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» Do the fundamental things well
» Number 12: The Arrangement
1. Putting each instrument in its place:
[Keyboards]
» Rhythm guitars
» Bass
» Drums
» Melody instruments
» 2. Arranging the structure of the song
Keyboards – the “fat sheep” of the small church band
Have you heard the parable of the sheep in Ezekiel 34? The poor sheep of Israel were plagued by wealthy fat sheep who trampled all the grass, muddied the water and pushed the thin sheep around. The keyboard is the fat sheep of the small church band.
There’s two reasons for this. Historically, the church organ was the only instrument you had at church. You didn’t even have a song leader – the organ just conducted everyone in by doing a great big rall at the end of each verse.
Secondly, the keyboard can actually do everyone else’s job... to a point. It’s a melody instrument, a harmony instrument, a bass instrument, and a percussive instrument all in one. And it can act as the conductor of the song – everyone knows when to come in because the piano plays “that bit” everyone waits for before they start to sing.
So, because it can – it does. And that’s okay if you haven’t got any other instruments or song leaders. But if you have, it just doesn’t work. Here’s what happens when the keyboard is a “fat sheep”:
• The song leaders don’t take charge and lead the singing of the melody – you’ll often see song leaders who miss the first few words of the song because they’re waiting to hear the melody line in the piano.
• Guitarists hide behind the solid harmonies in the piano part. Guitar harmonies are a lot more subtle than keyboard harmonies, and they usually share the same mid-register (the notes around the middle of the piano) so it’s easy for the guitar to disappear behind the piano, or muddy up the mid-register.
• The bass guitarist is confined by the piano because the piano is already playing all the bass notes. So either you end up with a confined bass part, or a bass part that clutters up the lower register. Or a bass player who wants to chop off the piano player’s left arm!
• As for drummers, they usually just charge ahead and expect the keyboard to follow their lead as they set the rhythm part and tempo. But the problem is, any keyboardist trained in solo playing never follows because he’s used to being the rhythmic centre. The drums end up doing one thing, and the keyboard another.
So you have a big problem!
What does the keyboardist need to do? He needs to find his home: Be flexible, don't play all the time, and don't play the same thing all the time!
Change what you’re doing depending on who else is playing. Because it can do so much, the keyboard has to be more flexible than any other instrument.
That means if you have a classical piano background you may need to learn some new skills. In particular, it will be a real help if you can start to read guitar chords – those funny letters written above the piano score in church music that weren’t there when you were learning AMEB.
www.gootar.com/piano is a fun little site that shows you how to play any chord on the piano. It can also name the chord you’re playing if you specify what keyboard notes are pressed. So check it out and practice playing from the chords at home.
It might take a little while to learn that skill, but in the meantime there are some really simple tricks to being a flexible keyboard player. Here are some things you can do with various combinations of instruments and a keyboard:
» 1. Keyboard and song leader
» 2. Keyboard, song leader and rhythm guitar
» 3. Keyboard, song leader, rhythm guitar and bass
» 4. Keyboard, song leader, rhythm guitar, bass and drums
1. Keyboard and song leader
• If you have a confident song leader consider avoiding the melody on the keyboard.
• Never play the melody if the song has a complicated or syncopated melody. Some melodies in contemporary styles are only meant to be sung and cannot be strictly notated – if you try to play it, it will sound odd, and more than that, it will confuse the congregation.
• Use some of the ideas below to vary the mood and keep things interesting
2. Keyboard, song leader and rhythm guitar
Be careful when you play in the mid-register of the keyboard – this is the guitarists area! If you do play in the mid-register it could clutter up the sound.
You have a few options. For variety and mood, you can use several or all of these ideas within the same song:
• Don’t play at all (a verse, a chorus, or even the whole song!). Allow the guitarist to do more. This is really important in groups where the guitarist is always hiding behind the keyboard.
• Play long, simple chords in the mid-register. The rhythm guitar part can often sit on top of that without cluttering.
• Use the rest of the upper parts of the keyboard. If you can improvise, try playing riffs (repetitive patterns based on the chords) or simple arpeggio patterns. If you can’t improvise, just move your right hand an octave up. Simple!
• Think of your left hand as a bass part. If you can improvise, vary the part (e.g., single bass notes / a bass “line” or percussive bass octaves). If you can’t improvise, you can vary the lower register simply by moving the left hand down an octave. This can have an effect of making the music sound “bigger”.
3. Keyboard, song leader, rhythm guitar and bass
Depending on what the bass player is doing, you might not need to use your left hand at all. If your left hand is playing, it should keep well out of the bassist’s way, towards the mid-register. Keep it simple, and avoid the lower register. If you can’t help yourself, sit on your left hand.
4. Keyboard, song leader, rhythm guitar, bass and drums
Listen to the drums and allow them to lead rhythmically and set the tempo. The drums are the conductor of the band.
If you do actually have a band with this combination, there is a lot more freedom for doing interesting things with the keyboard. If you have a keyboard with sounds other than piano try experimenting with strings or organ (“soft pad”) sounds sitting in the back of the arrangement. In contemporary music, most string or organ sounds work best when you play only two or three notes at once in long chords.