Back-up Vocals & Harmonies

It has been a while since my last post on vocals. So this is much overdue.  Anyway, these past few months have been busy and our church Bethany Bible Fellowship has been able to go to a few worship conferences in the area. One practical workshop that stood out to one of our vocalists was from the 2011 PURE Worship Conference by one of my worship leader friends, Gia Lucid.  She has been singing professionally and leading worship for over 10 years and has been privlidged enough to gain a ton of experience and insight along the way.

The session outlined a few things that vocalists can do to help add dynamic harmonies to the worship service. Some of it is basic but the majority of this is gold if you can learn to implent it correctly. Here are some of the highlights from the sesssion: (this is not the full content or original order, but reorginized for flow)
1. Harmonies
    - Don't get freaked out by the word "harmony" think of it as "my melody" or an "alternate melody"
    - Be selective with your harmonies and parts. You don't have to sing the whole song and have the freedom to choose to highlight certain parts of the song using selective harmonies. Think about your how to feature sections, phrases, or even words of a song. In other words, you can fill backup vocals in for just a few words to emphasize more effectively.
    -Tight vs loose. Tight harmonies (notes closer together) are usualy better and are less distracting from the focal point or melody of the song. Loose harmonies can be good if they are done well but are more difficult.
    - Add dynamics with vocals which can help build certain parts of the songs more dramitically.
    - You can use harmonies to add choral oohs, ohhs, and aahs which will bring a very corperate/united feel to the song. When done well this can add a lot!
2. Unison/Prime Unison
    - Unison is when two people/instruments are singing/playing the same note on the same octave.
    - In worship this usually means the guys and girls sing melody together (with the same octave).
    - This can be helpful for altos who might be singing with a tenor and can not reach the higher/lower notes professionally.  It also might be preferred for some arrangements because of the 'oneness' that it creates in the song if done well.
    - You can read more about Unison here.
3. Echoes
    - Helps change things up
    - Use difference with the verses
    - Don't always do this the enire song because it can easily become overwhelming
4. New Songs
    - Establish a melody first with a solo or unison
    - Listen first, then sing (don't try to sing along before learning a line)
5. Vocal Health
    - Hydrate throughout the day. Drink a bottle of water first thing in the morning or try some herbal tea
    - Warm-up properly. Ease your voice out (try singing in the shower), massage your face, lip trills (see below), start in your lower register to warm-up before reaching for the high/power notes.
    - Try lip trills (humming with lips partly open, blowing air through them) which can help warm up your face muscles and teach you to sing with steady air.
    - Exercise voice before rehearsals and sound checks. As soon as you start rehearsal you should be professional and ready to give 100% to the sound crew can set accurate levels.
    - Use breath not throat for power
6. Notes/Tips for singing in worship
    - Bring a recording device to practice (many phones can do this)
    - MP3s can be emailed to others to share parts easily
    - Bring a pencil to practice and sound check, take notes, pay attention to the leader
    - Keep a folder of music with notes. Over time this will help you to stay consistant and grow vocally
    - Natural harmonizers should help others learn the harmonies to the songs (with a humble attitude)
    - Worship visibly with your face and body.  We comunicate a ton without knowing it. Don't just stand there when you are worshipping, think about the lyrics and what the Holy Spirit is doing and join in the worship! Even when it is 'not your turn to sing'. You can still sing along, but step back from the microphone so that you don't change the intended mix.
    - Blend with the worship leader. Follow thier words and melody, or the parts they gave you, follow thier tone, don't compete with some else's vibrato (work to flatten your's)


Also, here is a great video from Worship Team Training for back-up vocalists about Harmonies. Take a look and enjoy.

If you can't see the video click here.

Worship Cental: CREATE Conference @ RockHarbor

There is a great Worship conference coming up later this month called CREATE. It is put on by Worship Central and RockHarbor Church. I know that this conference will be great. I've been to a few Worship Central conferences and they always have a unique and intimate style that sets them apart from many of the other conferences that are offered.

This year there are sessions and worship services with artists John Mark McMillan, Evan Wickham, and Phil Wickham. There will also be seminars with some great, experienced worship artisans and pastors. Sign-up at: http://worshipcentral2011.eventbrite.com/

I highly recommend signing up for this conference! I hope to see you there.

- Luke

Here is a list of seminars that will be offered.

Educating The Imagination - Caleb Clements & Trever Hoehne

Do you ever feel stuck or uninspired?  Hear the journey of what it looked like for an analytical thinker to begin to to unlock the imagination.  This especially geared to songwriters and artists.

The Relationship of Worship Leader and Lead Pastor - Todd Proctor & Alan Frow

Many worship leaders and lead pastors have a tension in how they relate.  Too often they work against each other, rather than as a team.  Hear from two former worship pastors that are now both lead pastors as they share their thoughts and learnings.

Mixing live worship - Paul Dexter & Scott Clement

Learn how it is possible to achieve great, consistent sound while training and using volunteers.

Effective use of the Arts in Church - Nick Benoit

We've all seen cheesy and awkward use of arts in the church, but is there a better way?   Learn from what has worked at ROCKHARBOR from our fabulous Arts Director.

Developing the Next Generation of Worship Leaders - Keri Fox

Never before have there been so many young, eager worship leaders.  How can we best develop them while maintaining a strong culture of worship in our churches?

Worship Central

If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend attending a Worship Central conference.  This past weekend was amazing. God showed up. He was signing autographs and posing for pictures.... well, maybe I'm being ridiculous, but all kidding aside, God Did show up. 

Here is what went down. 

Friday, April 24th, 2009> 

There is something unique that happens when hundreds of worship leaders and songwriters lay down their instruments and join together in worship. Everyone in the room lifts their voice to familiar songs and raises praise that is due to their God. We had one goal. To make much of God. 

One thing that I love about Worship Central and that sets them apart from many other conferences is that the focus is not about the formulas and top 10 worship tips.  The overwhelming focus of the conference is being aware of what God is doing through the Holy Spirit in our churches and worship services.  We all know what works. As worship leaders we know the songs that people will sing to and will give them a 'worship experience'. We can put together a list of all the hit songs and people will sing and even lift their hands, or close their eyes. However, very few worship leaders are willing to forsake the 'easy' and follow

 the leading of 

the Spirit in each setlist and service.

The difference is an intentionality that allows a song leader, turn in to a worship leader/pastor. The major distinction is that a worship leader has in mind not only the setlist and service, but also the direction of the church, both theologically and practically.  Without going in to much detail, the lead worshipper has a pastoral burden in song selection and theology. We need to be aware of what we are communicating with our songs. 

Anyway, back to the conference. 

It is amazing to see how God shows up when we make room for Him and invite Him to lead and not us.  We had an awesome time of worship with Tim Hughes friday evening. I love the way Tim is aware of what the Holy Spirit is doing... we had songs of praise, songs

of pain, songs of repentance and times of pure silence. What was cool is that during the silence, or during a vamp, all the worshippers in the room would begin to sing their own song, a new song to the Lord. Lifting melodies and harmonies and praising in a way that was chilling to hear.  

After that Francis Chan came up and spoke on our Christian life and challenged us with one concept. Isn't the same spirit that rose Christ from the dead, that empowered to church in Acts to do miraculous things living inside of us? What went wrong? Why isn't that happening now? (more on this in another blog) It was amazing what God did. We ended this time with a spontaneous time of prayer for boldness, prayer for healing, prayer for our churches, prayer for our cities, and prayer for each other.  

It was amazing. God did show up. Not because we sang the right songs, but because we were willing to ask Him what He wanted to do that night. And we followed. We are truly honored to worship a God who loves us with agape, as His children.  Like I said before, if you ever get a chance to worship with anyone from worship central, do it.  They get it. They realize that worship is about God and it is not our self-centered spiritual gas station. 

"Father, I want to always give you the glory that you deserve. Not out of obligation, but out of love and adoration.  Lead me day by day in worship by your Spirit, and help me always to remember the significance of Your Son on the cross. Because of Christ's work on the Cross: I am free, I am made new, I have been justified, I am a child of God, I am complete in Christ, I am God's workmanship, I am a personal witness to Christ, I am a minister of reconciliation, and I am free forever from condemnation. Help me to live in remembrance. I love you, Luke."

PS> check out the new live album/DVD from Tim Hughes, Happy Day (Pictured above). There are some really good songs on there. I believe it will be released in the US in September. For now, find it in the UK store or just the CD on iTunes.