Steady Beats Cool
I love that my kids are multi-instrumentalists. Most mornings, we have family worship from 7:30 to 8:00. We take turns choosing the songs and rotate on the instruments from piano, bass, drums, acoustic or electric guitar, violin, mandolin, banjo, ukulele, percussion, and of course, voice.
While that may sound glorious (and at times it really is!), these are mostly beginner instrumentalists.
Sometimes I’m calling out chords between phrases or giving quick suggestions for what to play. But our focus is not a lesson; it’s to worship together.
Nothing seems to derail our musical endeavors quicker than this one thing: trying something cool. LOL
You know what I mean. There’s a cool melodic riff that the piano tries to pull off, only to miss the next chord. There’s an epic fill on the drums that takes us into another tempo entirely. Someone tries to add a triple strum on the acoustic guitar on a section and destroys the groove.
I remarked once to them, “steady beats cool.”
Think of a time you’ve said this (or wished you would have said this) at a rehearsal with your worship team.
Rather than “serving the song,” rather than doing what is needed for the song to work, we play something cool. And often, if we try to pull off something cool at a rehearsal that we haven’t learned well, it distracts.
I’m often amazed at how simple great musicians play. Unless you’re auditioning for a shred-off guitar contest, the greats know how to do the basics well. They are always steady. So, in the effort to play the more important role of being steady, here are five areas to work on:
TEMPO
This, of course, is foundational. If your tempo isn’t good, nothing works. It’s like being an out-of-tune singer. I don’t care if you’re loud, passionate, and articulate; if you’re not in tune, we don’t want to hear it.
But how do you get great at playing or singing with a steady tempo? By almost never practicing or playing without a reference track or metronome. I’m serious. At first, it always seems that it’s fighting you. But eventually, once you’ve let the discipline train you, it’ll mostly disappear. Try it for a month and tell me if your teammates don’t notice.
REPLICATION
We have reference recordings for several reasons. But as our team is learning the song, the parts they hear begin to be associated with the recording. And our congregations also associate the recording with the song - if you change the melody, they’ll let you know that’s not how the song goes.
Give your teammates and congregation what they expect. It may or may not be flashy. It may feel boring to be steady. But it will benefit the big picture.
GAIN STAGING
Whoa, Dave, that was over my head. What do you mean? The idea of gain staging simply acknowledges that there are several places where a signal encounters a volume control. Because what you put into the sound system affects not only the live sound, but also the recording or live stream, and more importantly, the monitor mix your team receives, try to set your instrument at the same level every time. If you usually run the keyboard at 50%, try to always do that. Work out each effects setting on your electric guitar processor to send a similar level across effects. Use the same weight drumsticks. Sing the same distance to the mic. Gain staging steadiness.
EVEN KEEL
I’m not going out on a limb to say that our relationships change the music. If I’m easy to get along with, we’ll make better music. If I’m a pain in the butt, the music will suffer. If my teammates never know who is going to show up (Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde), you’ll set the stage for trouble.
Not everyone is even-keeled, and I get that some of our teammates are putting their best foot forward (even when it feels like they aren’t). If we’re carrying something that affects our mental or emotional state, have your team pray for you. But putting in the effort to show up as our best selves will help set our whole team at ease. And relationally comfortable teams make better music.
SIMPLICITY
One approach that will help us greatly to be steady is to be simple. Establish a tight pocket, meaning everyone plays with the same beat, groove, and feel. Make sure all the pieces interlock. Intentionally keep things simple. There’ll be plenty of time to add complexity later. Start with the basics. Walk before you run.
You Can Implement It This Way
If you’re bold, after reading this together, ask your team, “What’s one way I can be more steady for you guys?”
-Dave Helmuth
(purchase my book, "Worship Fertilizer: (the first hundred)" HERE)
Steady Beats Cool (Nº 443)
