I NEED your help!

"Sometimes creativity just means the daily work of helping others to see a problem in a different way.” -Joseph Badaracco

A team of us sat down to talk about the music track for the 2008 Arts Conference. This track is designed to inspire and equip music directors and instrumental music volunteers in the local church. We came up with a preliminary group of topics and were hoping you would give us your input. Could you take a few moments to give me your top 3 choices for the next conference? I’ve started the list of topics you can choose from, or write in your own.

Here are some ideas:

1. Leading Effective Rehearsals
2. Soloing – guitar, bass or keyboards
3. Improving your music reading skills
4. Basic techniques for members of a rhythm section
5. Voicings and styles for guitar, bass or keyboards
6. Becoming a tighter rhythm section player
7. Music theory
8. Understanding harmony
9. Songwriting
10. Building and leading a music ministry
11. Making music technology work
12. Producing a CD
13. Adapting songs for my band

Thanks so much for your feedback!

7 comments:

Heather Palacios said...

How to package music IN the church but FOR the lost.

Anonymous said...

Leading Effective Rehearsals - with a LIVE band and a leader actually running a rehearsal.

Music theory - yes!

The idea of building/leading a music ministry is great and hopefully part of that would be casting vision and setting values.

Tom M said...

1. Shaping the arrangement: song arc, emotional contouring, listening to the big picture, the power of contrast, sparse and dense instrumentation, playing sparse, laying out, filling holes, creating moods through timbres and effects, etc.

2. Stage presence: whole-hearted worship and ministry through your body, face and instrument. We could use some help from Abe Laboriel!

Tristan said...

Here are my picks:

Understanding harmony
Theoretical aspects would be fine, but mostly I would be interested in the practical stuff - specifically for vocalists, how do you teach someone to improvise harmony? a third part? more interesting/extended harmonies? use of dissonance in vocal harmony? Or for instrumentalists, how do you teach someone to use chord substitutions/inversions and extended harmonies on various instruments?

Making music technology work
I would specifically be interested in learning more about sampling/loops/sequencing/etc. and how these can best be used in a live worship setting. Many bands are using this now - how can it be used in the church?

And in the "write-in" category:

Stage presence
How do you get people to inform their faces and bodies that their hearts are worshiping? :) How can we inspire people to include their physical bodies in worship more completely without being cheesy or strange?

Thanks for a great blog.

Anonymous said...

my comments by your number:

1. Time management tips for rehearsals might be a part of this.

3. Many volunteers have mediocre music reading skills, this sounds great!

4 & 6. Might be redundant? Blend these??

11. Technology changes quickly, this sounds great! Also consider new tech trends, HT purchase technology well [cost-effectively] ensuring you get what you need and get the most out of it.

BLESSINGS TO YOU!

Anonymous said...

1. How to play "in the pocket."

2. Is leading worship ever performing?

Pam Howell said...

Thanks to all of you who responded! Our team is working on the breakout schedule. Watch the ARISE website in January for a list of the breakouts.
I can tell you that Rory Noland, author of Heart of the Artist and so much more, is coming back & will be teaching a session on Building a Music Ministry and How to Prepare Spiritually to Lead Worship.
I just heard from John Carlson, (Music Director from Parkview Church, Iowa City, Iowa) he is going to be teaching on Leading Effective Rehearsals. And Chris I am going to work on getting a live band in the breakout.

I am working on your other suggestions. I will keep you posted.

Pam