CAN YOU SING THAT NOTE?
OK, so I’m in the final stages of negotiating a job that’s been offered to me. It’s a pretty sweet deal. If all goes well, I’ll let know you more about it… if it doesn’t, just disregard this post.
Worship leading is something I’ve learned that I need to learn more about. It’s not just about picking a good set list, but how the musical elements of a worship team work together to help and not hinder the worship. This is something I don’t think many worship leaders realize. Something, I’m trying now to get better at. For instance, vocals - who sings harmonies and how the harmonies are formed. We have several amazing vocalists on our worship team who have the ability to harmonize well and build chords that add to, and don’t distract from, worship.
I also understand that I don’t have the vocal strength that many of our singers do - now don’t get me wrong, it’s not that my vocals send people running for the doors - by no means is that the case. My point is that other singers can sing better than me. I can sing; but they can sing better. This is something many worship leaders are not willing to admit. If they can carry a melody decently (which I can), then they don’t often use other vocalists to lead worship. My question is… why?
Many worship leaders won’t hesitate to bring on keyboard players, guitar players, bass players, drummers… you name it. But many will not bring on extra vocalists to sing except the occasional harmony singer.
But isn’t worship leading the act of guiding the worship, why does this always include singing lead on every song?… especially if there are good vocalists who can carry a song better.
Now, I’m not saying this is the case with every worship leader, but it seems to humility has a lot to do with it. Admitting you may not be the ‘best’ at something you were apparently hired to do is scary to many musicians. However, I think the job of a worship leader is to lead worship in the best way that is possible. And sometimes, maybe even often, this means that melodies get passed around to different people according to who can sing a given song best.
Because sometimes those notes are best sung by someone other than the ‘worship leader.’
May 19, 2008 at 4:35 pm
I completely agree. We’ve got a real problem in our church with a worship leader who is also our pastor’s wife who is also highly degreed as a classical music professor. Unfortunately she sings vibrato and full classical voice with every contemporary song and people have asked my husband, the drummer, to play louder to drown her out. Her work on the classical service is amazing, but she can’t sing contemporary and it’s turning people away…even our associate pastor won’t invite people to church because of how bad her singing is. Even though there are much better singers in the church for contemporary worship (and I mean true worshipping singers), she still sings lead every service and has her mic turned up louder than even the drums.
We’re going to talk to her about it, and we’re concerned we are going to be met with sheer pride. Any advice?
May 20, 2008 at 11:30 pm
Huh… OK, I’ve had some time to think about this… but it hasn’t helped much. Sounds like you are in a though spot.
It’s funny, musicians are trained to work for approval, from our first piano lesson to the college recital - it’s all about our performance in front of others. For me, it’s no wonder why pride is an issue for so many musicians (I’m not directly speaking of your worship leader here, just in general). I honestly don’t know a musician, including worship leaders, who isn’t affected by it in some way. It’s instilled as a by-product of our training.
The conflict then arises between the very nature of worship and the nature of our musical training. Perhaps this is why there is a growing trend in churches to higher worship leaders who are less “degreed,” as it were. This can be good because it avoids the classically trained trying to ‘fit the mold’ of contemporary worship music. The downside is that there is a lack of musical theory and arranging knowledge. She should be reminded that her training and skills can contribute to the worship service, but maybe not in a way that she thinks.
Perhaps, if she were approached from the standpoint that contemporary “pop” music and traditional music require different vocal techniques, it might soften the blow, so to speak. She will probably be less likely to feel like her musical skills are being attacked.
It also sounds to me like there’s a battle being fought over the sound system. We have a sound person who has final authority over the mix. We can ask her to turn us up in our monitors, etc., and she will - but she controls the house mix in the mains. Perhaps it might help for your church to consider training someone professionally to run sound. This will not only help with the ‘power struggle,’ but also with the overall levels (including how loud she is) and how the congregation hears what’s happening on stage.
If you are met with pride (and you know her, I don’t), I would suggest kindly reminding her and the other members of the worship team and committee (if you have one), the purpose of the worship service. It is not about us, but about God. A popular saying that often runs through our worship team, is “It’s not our thing; it’s God’s. He is the worship leader and we just get to participate.” Handing over the ‘worship leading’ job does not diminish her role in anyway; after all the job is organization and/or facilitation of the congregation’s worship - not to be a rock (or opera) star, or even to lead musically (at least this is the case at my church). If this is clarified, she may not feel as threatened, either - which will be good for negotiation.
A book called the Art of Worship by Greg Sheer (Baker Books, 2006) gives helpful, practical advice on worship leading. Your worship leader is probably already more than familiar with the music theory discussed (although pop music does do some things differently than classical, though not many), but it also discusses putting together a worship team and the purpose and practice of assembling people who can carry the service… who knows, it might make a good “gift.”
I’m sorry; I wish I had more concrete thoughts or greater wisdom. I do know many, many churches are dealing with the same issue. Perhaps after all, though, it is less about our music and more about worship - sometimes this is the hardest pill for worship leaders to swallow.
Let me know how things go.
peace,
j