KEYS
DO LESS , THEN OBSESS | Ed Kerr
I recently bought one of those message boards that comes with lots of letters so you can create a message for yourself . My sign currently says “ Do less , then obsess ”. That ’ s a quote from Morten Hansen , the author of several books on productivity including “ Great At Work ”. This little sign showing this simple four word phrase catches my eyes throughout the day . I want to respond honestly to its challenge .
Think about this simple phrase and how it relates to your work as a keyboard player on your worship team . Perhaps , like me , you have a current model of keyboard you play each week . Mine is Yamaha ’ s great CP88 . Perhaps , like me , you have software like Apple ’ s MainStage on a computer that you play from your keyboard . Perhaps you regularly purchase new sounds to add to your sonic palette . How many of those sounds do you use during your worship set ?
Beyond the sonic possibilities you have at your disposal , perhaps , like me , you ’ ve been classically-trained and could play super demanding parts in every song . Constant 16ths using a piano sound . Synth lead lines during every interlude . Do listeners to your worship sets tend to come away thinking , “ Wow , that person can really play .”?
There ’ s nothing wrong with people having that response . Nothing wrong with you playing lots of activity in your part or lots of synth lead lines . There ’ s nothing wrong with presenting lots of different keyboard sounds in the course of a worship set . The more important consideration is what the current song needs .
Here ’ s when “ Do less , then obsess ” should be seriously considered . Yesterday at my church , our worship band was small , an acoustic guitar player , a drummer , and me on piano . The acoustic guitar player is very comfortable driving a song from her instrument , so I was
careful not to do too much activity on the piano . The drummer is a confident player , too , and was providing plenty of activity along with the guitarist . So , my focus was on what I could play that would compliment rather than compete with what these players were doing .
Keep in mind that you and I have an option we might not use very often , playing nothing . Yep ! There ’ s not a “ Worship Band Rule # 47 ” that says all players must play all the time . The best choice for me on the first verse or chorus of a song might be to not play at all . Then , when I enter after that section ends I ’ m adding to the evolution of the song ’ s arrangement rather than helping each section sound the same .
Sometimes when I ’ m playing pad sounds I hear an inside voice saying “ do more ”. If you ’ ve played pad sounds you know that they work best when few notes are played , and when those notes are sustained through several measures of a song . So , let yourself be comfortable with this role on your team . Pads rarely drive a song , but they provide a texture behind other more rhythmic instruments that can be a sonic glue for a song .
So , when playing a pad sound fight that feeling that you should be playing more activity . Instead , develop your sense of what pitches work well when sustained through a song ’ s chord progression . A general rule when creating pad parts is that the first and fifth notes of the song ’ s scale will sound good held over your song ’ s changing chords . This is especially true if your song is based on the familiar 1-4- 5-6 family of chords common to hundreds of modern worship songs .
Another area where you might do less is when playing an acoustic piano or electric piano sound . Rather than play constant activity in your part , consider what notes you could eliminate . For example , while a vocal phrase is being sung play very little , perhaps only a quarter note pulse . Then , in the space between vocal phrases consider adding a bit more activity , perhaps a short melodic idea . Remember , though , to keep in mind that other players on your team could also be playing activity , and you don ’ t want your activity to compete with that .
I ’ m not asking you to overthink what you do on your worship team . I am challenging you to always be an active listener on your team , though . Listen to what other players on the team are doing . Listen to what ’ s happening in the vocals of the song . Think about how what you ’ re playing or not playing is adding to the arrangement . If each musician on your team is thinking this way the result can be an arrangement with lots of interest dynamically and musically .
Ed Kerr Ed Kerr lives in Seattle with his family . He serves as worship arts director at First Free Methodist Church , teaches keyboards in Paul Baloche ’ s leadworship workshops and is a clinician with Yamaha ’ s House of Worship . He also manages the Yamaha Worship Facebook group and invites you to join the group . www . KerrTunes . com