If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It

Sometimes what’s always been done quits working.  Sometimes it just needs a good cleaning.  What I discovered shocked me and my worship team and left us with a new format for doing what God has called us to do.  Allow me to explain.

I came on staff as the Music Director just over 8 years ago.  I slipped right into the steps of my predecessor, overseeing all the cogs in the machine already set up for me.  We were moving right along:  rehearsing weekly, learning new music, meeting semi-annually for the obligatory potlucks, and leading the congregation in worship each Sunday.  If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it….right?

Except there were some things “broke.”  There were issues with individuals being prepared.  Some folks didn’t study their music before rehearsal, so I spent a lot of time teaching the music.  Other folks that did study their music were getting frustrated.  Sometimes rehearsal was spent focused on one group of musicians (ex: electric guitars) and another group (ex: vocalists) was bored.  Often I was spread thin enough with the band that I didn’t even notice if the vocalists were singing the same song.  Sometimes the sound techs weren’t getting any coaching other than the occasional barking from the team for “more this” or “less that.”  Then, after rehearsal on Wednesday, the team had the rest of the week to practice on their own (which many did not…often folks actually forgot the notes from rehearsal).  Sunday morning, the team would arrive an hour before the first service and we would do a quick run-through.  This was actually the time that rehearsal would “stick,” but we were all scrambling to take notes, make changes, get transitions, and so on.

We were slowly unraveling as a team and becoming independent musicians operating as individuals.  We were exasperating ourselves and I was leading this group of over 35 musicians down a dangerous road: one that led to a solitary place of frustration and anxiety.

After spending some time in prayer and asking God to help me problem solve, it hit me like a 1-ton Steinway:  Who says we have to practice every Wednesday?

Now, that’s asking for trouble.  I know….all the musically-trained readers are gasping for air right about now.  What worship team doesn’t rehearse every week!?  Are you crazy?

And then another thought hit me:  What if we practiced as sections instead?

Wait.  I can hear the thoughts racing: You’ve gone too far.  You’ve lost your accidentals!  You’re out of your key signature!

Don’t forsake me yet.

Here’s how this worked out:

• I kept our Sunday morning early run-through, but reformatted it to a 60-minute team rehearsal.  This became the only time the team was together and ran through the scheduled music for that week.  The bar was significantly raised for each person because they were now expected to arrive fully prepared to participate that very morning.  Of course, an individual who is unprepared will show – big time.  Not once have I had to have a conversation with a musician about not being prepared.  This expectation has been met every week for the past year.
• Wednesdays became mandatory Sectionals.  On a rotating basis, groups gather each week so we can focus on that particular section’s needs.  One week might be vocals, another keys, the next drums, and yet another sound.  With the musicians we focus on particular songs, specific technic, upcoming trends, new music, and care of one’s instrument.  With the tech teams (sound/slides/video) we focus on tech tips, tricks, how-to, updates, and so on.  With all sectionals I make use of recordings, videos, my own studying, others’ expertise, and other resources to make it as useful a time as possible.  Each section meets about every 2 months, and has the rest of the weeks off to use as personal practice time.  These sectionals are mandatory and missing one (without communicating, of course) has consequences.  I have yet to hand down consequences because this team has done an amazing job of setting aside and committing to this time together!
• The entire team of 35-ish people (weekly teams are only about 8-12 people, rotating as needs vary) meets quarterly for a full rehearsal.  This is a great time starting with a meal (gotta have that potluck) and continuing with rehearsal time, study time, prayer, fellowship, and discussing team issues.  This is when I introduce and rehearse new songs and discuss things as a team (scheduling, team dynamics, etc.).  I’ve asked the team how they feel about these Quarterlies – as they’ve been dubbed – and received great feedback.  They value the time together as a large team and feel that the time to learn new songs in a format other than weekly rehearsal is helpful.

This new format has given me opportunity to spend time with each musician and pour into them more fully.  I wasn’t able to mentor very well before, but I feel now I can really work with each member of the team and help each one increase their skills little by little.  This has also exposed areas that needed work – areas about which I was unaware. A large group rehearsal does little to allow each musician to truly iron out wrinkles with a coach, so this format allows us to coach each other through our weakest areas and also celebrate the strong ones.  I discovered we are strong in our knowledge of chord structure but weak in our use of electric lead lines and synth voicings.  We are strong in our vocals when it comes to singing a melody, but the pedagogy and use of the voice is weak.   I discovered that what may have looked like a lack of practice (through a large-group rehearsal lens) was actually an undeveloped skill (when seen through a sectional lens).

I’ve learned so very much about my friends and teammates through this past year.  I’ve learned how much they love serving in the music ministry.  I’ve seen them grow in their musicianship, their desire to serve, and their friendships with each other.  I’ve witnessed their passion for worship bloom into an exciting and contagious fragrance because they now have the time to develop their skills more fully.  I’ve seen confidence and maturity come from my younger musicians (I have about 10 musicians under the age of 18 serving within this team) as they learn and grow alongside their more mature counterparts.

Ultimately, I’ve seen God provide a new way of doing something.  Through prayer and openness to His leading, I watching God breathe new life into stale same-olds.  To God be the Glory.