Training Young Musicians - Andy Chamberlain
There is an old joke that says, "How many electric guitarists does it take to change a light bulb?" The answer is 100. One to change the bulb and 99 to say, "That was rubbish, I could do it much faster."
Every so often at my music college, I come across a teenage guitarist who has been playing for a couple of years and has now come for lessons. When I ask them to show me how they play, they pull off a vastly impressive, fast metal riff that leaves me thinking ... er... perhaps you could teach me instead. If I then ask them to play it in another key or fit it into a song, it becomes apparent that they can't do much else apart from a few riffs at lightning speed. Essentially that person is a technician-something quite different than the more rounded skill of an experienced musician.
Musicianship is much more than physically being able to play the song. Communication, team working and listening skills should balance technical excellence, and if you are trying to integrate inexperienced musicians you'll want to embed those skills early on.
So here are some practical ideas for getting young people involved in the worship band and developing their musical maturity.
Learn to Play the Simple Stuff WellMany musicians learn a few cool chops and try to fit them into every song, at every opportunity. Many worship songs are written quite simply, and the temptation for the more able musician to overplay because they are bored is sometimes overwhelming. The song then becomes like a recipe with too many ingredients. It spoils the main flavor. As I mentioned last month the way to combat this is to start with a basic groove and discipline your rhythm section to keep with it. The other instruments fit around that groove one after another and listen to what everyone else is playing. This is a great lesson in dynamics and shows them that not everyone has to play ALL the time.
Play with Pros Listen closely to a CD, identify what each instrument is playing, unpack what is manageable, copy and play along. Like this, they play with professional musicians whilst simultaneously developing timing, taste and listening skills.
ReviewRecord or film the band and get the musicians to review their playing. When I first heard one of my parts on a live album, I realised it was far too busy in the context of the whole band and congregation. Self realisation amidst a culture of open constructive feedback is great learning.
Body LanguageGet the band to communicate using eye and body movements. Think about the dynamic change points in a song. How you could use your eyes and body to direct those changes? This doesn't this mean you take your focus off worshiping God. Just glance around a couple of bars before the end of a section and be very deliberate in your body language.
MentoringFirst Chronicles 25 observes the way musicians were trained. "Young and old alike, teacher as well as student, cast lots for their duties." Here is a mentoring process that places the experienced and inexperienced in the same band together.
Try occasionally having two of the same instrument in the band-a mentor and a student. A co-worship leader, two guitarists, two bassists or even two drummers. This can provide a fantastic copy-and-play exercise or even the main player could drop out for a verse or two to let the student take over. This counteracts a perfectionist performance orientation in worship and reinforces that you don't have to play all the time. This is great training for new musicians to learn from playing a few songs without the full responsibility of a full worship set.
Be PreparedLearn your parts before the rehearsal. A good rehearsal is much more productive if the focus is on working the song through as a band rather than waiting for one member to learn the chords. Do also make time to jam and be creative with the songs.
Be Worshipers
Help your musicians understand that even if they are not the worship leader, the emotions and focus behind their playing has the power to either draw people into worship or distract them.
Even if you are not a great musical technician, encouraging wider musicianship skills will mature your band in serving the congregation in worship. You will also find that as you unpack and teach what perhaps comes naturally to you, your own musicality will increase as you pass that knowledge on.
