KEYS
FIND YOUR WORSHIP KEYS VOICE | David Pfaltzgraff
Have you ever been in a band with someone who overplayed ? Whether it was a drummer who accented every single change with a fullblast double crash , a bass player who walked every note to the next , or a guitarist who just couldn ’ t help but noodle pentatonic riffs during every quiet verse … ‘ overplayers ’ can suck the life out of a band .
Now I ’ m sure that you ’ d never overplay yourself , right ? I will say that in my experience us keys players tend to be less inclined toward the behaviors above , playing riffs , overaccenting , etc .
That doesn ’ t mean it ’ s not possible for us to overplay , though . In fact , keys players can make or break the mix by striking the right balance ( or not ). The difference though , is that we keys players have such a broad range of notes available to us and the choices we make on where to play , what to play , and when can have a huge impact on the rest of the band .
Today I ’ d like to outline not how you can avoid playing too many sick pentatonic riffs ( because I ’ m sure you ’ re already good at avoiding that ) but instead how you can make sure you ’ re playing the right notes at the right times , in the right ranges .
DROPPING HINTS ( AND NOTES ) First , let ’ s envision a typical Sunday morning church worship band . The chord charts got sent out at some point the week before and you ’ ve had some time to practice at home . Three songs the band has played before and one new one . Pretty typical Sunday service .
Try to picture how you ’ d prepare for that new song at home . I ’ d imagine you ’ d likely listen to the song a couple times , following along with the chord chart and figuring out where the changes are , right ?
This is obviously a great place to start but if it ’ s as far as you take things you ’ re missing an opportunity to refine your craft . The thing about chord charts is that they tell you what chords to play but not where to play them in the range . Even more than that most charts will list rather basic chord shapes that are generic enough to apply to every member of the band in some way or another , but very rarely should you and the acoustic guitarist be playing the exact same chord shapes .
My point is this : start with the chart , yes , but then as you continue to practice and listen to the recording while trying to predict what the rest of the band is going to be doing as well , don ’ t lock yourself in to the exact root position chord voicings that an initial read of the chart might suggest . Instead , work on your ability to smoothly move between root , first , and second position chord voicings when changing chords and be comfortable leaving out some notes within the chord at times , especially when you do so to intentionally leave room for the melody or for a lead line from another band member .
It ’ s challenging to pick the right notes to drop and the only way to learn is to practice and try different ideas to see what best translates . When in doubt ask for feedback from others on your team . In my experience being able to properly drop notes and pick shapes is one of the best ways to ensure that your parts are actually heard in the mix and that the rest of the band feels supported by your contributions .
YOU ’ RE CLOSED ! Now let ’ s talk about ‘ closed position ’. In simple terms this means playing chords and other parts with your hands relatively close together on the keyboard , in worship music often in the mid to upper-mid range .
Closed position is often used when a simpler , more focused sound is required and can be a great place to start a large percentage of modern worship songs , especially those ‘ meat