WHAT YOU’ RE USED TO
This topic has been on my mind lately as I’ ve been preparing a similar teaching video for Sunday Sounds, sparked by receiving another setlist recently jam-packed with Db.
First, let’ s take a moment to consider why this key felt so much worse to me than any other. As I reflected on possible reasons I settled in on a few.
Firstly, I simply hadn’ t played as many songs in Db compared to most other keys. This is true of when I’ ve played on a worship team and of the keys I default to when I’ m just playing at home. This is a bit of a cycle. I play a lot of songs in a key, so I tend to jump back into that key anytime I’ m‘ just playing’ and thus my level of comfort deepens.
This is how I got into F #, actually. I played a full setlist in F # years back and there was one particular song that had such a fun riff that I would often jump back into it when I’ d sit down to play at home. From there I’ d hang out in F # for as long as it felt natural and the muscle memory was born.
I had just never done this in Db before.
A good solution that I’ ve been working on ever since realizing I still had these gaps? Play scales and runs in ascending, then descending keys across the full twelve, then do the same for simple chord progressions.
Weighting all twelve keys equally for practice that’ s not song-specific won’ t feel natural, but it’ s worth disrupting your patterns to achieve more fluency.
Secondly, Db( and Ab) simply felt significantly different to me as I placed my hands on the keyboard. For me this wasn’ t an issue of reach, in fact it was something of the opposite. I’ m pretty comfortable reaching up to tenths if a song calls for it. Here, none of the natural distance I was used to translated. Common chord intervals felt cramped together and unnatural compared to more open keys, including keys that are quite spread out like F # and simple keys like C.
There was no solution to this problem other than practicing through it. At first it felt the same to me as when I used to practice jump shots from three feet in front of the free throw line, frustrated that I had such a terrible time dialing in an objectively closer shot. It felt‘ too close’.
AM I GOOD AT IT NOW?
So, let’ s get back to that worship conference set. First, I’ ll tell you how it went. It went well. I didn’ t flub anything important, and we had an amazing time of worship. Second, I’ ll tell you how it felt. Intense!
Even with all my additional practice effort I still found that I had to stay focused throughout the set and remind myself of what key I was in … in ways I just don’ t have to do in other keys. This was a bit of a balancing act, as I truly wanted to engage in worship and turn my mind off as much as possible, but it ended up true that I had to keep my brain working more than I would’ ve otherwise.
Which brings me to the point of this article. I haven’ t shared any ground-breaking revelations. My only suggestions for getting more comfortable in all keys could be distilled down to just the word‘ practice’ and it’ d be just as useful advice.
The point isn’ t that I’ ve cracked some code, it’ s just hard work. The point is that even after a decade I realize I have meaningful ruts I’ m in and meaningful areas I can improve. And that’ s okay. It doesn’ t make me an imposter; it doesn’ t make me less of a musician.
So, wherever you find yourself today, whether you’ re transposing your tunes to C or fluently dancing around all twelve keys at will, look for your ruts, find your work, and chip away at it. You’ ll be glad you did. Me? I survived that set in Db, but as I write this article, I’ m already scheduled for the next set that hangs around that same key. Time for me to keep practicing.
David Pfaltzgraff Founder and Lead Sound Designer at SundaySounds. com, a site that resources worship keys players and guitarists around the world. David currently resides in Des Moines, IA with his wife and two boys. He enjoys volunteering in his church’ s worship ministry, old synthesizers, and a good super-hero movie.
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