Worship Musician December 2019 | Page 96

GUITAR ARRANGED TO ENHANCE CONGREGATIONAL SINGING: “GREAT ARE YOU LORD” FOR ACOUSTIC GUITAR + A CUT CAPO | Grant Norsworthy For most of my professional music career, the in conjunction with the standard capo, two frets the band’s overall sound (as it should), the cut electric bass guitar was my instrument. I really lower than the five-string capo. capo certainly helps make my chord transitions worked hard to be the best bassist I could be smoother and allows the acoustic guitar to add - lots of practice, rehearsals, lessons and, yes, The third and most recent addition to my capo loads of gigs. I had many great opportunities collection has quickly become my favorite. It’s to record and perform with bands like the Paul the Kyser® Short-Cut™. It capos only the 2nd Colman Trio and Sonicflood and got to a pretty A, 3rd D and 4th G strings - leaving the other 3 high standard as a bassist. strings open - and is most commonly placed at a warm texture to the arrangement. the second fret. When it’s the only capo being But in more recent years, there’s been a used, it’s best for when I’m playing in the key of significant career path shift. Now as a speaker E. I can play most chords I need with only one and musician (who often finds himself flying solo) or two fingers on my left hand! Played in this and with More Than Music Mentor the acoustic way, the constant drone of the 5th B and 6th In this next video, I give more details about my guitar has become my main instrument. I hung E strings give a wonderful, smooth, rich open- approach to acoustic guitar for “Great Are You up my bass and, as I like to joke (with only a sounding quality to my playing. It gives much Lord” in the key of E and using the Kyser® dash of exaggeration), I bought a guitar and a of the benefit of DADGAD tuning while allowing Short-Cut™ capo. capo, learned to play five chords and instantly me to keep the guitar in standard tuning. discovered I could play about 80% of the Christian Church’s repertoire! More than that, I find that the key of E is the right key - the most congregation-friendly key 1, 4, 5, 6 minor and (maybe) the 2 minor. Sure, - for quite a few of the more recent songs that there are some nice little variations and voicing I want to utilize for congregational worship we can reach for, but basically all the more through songs. You’ll find me using the key of recent songs for congregational worship can E (and my Kyser® Short-Cut™) for “O Come be played using only those 4 or 5 chords. But to the Altar”, “Who You Say I Am” (without For a closer analysis of the acoustic guitar work to use those chords in different keys, a capo is the octave jump), “Good Good Father”, “This in our congregation-friendly version of “Great my best friend. Is Amazing Grace”, “Lord I Need You” (again Are You Lord”, grab your cut capo, watch and without the octave jump), “Lion and the Lamb” play along with this static camera video. I really threw myself into the deep end with and (the featured song in this article’s videos) acoustic guitar - not much practice and no “Great Are You Lord”. lessons before I was up to my eyeballs using the acoustic guitar in front of crowds. My The key of A for the original All Sons & playing was pretty rough to begin with but Daughters’ version of “Great Are You Lord” is - while I’m nowhere near the level I was as perfect. But I have found that, in the key of E, a bassist - I have come a fair way. For me - pretty much every man, woman and child in the perhaps unsurprisingly - the standard capo congregation will find the melody within their was (and is) a lifesaver! comfortable range. And that’s the main goal, “Great Are You Lord” isn’t it? Words & Music by David Leonard, Jason Ingram, Leslie These days, I always have three different Jordan (© 2012 Integrity's Alleluia! Music) capos within easy reach. Predictably, one is a Using “Great Are You Lord” as the demo song, standard, six-string capo. The second I use to watch my Nashville band’s congregation- capo just the higher five strings of the guitar, friendly rendition in E. I’m using the cut capo leaving the lowest E string open. That’s best for this song. Even though my understated used at the second fret, or higher up the neck acoustic guitar playing all but vanishes into 96 December 2019 Grant Norsworthy Founder of More Than Music Mentor, providing online and onsite training for the heart and the art of worshipping musicians. www.MoreThanMusicMentor.com Subscribe for Free...