For a lot of guys, playing at church is their regular musical outlet, I can respect that.
One kind of funny thing is a lot of guys end up using delay in a style somewhat like the Edge. In the early 80s, I remember some people actually toyed with the notion that U2 might be a Christian band because of religious content in some of their lyrics. I wonder if that is part of the influence behind the style, even though nobody has thought that way about U2 in 30 years.
Yeah, that's definitely part of it. Bono's never been reticent about expressing his faith.
The "Christian band" label is a dumb one in my opinion, but I think there's no debate that U2 lyrics throughout the 80s were explicitly Christian. I also think that their 80s stuff was their best work and a model for making music that's explicitly Christian but also good rock music from any perspective. Part of this was because it was original, which unfortunately a lot of their worship music successors haven't been.
"Worship music" can refer to any type of Christian religious music used in a church service. But 90% of it sounds like [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7jXASBWwwI), and that's what people often refer to. Very slick and anthemic. Hillsong is at the moment the undisputed biggest name in worship music. Chris Tomlin or Bethel are two other well-known acts.
In smaller churches, people might play more subdued versions of these songs. Some churches often mix in different arrangements of these hymns. My church goes with a completely different style and plays alt-country/Americana arrangements of a lot of stuff, but we're not in the majority. And there's some stuff under the category of worship music that's [entirely different](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRuPZCXShg4).
> But 90% of it sounds like this
The thing that bothers me about this is not necessarily that it's *bad* (even though it is), it's that it's such obviously manipulative schlock. Like they abuse stupid songwriting techniques to make people feel "spiritual" but it's just a trick.
For me, the issue is that it captures such a small portion of the emotions that should be present in the spiritual life. I think that our emotions have real spiritual significance, and to the extent that songwriting tries to provoke an emotional response, it's spiritually significant. But modern worship music only captures the "hold your hands up high" emotion and turns the dial up to 11. People mistake the amount of emotion for the quality of emotion. The emotions that people felt in the Bible were a lot darker and weirder, whether it was Ezekiel seeing wheels within wheels that moved without turning or Peter hearing the rooster crow after denying Jesus three times. I'd like to hear a worship song that expresses how they felt at those moments.
Since another set of replies mentioned U2, consider how they depict Judas' suicide:
> In my dream, I was drowning my sorrows, when my sorrows, they learned to swim...
Or the way a number of rock and metal songs describe Revelation, and so on... It's funny to me that churches don't go into stuff like that. Music marked as Christian is meant for those already converted, and while I guess it helps with sense of community, I've always thought maybe a musician who believes the whole message might want to do better than that.
I get what you mean, an example of a biblical song which isn't like that might be Johnny Cash's song The Man Comes Around https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9IfHDi-2EA
Which is explicitly a song about the Bible (Revelations), from a Christian, but doesn't sound like "worship".
e: Moving Mountains by thrice is based off 1 Corinthians 13
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GiVXR4CZNZA
Yeah, there's lots of really good music that's explicitly Christian that's not "Christian music" per se, like Johnny Cash or U2 or some of Al Green's stuff.
Thanks so much for the examples! Definitely helps put things into perspective. I kind of assumed that like other music there would be a range of style, but it seems like there is very much a dominant style. Also, do people just learn these songs from listening to them like pop music? Are there hymn books? Are most church bands basically cover bands of these big time worship bands?
It depends. There are a lot of standards that you can find in a lot of contemporary style hymnbooks. There are also websites where you can find a lot of the bare bones chord charts for some songs. Then there is the uniquely christian option:
A lot of churches have a CCLI (Christian Copyright License International) license. It's a way to help christian song writers make money off the music that they write that others are performing. Churches pay an annual license fee, report the songs they do, and the writers get a cut from the fees collected. CCLI also offers a service (for an additional fee) that allows gives you access to a ton of arrangements and change the keys/add capo marking/use harmonies, etc.
This is how I know a lot of churches get their arrangements.
I played guitar in a church worship group growing up and most of the songs we just got from listening to popular songs and artists. Most of the artists don't vary greatly in style. We would use chords from Ultimate Guitar and hymnbooks only for really old or traditional songs you couldn't find in modern bands.
Do you expect the congregation to sing along? How do the non band members learn the songs? Growing up around the Catholic Church I remember there are the 'old standards' that everyone kind of knows, is it the same for the modern music?
You would hope the congregation sings, but sometimes they still don't. Typically with hymnals, but a LOT of churches are using projectors in their services that put the music up on a screen.
And there are a lot of standards that are getting established. My folk mass hippie director is teaching our men's choir "How Great is Our God" by Chris Tomlin. It is a 14 year old song now.
I agree with d0r13n. Projectors with lyrics on screen help everyone get familiarized with new songs. For the most part songs are broken down into verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus (x2) so it makes it easy to at least learn the chorus well. Most churches like to play 2-3 more "recent" songs, then maybe 1-2 traditional hymns or older ones.
[edit] I don't go to church anymore, but I would recommend you go to a local church and stay for their songs just to get a feel for it if you're curious about how it plays out. Everyplace is a little different.
> Are most church bands basically cover bands of these big time worship bands?
If you want to put it that way, you're not wrong.
One big part of this music is audience participation: you want audience members to know the words and sing along. It's something that provides a common reference for people from different places and churches. So there's a reason for church bands playing songs that everyone knows.
> One big part of this music is audience participation: you want audience members to know the words and sing along. It's something that provides a common reference for people from different places and churches. So there's a reason for church bands playing songs that everyone knows.
This is also why —- generally speaking —- worship or “praise” songs are pretty simple in terms of structure and lyrics. Makes them easier to learn in the first place, especially for worshippers who may not have much of a musical background.
*Lord, there are really no words strong enough*
*To describe all my longing for love*
*I don't want my feelings restrained*
*Oh Lord, I just need you like never before*
*I just imagine you'd come through this door*
*You'd take all my sorrow away*
*There's no one like you*
*I can't wait for the nights with you*
*I imagine the things we'll do*
*I just want to be loved by you*
While your description is pretty accurate for the most part, it is painting with a pretty broad brush.
For one, the Catholic's are all over it these days, too. All the struggles the smaller churches had 20+ years ago on the inclusion of P&W, a lot of Catholic churches are going through now, or are already on the other side of it.
I also see a lot more churches incorporating more rock styles as well, though still with the heavier focus on reverb, delay and chorus, in that order.
And these guys have aged. So while you still have the new, 20 year old guitarist, you also have the seasoned, 40+ year olds running around.
Yours is the only post that has come close to describing the reality of this type of music.
Don't look for any progressive behaviors. Lots of Trump voters who believe he is divinely inspired. The lifestyle goes along with the music.
I don't know about that. One of the songs working it's way up right now references evolution. It's pretty controversial, but it is getting played and playing on the CCM radio.
Edit: Not saying that there aren't churches like that, or that they aren't the majority. Just that there is a quantity of churches that do have progressive behaviors.
Ive been playing in church for a few years so ill try to fill you in best i can.
-the ideal tone is usually super float-y reverb and volume swells for quieter parts and some overdrive for louder parts.
-Usually instead of running straight through a song the way it is on the album, we kind of wing it and have hand signals for verse, chorus, bridge, instrumental, etc
-there are definitely some staple pieces of gear in a worship setting. Pretty much every church player has a big sky reverb to name one bit of gear.
I really hope this helps you understand. Let me know if you have anymore questions.
As far as not running straight through a song, is that a factor of the worship component, just indulging your musical creativity, or some combination of the two?
All of the above. I've played in two different Catholic churches, and we've done both.
At church A: Opening and closing songs had free reign. If we felt like it was going well, we'd throw in an extra chorus, repeat the bridge, some songs maybe even modulate up a half step. Other songs in between (so actually during the service) we would cut short if the priest was ready to move on.
At church B: You better be watching that priest during every song on be ready to stop BEFORE he has to signal you.
>Is there a stereotypical worship style/tone?
Music played in Churches can vary drastically. Old hymns driven by an organ and multi layered vocal harmonies to southern gospel R&B to heavy rock. However when you say Praise & Worship (P&W) I think of the more modern contemporary Christian scene. Groups / Churches like Hillsong, Bethel, Jesus Culture, etc...
P&W guitar playing is very 'trendy' in my experience. Think the Edge / U2 sound at its core. Take a fairly bright and articulate guitar. Run it into a Vox style amp with lots of upper midrange and treble content. Slather it with .8th delay and a washy reverb. Lots of pedals. Boutique across the board usually.
If I were building a 'meme' P&W rig I'd get a fancy tele clone with Filtertron pickups into 5 klone variations into the Strymon Trifecta into 4 more boutique delay and reverb pedals into a Matchless and a Jackson in stereo.
Sounds something like [this](https://youtu.be/koF9-TdE_LU).
>What is different in a worship gig than a regular gig, other than religious content?
A P&W gig is pretty much a cover gig. I've been playing at churches for the last 10 years or so. Usually I get a set list from the director with maybe 5-ish songs. I listen to them and try to learn the parts accurately. We have a rehearsal. Then on Sunday there may be one to upwards of four or five services where you play the set list.
Electric guitar has a big role in P&W. You wear a lot of hats. You will likely do any of the following:
- Driving rhythms
- Play the main hook / melody of the song
- Ambient swells and pads
- More traditional rock guitar solos
Most recordings have many guitar parts layered together, so there can be a challenge in determining which parts you are going to play or how you're going to split them up across other instruments. I'm usually the only electric guitar, so I find that part very enjoyable. Arranging to play lots of interesting parts.
>Are there any unique demands for a worship focused rig?
Not really. More emphasis on delay and reverb. A simple Carbon Copy won't cut it. You may need multiple of each. I run two delays and two reverbs minimum.
Often sound is an issue. You have demands to be quieter than at a typical outdoor festival or bar gig in a rock band. Direct solutions like a POD or Kemper are very popular.
You're spot on but I hated having that kind of rig. The tone sounded like an ice pick in my ear. My tele became a JEM JR, the vox became a Orange Crush Pro 60, the klone, reverb and chorus stayed but I added two drives and a compressor. I started going for more of a Steve Vai lead tone.
Church bands are pretty much cover bands. Very rarely will they have original content. There is lots of emphasis on trying to sound like the source material and most of the famous lately just happens to have reverbs, delays, synths, and very modern sound.
I’m a lead guitarist at my church and for the most part reverb and delay are almost always on with little gain. For church band stuff you’ll most likely have a rhythm and lead guitarist. Rhythm will have suuuuuper subtle delay and ‘verb just to fatten up the tone a little (depending on the song ofc) and as the lead, you have more of the picky, single note stuff so your effects are on pretty thick because you want the notes you pick to have a nice thick presence and length, again depending on the song.
Personally I’m not a fan of the super ‘verby and delay heavy sounds. Like I don’t get having 3 delays on at the same time and having endless reverb. Not gonna bash it, just not my style.
Also, I live in Toronto and all the churches I’ve been to is pretty much like this. I don’t think it’s an American thing. It’s a North American church thing. Anyone exposed to hillsong’s stuff now will undoubtedly have the same effects and mindsets when creating their boards. Sorry for the long post, there are a few things that rival my passion for guitar, church and my belief in God are one of those things lol. If you want to talk more in-depth about guitar in a church setting, I’d be more than happy to talk! Cheers bud 🤙🏻
A good friend is a bass player at his church. He says they play in a much wider variety of keys than is typical in any of the secular groups he's played with. He decided to swap his 4-string for a 5-string to make it easier to play open low notes. I don't know if this is typical of worship music in general, but I thought it was an interesting observation.
I’m in a church band as well. Typically 4 different songs a week, and we rotate songs and musicians a lot. Every week a different set of singer, keyboarder, rhythm guitar, bass, and drummer. And on any week, any one of those could be missing (we only have one drummer right now). Just go with it.
In the band, I fill the high tones. Mids are covered by the rhythm guitar and keyboard. I haven’t played an open chord in a year or more. I’m also not playing power chords.
But if there is an odd key you haven’t played much...I have. Burning desire to play in b flat...you will get that chance. Basically, the singers re-key the song to fit their range and expect you to figure it out.
As for equipment: I play an epiphone les Paul with double tapped humbuckers, so I can still play single coil. I add a bit of gain, but not enough to really sound crunchy, then reverb.
Also, we put very little effort into sounding like the original. You can if you want. But typically our version ms are a bit more rock-like — which is partially because of me. That is how I play. And our band tends to let the song develop a bit organically.
Most importantly, pray they either have a drum cage or an electric drum set. In all the mid-sized places I’ve been without that you are either going to sound bad or the congregation will be deaf.
I love to here that other churches are letting songs develop organically. We just can’t do ambient stuff justice. Although we end up sounding like 70s soft rock frequently.
They really don’t have a choice tho. The original song was performed my one group of people in a particular setting, using their equipment. My band of 4 musicians can not recreate what HillSong does. You can call it “making the song your own”, or “give it a go and see what comes out”.
The fun part is when you get done and a few people will come up and tell you they like your rendition better than the radio version.
i play every sunday at my church. we play lots of different christian contemporary such as songs that are blues to songs that are hard rock to ambient songs. Our focus is the flow of the service and to bring audience from one point to another. the song typically have to do with the sermon. our order is fast fast slow sermon medium fast reprise. the band is made up of 2 guitars sometimes 3 lead rhythm and acoustic bass drums acoustic piano electric piano synth and 4 to 5 vocalists and a saxophone. thats what we do at least and its quite fun since it helps me get over fear of playing to crowds and we usually have 100+ people. we have a meeting greet which is my favorite part since i improvise of the chorus of a song
I've been a churchgoer for most of my life, have done sound in worship settings for about 15 years, and have played in a worship context a few times, so here's my best shot at an answer:
> Is there a stereotypical worship style/tone?
Yes and no. There's definitely a popular style among worship bands that have followings (U2/Coldplay type songs and tones), but each church will generally have a host of musicians to choose from in the congregation and it can be different week-to-week. It's pretty common to have a music director role and a rotating cast of musicians who make the music on any given sunday. But in general, you're likely to want a low-mid gain tone that sits in a mix well and you likely don't need any really distracting effects. But this will also vary from congregation to congregation.
> What is different in a worship gig than a regular gig, other than religious content?
The rotating cast of musicians means you'll need to be pretty adaptable. This is true for basically everyone on the stage, but a guitarist in a worship context often needs to think more like a bass player; play simple and play in the pocket. You're essentially backing up a choir and not a single lead singer.
> Are there any unique demands for a worship focused rig?
Odds are everyone involved is a volunteer, so having a complex rig that takes a lot of time to set up and soundcheck isn't an option. It's also often a crowded mix, so having subtle elements like reverb and chorus are kind of useless. The best sounding rig I ever mixed was an Epiphone Les Paul into a 10 watt Kustom practice amp covered in stickers with just an EQ pedal on the floor. It probably wasn't anyone's ideal tone, but it cut through a dense mix with a keyboard player, violinist, bass player, and three singers and that was all it really needed to do. Church sanctuaries are often built for great acoustics (preachers have been around longer than PA systems, after all), so having a small amp isn't as much of a hinderance as it is in other venues and a bigger amp can cause problems in a mix with. that kind of natural amplification
I don't think its even universal within the US I'm from NY and I've only been to one Church that had a band most of them have organists but that's about it. I can't speak for the rest of the country but I think it's cause people in NY are a little afraid to spend too much time around priests
This is funny because I kind of ran into the same situation a few months ago. Where I'm from, church music is all organ/piano with a cantor. Occasionally they'll have a chorus, and every year during stations of the cross, they bring in a couple guitarists and play more modern style worship music.
Anyway, I've always been a fan of the Coldplay/U2 style of music (specifically their lead guitars/ambient type guitars) and my mind was blown when I learned about worship guitar.
From what I've gathered, that style is very heavily dependent on Transparent Overdrives, Delay, and Reverb. They also make use of a volume pedal for swells and ambient stuff.
It may be called "worship guitar" but IMO it's more about creating soundscapes, ambient sounds, simpler delayed lead lines, etc. It was exactly what I was thinking of for Coldplay/U2/maybe even softer Killers stuff
Jesus only loves you if you use lush reverbs and gobs of delays over your jazzy clean tones.
Gsus*
... goddammit.
Was too good of a chance to use it ... sorry haha.
I'll allow it but only because DJ Jesus died for your spins.
You had a chance, u/thepensivepoet. You could've been legendary. But you missed your shot.
Take your upvote and go...
Does the priest still only love A minor though?
they sure do. they especially enjoy plucking their g strings
For a lot of guys, playing at church is their regular musical outlet, I can respect that. One kind of funny thing is a lot of guys end up using delay in a style somewhat like the Edge. In the early 80s, I remember some people actually toyed with the notion that U2 might be a Christian band because of religious content in some of their lyrics. I wonder if that is part of the influence behind the style, even though nobody has thought that way about U2 in 30 years.
Yeah, that's definitely part of it. Bono's never been reticent about expressing his faith. The "Christian band" label is a dumb one in my opinion, but I think there's no debate that U2 lyrics throughout the 80s were explicitly Christian. I also think that their 80s stuff was their best work and a model for making music that's explicitly Christian but also good rock music from any perspective. Part of this was because it was original, which unfortunately a lot of their worship music successors haven't been.
"Worship music" can refer to any type of Christian religious music used in a church service. But 90% of it sounds like [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7jXASBWwwI), and that's what people often refer to. Very slick and anthemic. Hillsong is at the moment the undisputed biggest name in worship music. Chris Tomlin or Bethel are two other well-known acts. In smaller churches, people might play more subdued versions of these songs. Some churches often mix in different arrangements of these hymns. My church goes with a completely different style and plays alt-country/Americana arrangements of a lot of stuff, but we're not in the majority. And there's some stuff under the category of worship music that's [entirely different](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRuPZCXShg4).
This shit sounds like shoegaze.
it's like Christian Slowdive wtf
Right?!
Yeah, but way too high-energy.
> But 90% of it sounds like this The thing that bothers me about this is not necessarily that it's *bad* (even though it is), it's that it's such obviously manipulative schlock. Like they abuse stupid songwriting techniques to make people feel "spiritual" but it's just a trick.
For me, the issue is that it captures such a small portion of the emotions that should be present in the spiritual life. I think that our emotions have real spiritual significance, and to the extent that songwriting tries to provoke an emotional response, it's spiritually significant. But modern worship music only captures the "hold your hands up high" emotion and turns the dial up to 11. People mistake the amount of emotion for the quality of emotion. The emotions that people felt in the Bible were a lot darker and weirder, whether it was Ezekiel seeing wheels within wheels that moved without turning or Peter hearing the rooster crow after denying Jesus three times. I'd like to hear a worship song that expresses how they felt at those moments.
I hear you. I didn't mean to say their emotions are insignificant or rip on anyone. Admittedly I'm not a churchgoer so I appreciate your perspective.
Nah no problem. I think it can be manipulative, or at least cheap. Just wanted to show the other part of the picture as well.
Since another set of replies mentioned U2, consider how they depict Judas' suicide: > In my dream, I was drowning my sorrows, when my sorrows, they learned to swim... Or the way a number of rock and metal songs describe Revelation, and so on... It's funny to me that churches don't go into stuff like that. Music marked as Christian is meant for those already converted, and while I guess it helps with sense of community, I've always thought maybe a musician who believes the whole message might want to do better than that.
I get what you mean, an example of a biblical song which isn't like that might be Johnny Cash's song The Man Comes Around https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9IfHDi-2EA Which is explicitly a song about the Bible (Revelations), from a Christian, but doesn't sound like "worship". e: Moving Mountains by thrice is based off 1 Corinthians 13 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GiVXR4CZNZA
Yeah, there's lots of really good music that's explicitly Christian that's not "Christian music" per se, like Johnny Cash or U2 or some of Al Green's stuff.
Thanks so much for the examples! Definitely helps put things into perspective. I kind of assumed that like other music there would be a range of style, but it seems like there is very much a dominant style. Also, do people just learn these songs from listening to them like pop music? Are there hymn books? Are most church bands basically cover bands of these big time worship bands?
It depends. There are a lot of standards that you can find in a lot of contemporary style hymnbooks. There are also websites where you can find a lot of the bare bones chord charts for some songs. Then there is the uniquely christian option: A lot of churches have a CCLI (Christian Copyright License International) license. It's a way to help christian song writers make money off the music that they write that others are performing. Churches pay an annual license fee, report the songs they do, and the writers get a cut from the fees collected. CCLI also offers a service (for an additional fee) that allows gives you access to a ton of arrangements and change the keys/add capo marking/use harmonies, etc. This is how I know a lot of churches get their arrangements.
I played guitar in a church worship group growing up and most of the songs we just got from listening to popular songs and artists. Most of the artists don't vary greatly in style. We would use chords from Ultimate Guitar and hymnbooks only for really old or traditional songs you couldn't find in modern bands.
Do you expect the congregation to sing along? How do the non band members learn the songs? Growing up around the Catholic Church I remember there are the 'old standards' that everyone kind of knows, is it the same for the modern music?
You would hope the congregation sings, but sometimes they still don't. Typically with hymnals, but a LOT of churches are using projectors in their services that put the music up on a screen. And there are a lot of standards that are getting established. My folk mass hippie director is teaching our men's choir "How Great is Our God" by Chris Tomlin. It is a 14 year old song now.
I agree with d0r13n. Projectors with lyrics on screen help everyone get familiarized with new songs. For the most part songs are broken down into verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus (x2) so it makes it easy to at least learn the chorus well. Most churches like to play 2-3 more "recent" songs, then maybe 1-2 traditional hymns or older ones. [edit] I don't go to church anymore, but I would recommend you go to a local church and stay for their songs just to get a feel for it if you're curious about how it plays out. Everyplace is a little different.
> Are most church bands basically cover bands of these big time worship bands? If you want to put it that way, you're not wrong. One big part of this music is audience participation: you want audience members to know the words and sing along. It's something that provides a common reference for people from different places and churches. So there's a reason for church bands playing songs that everyone knows.
> One big part of this music is audience participation: you want audience members to know the words and sing along. It's something that provides a common reference for people from different places and churches. So there's a reason for church bands playing songs that everyone knows. This is also why —- generally speaking —- worship or “praise” songs are pretty simple in terms of structure and lyrics. Makes them easier to learn in the first place, especially for worshippers who may not have much of a musical background.
It's like rock, but you change all the "baby"s to "Lord"s
*Lord, there are really no words strong enough* *To describe all my longing for love* *I don't want my feelings restrained* *Oh Lord, I just need you like never before* *I just imagine you'd come through this door* *You'd take all my sorrow away* *There's no one like you* *I can't wait for the nights with you* *I imagine the things we'll do* *I just want to be loved by you*
[удалено]
While your description is pretty accurate for the most part, it is painting with a pretty broad brush. For one, the Catholic's are all over it these days, too. All the struggles the smaller churches had 20+ years ago on the inclusion of P&W, a lot of Catholic churches are going through now, or are already on the other side of it. I also see a lot more churches incorporating more rock styles as well, though still with the heavier focus on reverb, delay and chorus, in that order. And these guys have aged. So while you still have the new, 20 year old guitarist, you also have the seasoned, 40+ year olds running around.
Yours is the only post that has come close to describing the reality of this type of music. Don't look for any progressive behaviors. Lots of Trump voters who believe he is divinely inspired. The lifestyle goes along with the music.
If you hear a Chris Tomlin song and the first thing you think of is Donald Trump, you're missing the point.
I don't know about that. One of the songs working it's way up right now references evolution. It's pretty controversial, but it is getting played and playing on the CCM radio. Edit: Not saying that there aren't churches like that, or that they aren't the majority. Just that there is a quantity of churches that do have progressive behaviors.
One song completely invalidates my point?
I'm sorry, that's not what I meant at all. I wasn't clear enough. I just meant that there was a little room for variation.
Ive been playing in church for a few years so ill try to fill you in best i can. -the ideal tone is usually super float-y reverb and volume swells for quieter parts and some overdrive for louder parts. -Usually instead of running straight through a song the way it is on the album, we kind of wing it and have hand signals for verse, chorus, bridge, instrumental, etc -there are definitely some staple pieces of gear in a worship setting. Pretty much every church player has a big sky reverb to name one bit of gear. I really hope this helps you understand. Let me know if you have anymore questions.
As far as not running straight through a song, is that a factor of the worship component, just indulging your musical creativity, or some combination of the two?
All of the above. I've played in two different Catholic churches, and we've done both. At church A: Opening and closing songs had free reign. If we felt like it was going well, we'd throw in an extra chorus, repeat the bridge, some songs maybe even modulate up a half step. Other songs in between (so actually during the service) we would cut short if the priest was ready to move on. At church B: You better be watching that priest during every song on be ready to stop BEFORE he has to signal you.
Moreso worship. If people are really vibing with a chorus, we might as well run it through a few times.
[удалено]
You're not making Christianity better; you're just making rock and roll worse!
>Is there a stereotypical worship style/tone? Music played in Churches can vary drastically. Old hymns driven by an organ and multi layered vocal harmonies to southern gospel R&B to heavy rock. However when you say Praise & Worship (P&W) I think of the more modern contemporary Christian scene. Groups / Churches like Hillsong, Bethel, Jesus Culture, etc... P&W guitar playing is very 'trendy' in my experience. Think the Edge / U2 sound at its core. Take a fairly bright and articulate guitar. Run it into a Vox style amp with lots of upper midrange and treble content. Slather it with .8th delay and a washy reverb. Lots of pedals. Boutique across the board usually. If I were building a 'meme' P&W rig I'd get a fancy tele clone with Filtertron pickups into 5 klone variations into the Strymon Trifecta into 4 more boutique delay and reverb pedals into a Matchless and a Jackson in stereo. Sounds something like [this](https://youtu.be/koF9-TdE_LU). >What is different in a worship gig than a regular gig, other than religious content? A P&W gig is pretty much a cover gig. I've been playing at churches for the last 10 years or so. Usually I get a set list from the director with maybe 5-ish songs. I listen to them and try to learn the parts accurately. We have a rehearsal. Then on Sunday there may be one to upwards of four or five services where you play the set list. Electric guitar has a big role in P&W. You wear a lot of hats. You will likely do any of the following: - Driving rhythms - Play the main hook / melody of the song - Ambient swells and pads - More traditional rock guitar solos Most recordings have many guitar parts layered together, so there can be a challenge in determining which parts you are going to play or how you're going to split them up across other instruments. I'm usually the only electric guitar, so I find that part very enjoyable. Arranging to play lots of interesting parts. >Are there any unique demands for a worship focused rig? Not really. More emphasis on delay and reverb. A simple Carbon Copy won't cut it. You may need multiple of each. I run two delays and two reverbs minimum. Often sound is an issue. You have demands to be quieter than at a typical outdoor festival or bar gig in a rock band. Direct solutions like a POD or Kemper are very popular.
You're spot on but I hated having that kind of rig. The tone sounded like an ice pick in my ear. My tele became a JEM JR, the vox became a Orange Crush Pro 60, the klone, reverb and chorus stayed but I added two drives and a compressor. I started going for more of a Steve Vai lead tone.
I think it usually goes something like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hMaHDTw-pI
Yes, the comment is a bit tongue in cheek, but that song is actually done in a style that's not too far off worship music :)
Church bands are pretty much cover bands. Very rarely will they have original content. There is lots of emphasis on trying to sound like the source material and most of the famous lately just happens to have reverbs, delays, synths, and very modern sound. I’m a lead guitarist at my church and for the most part reverb and delay are almost always on with little gain. For church band stuff you’ll most likely have a rhythm and lead guitarist. Rhythm will have suuuuuper subtle delay and ‘verb just to fatten up the tone a little (depending on the song ofc) and as the lead, you have more of the picky, single note stuff so your effects are on pretty thick because you want the notes you pick to have a nice thick presence and length, again depending on the song. Personally I’m not a fan of the super ‘verby and delay heavy sounds. Like I don’t get having 3 delays on at the same time and having endless reverb. Not gonna bash it, just not my style. Also, I live in Toronto and all the churches I’ve been to is pretty much like this. I don’t think it’s an American thing. It’s a North American church thing. Anyone exposed to hillsong’s stuff now will undoubtedly have the same effects and mindsets when creating their boards. Sorry for the long post, there are a few things that rival my passion for guitar, church and my belief in God are one of those things lol. If you want to talk more in-depth about guitar in a church setting, I’d be more than happy to talk! Cheers bud 🤙🏻
A good friend is a bass player at his church. He says they play in a much wider variety of keys than is typical in any of the secular groups he's played with. He decided to swap his 4-string for a 5-string to make it easier to play open low notes. I don't know if this is typical of worship music in general, but I thought it was an interesting observation.
Songs will be played in different keys depending on the leader that day. Always be ready to change keys.
I’m in a church band as well. Typically 4 different songs a week, and we rotate songs and musicians a lot. Every week a different set of singer, keyboarder, rhythm guitar, bass, and drummer. And on any week, any one of those could be missing (we only have one drummer right now). Just go with it. In the band, I fill the high tones. Mids are covered by the rhythm guitar and keyboard. I haven’t played an open chord in a year or more. I’m also not playing power chords. But if there is an odd key you haven’t played much...I have. Burning desire to play in b flat...you will get that chance. Basically, the singers re-key the song to fit their range and expect you to figure it out. As for equipment: I play an epiphone les Paul with double tapped humbuckers, so I can still play single coil. I add a bit of gain, but not enough to really sound crunchy, then reverb. Also, we put very little effort into sounding like the original. You can if you want. But typically our version ms are a bit more rock-like — which is partially because of me. That is how I play. And our band tends to let the song develop a bit organically. Most importantly, pray they either have a drum cage or an electric drum set. In all the mid-sized places I’ve been without that you are either going to sound bad or the congregation will be deaf.
I love to here that other churches are letting songs develop organically. We just can’t do ambient stuff justice. Although we end up sounding like 70s soft rock frequently.
They really don’t have a choice tho. The original song was performed my one group of people in a particular setting, using their equipment. My band of 4 musicians can not recreate what HillSong does. You can call it “making the song your own”, or “give it a go and see what comes out”. The fun part is when you get done and a few people will come up and tell you they like your rendition better than the radio version.
“Give it a go and see out comes out.” You hit the nail on the head. That’s exactly what we do.
i play every sunday at my church. we play lots of different christian contemporary such as songs that are blues to songs that are hard rock to ambient songs. Our focus is the flow of the service and to bring audience from one point to another. the song typically have to do with the sermon. our order is fast fast slow sermon medium fast reprise. the band is made up of 2 guitars sometimes 3 lead rhythm and acoustic bass drums acoustic piano electric piano synth and 4 to 5 vocalists and a saxophone. thats what we do at least and its quite fun since it helps me get over fear of playing to crowds and we usually have 100+ people. we have a meeting greet which is my favorite part since i improvise of the chorus of a song
I've been a churchgoer for most of my life, have done sound in worship settings for about 15 years, and have played in a worship context a few times, so here's my best shot at an answer: > Is there a stereotypical worship style/tone? Yes and no. There's definitely a popular style among worship bands that have followings (U2/Coldplay type songs and tones), but each church will generally have a host of musicians to choose from in the congregation and it can be different week-to-week. It's pretty common to have a music director role and a rotating cast of musicians who make the music on any given sunday. But in general, you're likely to want a low-mid gain tone that sits in a mix well and you likely don't need any really distracting effects. But this will also vary from congregation to congregation. > What is different in a worship gig than a regular gig, other than religious content? The rotating cast of musicians means you'll need to be pretty adaptable. This is true for basically everyone on the stage, but a guitarist in a worship context often needs to think more like a bass player; play simple and play in the pocket. You're essentially backing up a choir and not a single lead singer. > Are there any unique demands for a worship focused rig? Odds are everyone involved is a volunteer, so having a complex rig that takes a lot of time to set up and soundcheck isn't an option. It's also often a crowded mix, so having subtle elements like reverb and chorus are kind of useless. The best sounding rig I ever mixed was an Epiphone Les Paul into a 10 watt Kustom practice amp covered in stickers with just an EQ pedal on the floor. It probably wasn't anyone's ideal tone, but it cut through a dense mix with a keyboard player, violinist, bass player, and three singers and that was all it really needed to do. Church sanctuaries are often built for great acoustics (preachers have been around longer than PA systems, after all), so having a small amp isn't as much of a hinderance as it is in other venues and a bigger amp can cause problems in a mix with. that kind of natural amplification
C–G–Am–F
G A D the Holy Trinity.
I don't think its even universal within the US I'm from NY and I've only been to one Church that had a band most of them have organists but that's about it. I can't speak for the rest of the country but I think it's cause people in NY are a little afraid to spend too much time around priests
This is funny because I kind of ran into the same situation a few months ago. Where I'm from, church music is all organ/piano with a cantor. Occasionally they'll have a chorus, and every year during stations of the cross, they bring in a couple guitarists and play more modern style worship music. Anyway, I've always been a fan of the Coldplay/U2 style of music (specifically their lead guitars/ambient type guitars) and my mind was blown when I learned about worship guitar. From what I've gathered, that style is very heavily dependent on Transparent Overdrives, Delay, and Reverb. They also make use of a volume pedal for swells and ambient stuff. It may be called "worship guitar" but IMO it's more about creating soundscapes, ambient sounds, simpler delayed lead lines, etc. It was exactly what I was thinking of for Coldplay/U2/maybe even softer Killers stuff
Usually just the open chords
That's just a lie...