This is why the worship leader is so important. The worship leader must be sensitive at all time to the Spirit.
God is the head of every Church, every worship band and every worship musician - undisputedly.
This is the reason why many non-christians cannot understand why they have a "different" strange feeling when they come to church and attend a worship service.
The reason? : Because God is in control, not humans.
ha. Why did I blog this? I guess its to remind myself what is the role of every musician in the band.
Its not easy being in a band, and its far less easier being in a worship band.
We get ordered about, not many people acknowledge us (whatever for? we are playing for God's glory), and improvement in a particular aspact can take months or even years.
I've been in the band for 10 years now, longer then most musicians I know my age. But one thing is for certain, since the very day I became a musician for God, I knew that there was no turning back. I will serve Him till the very day I am unable to do so.
J, B and N are the newest band members in the youth band, and you all are showing great improvement. Its just to remind and encourage you that despite the level of difficulty of today's band practice, you all did well.
Nicholas held the rythm well
Jason gained a wee bit more confidence
Brian did exceptionally well in the praise songs.
haha. all glory be to God. God will honour those who honour Him.
I am a testament to it
=)
No comments:
Post a Comment