KEYS
JUST 3 NOTES? | Ed Kerr
You’ve probably seen the ads online. Maybe D D E A pad whose notes hardly change could work
you use them yourself. You might have heard A A B E over a changing chord progression. Experience
someone else talk about them but aren’t sure E E F# B has proven me wrong. The result is very
what they are. Maybe you saw them on the app F F G C satisfying, and you should try it for yourself. You
store. Bb Bb C F can do this by searching online for “worship
pads” or “ambient pads for worship”. You’ll
find many free examples along with collections
What are they? Worship pads. Or some
similar term. Essentially, what these are is
audio recordings of pad sounds that play as
a background to what your worship team is
playing. They’re long enough for any song you
might play. The concept represented here is
that you choose the pad file for the key your
song is in, start the pad playback, and then
play your song. You might wonder how this
is possible, since chords change at different
places in different songs. How could one
recording of pads in a specific key work for so
many songs?
The answer can revolutionize your approach to
keyboard playing on your worship team. How’s
that? Scrutinize these worship pad recordings
and you might notice something very important.
Only a few notes are being played. And they’re
being held for a long time. These notes are
chosen because they can blend well with the
chords that songwriters and arrangers use in
These notes are
chosen because
they can blend
well with the
you can purchase. Choose a key and let the
pad track play. At your keyboard, choose an
acoustic piano sound. Or, if you’re a guitarist
and you’re reading this, grab your instrument
and play along.
The chords you choose are crucial as you play
along. Modern worship songs tend to use four
chords in the key. In the key of D, for example,
you’ll typically find the D chord, G chord, A
chords that
chord, and Bm. Play any of these chords as the
pad track is playing. Fast song, slow song. Still
songwriters and
arrangers use in
modern worship
works. Interesting, right? Establish a regular
progression, something like G, Bm, A, D. What
do you think?
It’s important when you’re trying this out on
your own or using worship pads in your church
that you have the tracks turned down fairly low.
They are not meant to be a dominant element
songs.
sonically. What I’ve discovered through the
years is that you can get a real sense of what
modern worship songs.
We sometimes talk about building blocks in a pad part is adding by stopping it. Once you
I won’t jump too deep into the music theory music. These three notes are truly one of the stop the pad part, you’ll miss the “bed” that it
behind this, but will simply suggest that you most significant building blocks in developing was providing for everything else you or your
learn 3 notes in every key: 1-2-5, the first, your confidence as a worship team keyboard worship team are playing. You also might
second, and fifth notes of the scale. Here’s a player. I’m definitely not suggesting that you discover, as I have, that when a pad part is
chart that lists these notes for several keys. To not learn the other notes in these scales or involved in your song you and your team can
make this a little less intimidating, I’m going to not become comfortable playing the chords in play less, be less busy.
limit this first table to the keys most often used your songs, but with experimentation at your in worship music, keys that are more guitar- keyboard you’ll discover that these three notes This is a huge benefit in a worship setting, since
friendly. At the end of this article you’ll find a really can be the basis for great keyboard parts. many worship musicians tend to overplay. At
complete table showing all available keys. Study recordings of your favorite worship songs your instrument, with a worship pad track
and you’ll hear these 3 notes make up many of playing, play the chord progression you played
the parts you hear. a moment ago, but only play a chord every 4
Notes in Scale
KEY
1 2 5
beats, for example. Then play a few measures
C C D G The proof is in the playing. When I first learned where you play lots of activity. Then play a
G G A D of this product I couldn’t imagine that a droning single chord every 4 beats again. Hear how
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September 2018
WorshipMusician.com