YOUTH WORSHIP TEAM
UNDERSTANDING THEME & FLOW | Vance & Michelle Shepherd
It ’ s so exciting and inspiring to see youth leading worship , not only musically , but when you can obviously see that it ’ s from their heart and their love for Jesus . One thing we ’ ve found in working with youth worship teams is when their understanding of the service is great , they are much more connected to the worship aspect . To spend some extra time letting them know what the theme of the service is topically , what are the main takeaways for the congregation , and the heart behind the message that will be given is really important for the musicians and singers to know beforehand .
We ’ ve found it very effective to incorporate this into their rehearsal and run-thru , just as if it were service time . It ’ s also a very effective way to getting the team polished for the Sunday or mid-week youth service . One particular church that our student band leads worship at is more of a charismatic style . In this church , the order of service is that the worship team plays one song at the top of the service , thenthe pastor comes up and greets everyone with a short , inspiring word . Nearly every time towards the end of his greeting , he gets excited and starts talking more animatedly , getting an energetic response from his congregation . His regular house worship team usually waits until he ’ s done with his greeting , and then ( after a bit of awkward dead time ), continues on to play a few more worship songs after he leaves the stage . Not a crime by any sense , but it could flow much better , and be more seamless . We have a unique opportunity as the worship band to really set the tone for what ’ s to come in the service .
Here are some helpful tips that we use to train our youth worship bands in service theme and flow :
TIP # 1 : We like to paint the picture to our students that they can also think of their band as providing the service soundtrack , much like a movie score , or similar to a TV talk show band . We encourage and train them to listen to and engage with what is going on , listen to every word being said , and to build musical dynamics with the pastor . A helpful thing to do is to make sure that every band member has the pastor ’ s voice in their monitor so they can feel and flow dynamically with him if required to underscore for him . During their rehearsal , we have them plan ahead by rehearsing the musical bed in the key of the next song in the worship set , having the drummer doing cymbal swells and kicks , the keyboardists and guitarists holding sustained chords , etc .
TIP # 2 : We make it a practice of videoing our students leading worship , and it has provided a great tool for them to learn from . After videoing their Sunday worship set at this particular Pentecostal church , we then gave them instruction based on what we saw on the video , giving them tips for improvement , and praise for things done well . As the students watched the video , they all agreed where their music fell short . As the pastor was giving his inspirational greeting , the band ’ s underscore and his dynamic was really high . You could feel the energy through the video . But at the end of his greeting , when he turned it back over to the worship team and walked off stage , he said excitedly , “ Come on , let ’ s worship !” And then … there was a 5 second pause of dead time as the drummer stopped cymbal swelling and the musicians stopped sustaining their chords , while the drummer fumbled to start the click track to the next song .
We explained to them how they should have kept holding the chord and the cymbal swell until the count-in to the next song came in , eliminating all the dead space between the pastor leaving the stage and the band starting the song .
TIP # 3 : We ’ ve also found it helpful to contact the church a week or two ahead of time and ask what topic or passage will be preached on , striving to design the worship set or at least a song to fit in with the theme or to accompany the message . This can get the worship leader or leaders thinking ahead about how to tie the worship songs to the whole flow of service , setting up the next song thematically , or introducing the pastor , announcements or offering time .
Whatever type of church your youth worship team is leading at , it ’ s great to practice , plan and rehearse the dynamics . It adds so much to the service , and makes everything feel seamless , intentional and cohesive . Like anything , the more they do it , the better they ’ ll be at it !
May you be blessed as you pour into or become the next generation of worship leaders !
Vance & Michelle Shepherd Founders of The Shepherd School of Music in Las Vegas , NV , where they work with youth to raise up the next generation of worship leaders and musicians . facebook . com / shepherdschoolofmusiclasvegas www . ShepherdStudiosLV . com
42 June 2023 Subscribe for Free ...