Managing Your Master Song List

by Brent Helming

Before you can choose a great worship song set, you must have a well-managed master song list to select from. When all of your charts are piled together in a large stack it can be quite frustrating, not to mention time consuming, to find the right songs that flow together in the desired key and/or tempo.  Better to have the songs that make up your church’s worship repertoire organized in such a way as to make them readily accessible for whatever your need when crafting a set.

The first component of a well-managed master song list is its size.  A master song list should be large enough to give you an appropriate level of variety from week to week and yet small enough to keep a healthy level of familiarity for the congregation. Although there is no hard and fast rule regarding the proper size of a worship song repertoire, a master song list of two hundred to two hundred fifty should be about right for most churches. Having more songs beyond this number will make if difficult not only for the musicians to attain a certain level of familiarity but also for the congregation to maintain a basic level of familiarity. And congregational familiarity is important, as it’s a key component in encouraging engagement from those worshipping.

Related to the importance of repertoire size is the reality that the master song list is dynamic rather than static. This means that over the course of time new songs will be added and older songs will be dropped from the active list. This will be due to the on-going life of the congregation as well the continual development of new and anointed worship songs. An important aspect to remember is to keep the size of the repertoire around the two to two hundred fifty range. Don’t just keep adding new songs without weeding out those that seem to have outlasted their connection with the congregation.

Another key component to having a well-managed master song list is accessibility. This relates to the ability to find the right song for a specific need. There are a handful of good database software programs that can help you manage how each song is stored and accessed and I highly recommend doing some research and then investing one that best fits your needs and budget. While looking for a database program or system, keep in mind the following helpful accessibility components that worship leaders often find helpful in the search for the right songs. Obviously this is not an exhaustive list. So feel free to make up your own categories or add to the suggestions below.

• Songs arranged by specific keys – many times it is nice to be able to view a list of the songs that you do in the specific key. This is especially helpful when creating a mini-set of several songs that will flow together seamlessly.
• Songs arranged alphabetically by title, author, first line of the song and/or chorus – if you already know which song that you want or which author you’d like to preview, then having songs in an alphabetical order is invaluable.
• Songs arranged by tempos  - often it’s helpful to see a list of all the songs in a specific tempo such as grouping all of the up-tempo, medium, and slow songs. Another way to arrange songs by tempo would to sort by the specific beat per minute (bpm) that you do each song.
• Songs arranged by themes – another way to arrange songs is by specific themes. useful themes could include: God’s love, the cross, God’s grace, salvation, supplication, adoration, declaration, celebration and intimacy just to name a few.  Specific religious holidays such as Christmas, Easter, and Advent can also be used as themes for sorting your song list.
• Songs arranged by specific use in the service – every service or meeting has specific elements such as; call to worship, communion, invitation, and offering. Being able to view a list of songs that are appropriate for these specific elements can be quite helpful.
• Songs correlated to a specific scripture reference – the songs we sing in corporate worship should have one or more specific scripture references that directly, indirectly or thematically correspond to it. Having a database that is able to sort songs by specific scripture references and/or themes is extremely helpful; especially if you are wanting to support a sermon from a specific Bible passage.

© 2012, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Worship in Personal Devotion

by Brent Helming

Seeking God and spending time in devotion away from platform is an absolute essential for worship leaders and worship team members. Plainly stated, worship should not be a Sunday-only experience. In fact it is the cultivation of our personal (private) relationship with God that is the foundation upon which we stand to lead others in worship. So how exactly do we pursue our personal devotion and worship with God?

It goes without saying that the tried and true spiritual disciplines of prayer and scripture reading/study are foundational keys. There is absolutely nothing that can take the place of the God’s Word, active, living, and true. There is no substitute for spending time in prayer and meditation, listening for the voice of God to teach and guide. However, for worship leaders, I would suggest several additional activities to be meshed with these core spiritual disciplines.

First, try spending your devotional in the Word while sitting at your keyboard or with your guitar in your hands. Then allow yourself to begin play chords and melodies while reading or even begin to read aloud while playing. I would even suggest singing the word to the chord progressions you’re playing. Don’t try to write a song or make it flow smoothly. Allow the Word to be central and the music to accompany what you are reading/singing. This can also work well during your prayer time. Simply begin singing your prayers to God. Allowing yourself to play your instrument and sing scripture and prayers will go a long way to integrate and undergird your gifting with the ability to sense God’s presence and understand His leading.

Another suggestion would be to use one of the current popular worship songs as the basis for a Bible study. Any well-written worship song uses Christian life experiences and the principles of Scripture as its core influence and lyrical content. Many will use entire verses from the Word or at least pieces of the verse for the actual lyrics themselves. Start by reading over the song that you have chosen while praying to ask God to guide you in your insight and study. Then use your Bible dictionary and/or concordance to identify the verses or sections of scripture that the song is either taken from or influenced by. (This part of the study is greatly enhanced if you are able to use a computer program or on-line program to help search out the relevant portions of scripture.) For instance, if the song talks about God’s grace, then you would start by looking up the sections of scripture that discuss God’s grace (i.e. Eph 2:8-9). A key to making this activity a relevant study is to read each section of scripture within the proper context of its accompanying chapter and book.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Three Keys for Leading a
Successful Worship Set

by Brent Helming

Would you like to know that every time you were called upon to lead worship, that the worship time would be successful? I know I would! First though, its important to define what success looks like for a congregational worship set. I think that at least one of the defining characteristics would be that the selection of the songs and the execution of the songs by the worship team would enable the congregation to connect with God in a deep, relevant and tangible way.

But how does this happen? Clearly, connecting with God during a time of congregational worship is not something that can be humanly manufactured. The interaction between God and man through the giving of glory to God in song is firmly wrapped in the divine mystery of God’s pleasure and love for His people. However, there are three specific activities that we as worship leaders can do that will go a long way in reaching for the goal of “successful” God saturated times of worship.

The first key to successful worship leading is MEDITATION. By this I mean spending time seeking God in private devotions, prayer and personal worship. This is truly the beginning; the essential, non-negotiable starting point for any worship leader. Worship is far more than songs, music and singing. It is our life. To worship God with all we are is the essential purpose of our existence. Therefore, any successful worship set must begin with personal worship and devotion. After all, we cannot lead others where we have not gone ourselves.

A second key is PREPARATION. It’s difficult to lead the congregation toward the goal of connecting with God if there is no thought or plan to the pathway of getting there. Successful worship requires God inspired and God directed planning. Choosing the right songs, arranging the music appropriately, rehearsing the band and coordinating with the senior pastor on the flow of the worship time are all Godly pursuits. Remember, if you never aim at a target, then you are guaranteed not to hit it.

REPETITION is the third key for successful worship. The more you rehearse and repeatedly practice the songs you use in worship the more confident and comfortable you’ll be while leading. The more familiar you are with the songs that you are leading, the more effective you will be in guiding the congregation along the path of worship and the freer you will be to worship authentically as you lead. Many times worship leaders struggle with being so distracted by the task of leading that they are unable to fully open up and seek the Lord’s heart in the midst of the worship time itself. However, the more prepared you are and more familiar you are with the songs themselves, the greater the likelihood that you will lead effectively while modeling sincere and authentic worship.

There is no fool proof, magic formula to guarantee that the worship sets you lead will be successful. Ultimately, God is responsible for drawing his people to himself in authentic worship. Yet, the three keys discussed above are a few of the essential steps to take as worship leaders. Meditation, preparation and repetition are the tools that we can use to be faithful stewards of leading God’s people toward Him to worship

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Line of Sight is Key

by Brent Helming

When leading worship with others, whether it’s just you and another instrument or an entire band of musicians, it is crucial that the other players are able to see you. Even though you have most likely spent time rehearsing the songs and practicing specific arrangements, it is important to be able to communicate with the worship band during the worship service. To do this effectively, they need to be able to see you while on the stage. This means that you will need to arrange the physical placement of each musician on the platform so that they are not only able to hear each other well but to see each other as well.

Even with the best musicians and a well-rehearsed song set, there will be occasional changes that occur along the way. Some of these changes will be conscious decisions that you make while in the middle of worship, such as: adding a double chorus before the third verse, or skipping the third verse altogether. Other changes will be spontaneous driven by unforeseen happenstance, like your drummer forgetting the ending of a song or starting the drum role into the chorus too soon. Since leading worship is dynamic and focused on the flow of what God is doing in the moment, sometimes changes (on the fly) need to made to best facilitate what you sense God doing. To do this, you need to be able to cue the band of your intentions. Sometimes verbal cues are helpful but being able to make eye contact and/or give a hand signal is very effective as well. This can only be done if they can see you.

There may also be times when you’ll need to change an intro of a song, skip to a different song completely, or end a song differently than rehearsed. If the band is able to see you, then you’ll be more able to direct those changes smoothly and efficiently. Finally, there will be times when the dynamics of a song need to move up or down (quieter or louder) to better represent the authentic mood of worship in the moment. Again, if you can connect with the band quickly and visually then these dynamic changes can occur without incident.

Bottom line – make sure the band has a clear line of sight to the worship leader.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Introducing New Songs

by Brent Helming

Whenever I teach on worship and worship team dynamics I am usually asked, “What’s the best way to introduce a new song to the congregation?” Honestly, there is no set “best” way. There are many factors that come into play to answer this question and much depends on the congregation itself. Such as, “How actively do they participate in singing?”

There is always a balance to strike regarding new songs. Introducing too many new songs could create frustration in the congregation, as they do not have time to learn each song and embrace it as their own voice of worship. On the other hand, too few new songs can allow boredom to creep in and dilute the worship experience. It’s the role of the worship leaders to assess and determine the proper balance of introducing new songs into the worship repertoire.
However, once the right balance has been determined there are several there are a handful of ways to introduce the new song. One way is to use the song as a special music number before using it in the worship set.  This is usually best if the song is used the week or several weeks prior. Two of the most convenient places to introduce the new song is before the service begins (as a prelude to worship) or during the offertory.  Actually using a combination of these two before finally introducing it into the worship set itself can be quite helpful.
Another helpful way to get the congregation familiar with a new song before using it in worship is to play it off the CD or DVD before or after the service. Usually churches will have music playing 15 minutes or so before the service and for the same amount of time after the service. Playing the new song during these times will ensure that the congregation hears it, even if it’s just in the background. The more initial familiarity the congregation has of the song the more readily they will engage in singing it.

Finally, when actually introducing the new song into the worship set be sure to surround it with two very familiar songs; one before and another after. This will help to keep the flow and engagement level of worship going while the congregation learns the new song.  Also, if the new song is an upbeat “praise” oriented song, beginning the set with the new song may be a good way to ease the congregation into incorporating it into their worship dialog. However, it would then be important to follow the new song with another upbeat and very familiar song.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Be Prepared

by Brent Helming

For a Worship/Band Leader this may seem like a “No Brainer”. However, I am continually amazed at the stories that hear from worship musicians regarding the lack of preparation from their worship leader/ director and the sometimes-humorous chaos that follows. So here’s a HOT TIP… Come to rehearsal prepared! What does it look like to be prepared? Here are a few suggestions.

Have the song set worked out ahead of time and if possible send out the charts and/or maybe even a CD of those songs to the band and singers a few days before rehearsal. Also, if you already know the basic arrangement or flow of each song in your set, jot down some simple notes regarding the arrangement or what you’re looking for in regard to instrumentation and vocals and send these notes out with the charts. This way the musicians have an opportunity to hear the songs, review the charts and read your quick notes regarding the initial arrangements. With this type of head start, the musicians will be familiar with the songs before rehearsal even begins.

If sending out the charts ahead of time is not possible then make sure to have the charts for each song available on rehearsal night. Speaking of the song charts, make sure that each chart for each of the song you’ve selected is complete with the correct chords and in the right musical key.

These simple suggestions will go a long way helping your rehearsals and, more importantly, the worship set flow more smoothly. One important final comment … don’t always trust the Internet or even Song Select from CCLI to have the correct lyrics or chords on their charts. Be sure to find time, before you send out the charts to your players, to play through each song and make any corrections that are needed.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Last Week, This Week, Next Week

by Brent Helming

Do you remember what songs you used to lead the congregation last week? Did they have any tangible connection with your worship song list from the previous week? How about for the current week’s song list that you’re preparing? Is there a purposeful connection between what you sang last week and with what you will be preparing for the following week? These are questions that we as worship leaders should be asking.

The reality is that the current week’s song list is not an island unto itself. Rather, it is part of the “big picture” view of congregational worship that we should be purposefully fostering. The songs we choose for worship are the tools that we use to teach our congregations about God and His character. They are snap shots of truth highlighting who God is, what He’s done and what He desires to do in us and through us; and these truths are best learned when they are allowed to operate through a cumulative effect over time. The truths of our songs build upon and support one another. So when viewed as a whole over the course of six months or year, they should present an accurate and full view of our God and His truths as expressed in scripture.

Of course such an understanding of our worship song repertoire presupposes that our songs accurately portray the truths of God. The faithful representation of biblical truth is our first responsibility as worship leaders. We are charged with selecting songs that are biblically faithful and doctrinally accurate. Likewise we must choose a variety of songs, that when viewed together over a period of time, will give the congregation a well-rounded understanding of our Heavenly Father.

When contemplating the issue of choosing a well-rounded repertoire of songs, I find it helpful to use the analogy of eating a well-rounded meal. Assume that you want to prepare a 6-month diet of meals that will give you all of the important and necessary nutrients required to stay healthy and fit. To do this you will need to choose foods from the major food groups and then eat them in the appropriate quantities. So it is when thinking about the development of our worship song sets from week to week. We want to choose songs that will give the congregation a steady and well-rounded diet of God’s truth and character. Of course another key aspect of being able to stay on track with a healthy diet lies in having a variety of specific foods. In worship, we can accomplish this with the musical style and lyrical complexity of the songs we choose. This variety is not at the expense of the biblical or doctrinal integrity of the lyrics; but rather it enhances the congregation’s ability to stay on a healthy worship diet.

So remember, the songs you choose for worship this week will directly flow out of what songs you used in the preceding weeks and will also flow directly into what you choose for the next week and those that follow.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Create Mini-Sets

by Brent Helming

If you’re like me, you probably begin the process of selecting a worship set by either opening your worship song program and looking over the entire list of songs or perhaps you use the tried and true method of taking all of your hard copy song sheets and spreading them out all over the floor.  No matter what method you use the goal is to find the right songs that reflect God’s heart for the worship set and that flow well together.

The more you develop worship sets and get use to picking out songs you will begin to notice that certain songs group really well together. Perhaps it’s the similar or complimentary musical key of songs, the tempo or themes that allows the songs to flow together. Many times it’s a combination of these factors. When songs connect together in this way I call them mini-sets. These mini-sets usually consist of either two or three songs grouped together.

When you discover these mini-sets, it’s a good idea to take note of the song titles, along with the key, tempo and/or theme that help blend them together. This way you’ll have a future reference point for the next time you’re creating a set where these songs may work well together. A helpful facet of identifying “mini-sets” is that often, two or more mini-sets will end up combining to create the entire worship song set. For example:

Mini-Set 1:  “Glorious” (C) – Paul Baloche, “Mighty to Save” (G) – Reuben Morgan, “Hungry” (C) - Kathryn Scott
… combined with …
Mini–Set 2: “Treasure” (G) – Jared Anderson, “Revelation Song” (G) – Jamie Lee Riddle

 A final thought; I often find that the “song sets” I create have a certain season of time where they are fresh, relevant and capture God’s heart for that time. Once I begin to sense that the songs are getting a little overused or somewhat stale I begin looking to find new mini-sets with different song combinations.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Work out the Cues

by Brent Helming

I’m guessing that most worship teams work out the song arrangements of the worship set before Sunday morning.

During rehearsal they mapped out how each song will flow and determine how many times to repeat the chorus of a specific song or which song will start with chorus instead of the verse. After all, that is what rehearsals are for; nailing down the flow and specifics of the songs and the set.

However, the reality of Sunday morning (or whatever event you are leading) is that there are times when the flow of a specific song needs to change in order to better facilitate the moment. When this happens the band must rely on prearranged cues to provide direction on where to go in the song.

The basic cues would include: repeat the current section; go to the chorus; go to the verse; end the song; bring down the dynamics; bring up the dynamics.

There a many more cues that you could include but the cues above would cover most of the situations a worship team may find itself in. One key to remember in creating the cues for the band is to keep it simple. You don’t want some elaborate cuing system that resembles a third base coach in baseball. The cues should be short, clear and simple. Such as a quick verbal cue, “Lets sing that again!” or flashing a quick hand signal. Some worship leaders have used one finger to indicate verse, two fingers for 2nd verse and a closed fist for the chorus. Honestly, the cues can be whatever you and your band work out.

There are two final thoughts about using cues. First, it is important that the band be able to see the leader during worship. This way they are able to easily see and identify the cue. Second, I have found it best to test out the cues in rehearsal to make sure that everyone becomes comfortable making a change with a cue and are also clear on what each cue is indicating.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Keep a Spare Handy

by Brent Helming

This tip is primarily aimed at those who lead worship from the guitar.

Have you ever been in middle of worship set and had a string snap on you? Or maybe had the battery to your pick run out of juice? I actually had both happen to me! So over the years, I have found it quite helpful to keep a second guitar on the platform with me. Now if a string breaks or a pick battery dies, I unplug the problematic instrument and plug into the back up the guitar. Nice, quick and simple.

There are several things to keep in mind for having a back up guitar on hand. First, be sure to have the back up with you on the platform. It wouldn’t do much good if you need it and the guitar was still in its case off in the corner (not that I’m speak from experience or anything). Second, make sure that the back up guitar is in tune and ready to be played. I make sure the back up is in tune and on a stand near by within reach. Also, be sure that the strings on your back up are not too old and/or dead. Finally, it’s a good idea to have a separate channel on the soundboard dedicated to your back up guitar. This is primarily for acoustic guitars. If you are playing an electric then you simply plug it into your rig. The main reason for this is that the back up and main guitar will most likely have a different EQ set ting requirements. I normally ask the sound technician to set up two lines with a Direct Box input for each and then plug my guitars into the separate channels that are EQ’d specifically for each guitar.

Hopefully if you keep your main guitar in good shape by changing your strings and pick up battery regularly, you’ll won’t need to utilize your backup. But trust me, it is such a blessing to have the back up there and ready if the necessity ever arises.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Alternate Songs

By Brent Helming

Have you ever been in the middle of a leading a time of worship and realized that the next song in the order of the set just doesn’t feel right?

Or simply wished that you had different song option to lead the congregation in that moment? I have and I know it’s a fairly common experience for other worship leaders as well. Its not that we weren’t diligent in thinking through and preparing the worship set. Sometimes we just don’t have all of the revelation needed regarding how the worship will flow or if the songs we’ve picked will fully support what God is doing in the moment; kind of a “... we only see in part…” type of thing (I Cor.13:9-10 ).

The first step in answering to this situation is to diligently seek God’s heart in the choosing of your worship song set. You should also ask God to direct you in choosing one or two alternate songs for that specific worship set. First decide on the four or five songs that will be your main worship song set. Then choose several alternate songs that would fit well into that set and could be either added on the fly or swapped in for another song that doesn’t seem to fit in the flow of the moment.

Obviously, using alternate songs will require having the songs ready to rehearse with the band before hand and also making sure that they know that these are the two alternate songs that you may either add or substitute into the worship set if you feel that it would better serve the worship time. Also, be sure to provide the songs to your media person so the power point slides (or whatever you use) are ready and in “stand by” in case they are needed.

You may not end up needing to use the alternate songs during the worship time, but it will nice to have that option prepared before hand and ready if you need it.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Staying In Tune

By Brent Helming

I hope we all agree that being in tune is a wonderful thing! Instruments should be in tune to themselves and the band should be in tune with each other. Hopefully, both of these points are accomplished simply by having everyone tune to an agreed upon pitch (generally A-440.)

The best way for a guitar player to do this is to place a tuner (I recommend a simple floor pedal tuner) in line between your guitar and the DI box, cable snake or sound board. You can easily accomplish this by using an instrument cable to come out of your guitar and into the input of the tuner. Be sure to get a tuner that not only has an output connector but also a bypass (or mute) connector. Then place another instrument cable coming out of the mute/bypass output of the tuner and into DI box or soundboard. Keep in mind that if you are using other effects pedals, be sure to place the tuner at the beginning of the effects chain.

The beauty of using the bypass/mute output of the tuner is that when you step on the tuner to tune, it will mute the signal going to the soundboard. This way the entire audience does not have to listen to you fine tune between songs. Another helpful function of the mute output is that when you are finished with the worship set you can simply step on the tuner, which will mute your signal. This will help to eliminate feedback that can sometimes happen with acoustic guitars sitting on a guitar stand.

One final helpful hint… buy a plug-in power supply for your tuner. Most models will run on 9-volt batteries, which is fine. But you will burn through the batteries pretty quickly. Nothing’s worse than having your tuner “bonk” on you in the middle of a set. So it’s best to get a power supply for your tuner that you can have plugged in during entire time you’re on stage.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.

Track Your Set Lists

by Brent Helming

One of the most often overlooked aspects of leading effective congregational worship is being able find the right balance of the right songs week in and week out. There are usually several competing aspects to finding and keeping the right mix.

On one hand, worship must be immediately accessible to the congregation. In other words, the people must have a certain level of familiarity with the songs so that they can more easily participate in singing. On the other hand, too much of the same ole’ songs will probably begin to create a level of apathy or boredom from those singing.

A great way to help keep the proper balance between the good ole’ standard songs and the new “fresher” songs is to keep a record of your set list from week to week. This way you’ll have immediate feedback regarding which songs you’ve done over the last several months. Reviewing the previous set lists will help to show which songs are in jeopardy of being over used. Also, you’ll be able to keep track of the frequency of the new songs and how to more effectively add or repeat them within the existing repertoire.

© 2011, Brent Helming. All rights reserved.