August 16, 2011

Band Dynamics

So I feel like the topic of "Band Dynamics" is one of incredible importance and needs to be addressed.  Although this is a post directed more towards youth group bands and private school chapel bands, there may be something in here for all you, who knows? So let's get started.
Band dynamics are, as you've probably guessed, the way band members interact with each other.  This is HUGE! Without good band dynamics, then everything just gets harder and more irritating.  Knowing who the leader is (even just for a specific song), knowing who knows more about what, and, of course, HUMILITY is absolutely essential to having a good band!  This is probably one of the hardest pills to swallow as a musician/vocalist/performer.  Let me explain (feel free to skip the indented sections):

As a young guitarist I learned everything I possibly could about the guitar (both acoustic and electric).  I played in my room for hours along with my favorite tracks from my favorite artists (Hillsong, Matt Redman, Chris Tomlin, etc.)  Then as I got older and more confident I asked to be a part of my youth group's worship band.  Boy, was I in for a wake-up call.  I learned very quickly that the reason people gave me death glares was because I was playing when I shouldn't and I began to understand that playing in a band is WAY different from playing in my room by myself.  I was in 8th grade when I first started playing for Truth (our Sunday evening Youth service) and the oldest members were Seniors.   I've been gifted by God with a very high affinity for music (and especially for worship), but that didn't mean I could roll with the "big boys".
I had to learn that I couldn't just jam away on my guitar while people were trying to sound check or rehearse parts.  I learned that one REAL quick.  I learned I couldn't sing when I wanted to because other people were singing the same part and we weren't in sync (or there was too much harmony and not enough melody).  And most importantly, I learned how to follow directions--directions of the band and music, of individual leaders, and of the Holy Spirit.
As I grew older I was given more and more leadership and participation in the band (when I started out I was given a monitor to share with 3 other beginners, none of us were plugged in, and we played in our sanctuary that weekly capacitates 500 people).  I had continued to work on my guitar playing skillz at home, continued to study worship music and learn all the songs by heart so I could play and lead them on my own without sheet music (which wasn't that hard because of God's incredible blessing and gifting in my life) and my friends and I would even hold worship services where I was the co-leader (my buddy--two years my senior and also in the band--lead with me).  Yet still, when it was my friend's turn to lead the band, I didn't lead much even though he and I both knew I had the ability to.  Why? Because I had to learn to follow.

Musicians often have a natural swagger.  They (along with vocalists) are often put on a pedestal as they perform and so pride is one of the biggest things they struggle with (especially if they are right...and often).  The way my youth pastor ordered the band was to intentionally drag newcomers through the dirt so that they learned very well how to follow, how to behave during rehearsals and sound checks, etc.

Why does this apply to what I started talking about?  I've just graduated high school (class of 2011) and when I went back just before the beginning of my high school's school year to observe and (occasionally) give help and feedback, I noticed a few things.

I had led those chapels for 3 years (almost single-handedly) and so when my senior year came and we had new people join and young ones to teach, a precedent had been set and they all knew that I knew what I was doing.  In a word, they respected me.  When I went to their first practice, there were vocalists off socializing with the leader (who would get sidetracked), the electric guitarist (talented, but who isn't these days?) played classic rock music every millisecond everyone wasn't going through a song, and the acoustic guitarist sat and waited for the new leader to give direction (along with a few of the juniors on the team).

While I sat making sheet music for the band I grew more and more irritated.  The constant noise was killing me, and there was no real sense of direction.  This is where band dynamics come into play.  Even though I knew more about how to run the practice, about strumming patterns for the acoustic, about lead lines for the electric, about harmonies for the vocals, it was not my place to say anything to them because my time had come and gone there.  Someone new was stepping in.  Let me break down the age:

Leader and lead vocal - Soph.
Acoustic - Soph.
Backing Vocalists - Soph. & Seniors
Electric - Freshman (or Soph.)

The problem here was that there was no general atmosphere of Respect.  With respect, the electric would know not to be constantly playing classic rock tunes, the backing vocalists would know not to get the leader sidetracked, the leader would know that it's ok to defer to someone else if s/he knows more than her.  Things go a lot more smoothly.

Within music, the 2nd guitar (in this case an electric) would know to play in a different register than the primary rhythm guitar (capo up, play triads and leads instead of strumming rhythm, etc.), the vocalists would know when to sing melody, when to sing harmony, and when not to sing at all.  The leader would know that it's ok to not sing everything all the time but to delegate to other people so that even though s/he is the leader of the song, the congregation gets the feeling that everyone is singing so it's ok for them to sing too.

Band dynamics consist of respect, humility, patience, love, respect, and humility.  Given these, things go a lot smoother, sound better, reduce headaches, and keep things calm and fun.   And, my personal favorite, even if you don't exactly know what you're doing, you're going into a service with a group of people you know have got your back and that is an incredibly comforting, empowering thought.

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