As a Live Music Producer, I work with pretty much every music genre there is. I’ve worked with hard rock, hip-hop, pop, country, bluegrass, folk music – I’ve even worked with speakers, comedians and – well, you fill in the blanks! I’ve also had the privilege of working with Christian/Gospel artists and praise teams. Praise teams are pretty unique. But there are similarities between them and other groups I’ve worked with, too.
Funny how in the different genres we have different words for the same concepts. In church, we don’t use the word “stage,” we use the word “platform.” In church, we don’t have a “front man,” we have a “worship leader.” We don’t “perform,” we “minister.” All artists want to be “spontaneous,” but Christian artists want to be “led by the Spirit.” And in a worship service there’s no “audience,” but there is a “congregation.”
Well, maybe there are a few subtle differences. But conceptually we need to do the same thing. Whether it’s a concert, a club, or a church, people are coming for the same things: to be captured and engaged, to experience moments, and to be changed.
Praise and worship teams also have a lot of the same problems as other artists. Instead of creating moments, we play songs and hope something happens! We often have a lack of authority, give a lot of misdirection onstage, our songs look the same even though they don’t sound the same, and we definitely end up “winging it” quite a bit of the time.
But, as I mentioned, worship teams are also different in some ways. They usually don’t rehearse as much as other artists because they’re learning brand new songs every week. Most people on the worship team don’t want to make a career out of music. Sometimes there’s a wide range of musical experience within the group. Also, we want to direct the audience’s attention, but where we direct their attention can be different. We’re usually playing someone else’s songs. It’s usually played in the mornings with people rushing to get there on time. And you are not usually the reason people come – the “message” is!
One of the main jobs of the worship team is to create freedom in the room so the “Spirit can move.” But I see many artists playing songs, just hoping something spiritual will happen. They don’t change the pressure on the audience/congregation, have few technical onstage skills, and don’t know how to rearrange the song to leave space for a spiritual connection.
And we have a homogenization of worship teams. I travel all around the world and one worship team looks like/sounds like another. They’re playing the same songs, same arrangements, delivered the same way – and I think to myself, “I just left LA, how could this worship team beat me here to New York!” And you wonder why people would rather see U2 than show up on a Sunday morning?
Now I’m not saying you need to become U2 or Springsteen. But I am saying we need to create freedom in the room. And how can that be done if the people onstage are concerned about things like should I move, should I raise my hand, I’ve got to be humble? That’s not humility. Real humility is forgetting about yourself, and about helping your audience forget themselves so that they can truly worship.
Not long ago, I worked with the worship team at the largest church in New Zealand, teaching those musicians how to lead their congregation in Expressive Worship. You see, I want worship teams to become more authentic, break out of their homogenization (their ruts), and take their worship to the next level!
One of the concepts I covered during that workshop was how to flesh out ideas in rehearsals that can help you with spontaneity (“listening to the Spirit”) when you’re in front of a congregation or an audience. Watch this clip from the workshop:
Whether you are a worship artist, a praise team leader, or the occasional Sunday morning singer – you have unique differences from other musicians. But you also have many of the same goals, as well as many of the same obstacles. Learning the skills and techniques necessary to capture and engage your audience, create special moments for them, and to help them experience a change in their lives is one of the most important things you can do.
Does Performance Have a Place in Worship?
Community Comments