RUNNING WORSHIP REHEARSALS (PT 3B)
Up till this point, you have given your team the materials they need to succeed, helped them personally practice and prepare for rehearsals, and gathered the final pieces and put them in order before the team shows up for rehearsal. All of this preparation is leading up to turning an ordinary rehearsal into a great experience for your team. This can be a rehearsal experience where friends gather and put their personal pieces of the puzzle together in order to create a powerful work of art that inspires and encourages congregational worship. This has been a team effort up until now, with each person doing their part, and rehearsal should be no different.
The major consideration is that time is precious and it's important for everyone to be considerate of each other. With that in mind, here is an outline for the actual “running” of the rehearsal.
Come early and come prepared- There's an old saying that says, “If you're on time, you're late”. Well if rehearsal starts at 7 pm, then make sure you get there early enough to get set up, tuned up, and ready to go before 7 pm. Each musician should take responsibility for their own gear and make sure they have everything they need to play effectively. This includes having their own music ready, amps, patch, and instrument cables and pedals all hooked up and ready. All of the patches and presets should be in place for the song set, so you're not trying to tweak and figure things out during the actual rehearsal. After you're plugged in, make sure to leave yourself enough time to warm up your fingers or voice. Once you've gotten yourself set up and warmed up, go ahead and sit down and get ready for the next part.
People first- If you're like me, there's a good chance you're chomping at the bit and ready to start playing. But if you want to make a long term impact in your worship ministry, put it on pause and spend time focused on your people- not just on the task at hand. There is “no one size fits all” approach to this because every context is different, but I can point to some pretty common ways to facilitate relationships and community within your team.
Eat together. I know of quite a few ministries that do this before rehearsal. Sharing food brings people together and facilitates natural conversation about life.
Pray together. This is the perfect chance to find out what God is doing in each other's lives; the good, the bad, and the in between. I enjoy asking questions like “Where do you see God working in your life right now?” Or, “Who in your life needs to know Jesus?” Then I find that splitting into groups to pray works really well.
Study together. I'm not suggesting a hard core in-depth bible study right before rehearsal. Think in terms of small chunks of study done weekly over years. These small chunks can cumulatively mean a huge investment in growing your team. Think about studying core values, worship theology soundbites, and Sunday sermon main points, among other things.
Split vocals and rhythm section- I've found that when rehearsing the vocalists and band separately, you use rehearsal time much more efficiently. Often, because of in-ear monitors, doubling vocals and harmonies, as well as there being 20 different versions of most songs, it is useful for the vocalists to practice by themselves. In addition, many times there are just as many things that need to be run through as a band, without the vocalists standing around feeling like their time is being wasted. If you have an accomplished vocalist that is both able to sing, play parts, and run those rehearsals, that’s great! However, more often than not, you'll need some way for the team to learn and practice their parts. There are some possible ways to do this. WorshipOnline.com has both recorded vocal parts and a rehearsal track. I make a track/loop that has cues and most of the instruments in it for every song we do. We have several vocalists who play piano well enough to play parts, and are able to help the team learn parts. Then they play the track off an iphone or ipad for the team to sing with.
Sound check- After the vocalists have split off, it's time to start sound check. I suggest putting a “no doinking" policy in place. This basically means that once each band member is plugged in and tuned up, they don't play until it's their turn to play. We start by hitting the click track on a song that we all know well from the set list for that Sunday. Everyone then adjusts their own click in their in-ear monitors. After that, we start through the same sequence of sound checking every single instrument, in specific order. The drummer starts with the intro groove and a good medium to loud volume. Again, everyone adjusts their own drum mix in the in-ears. Once the sound guy gets his level, he gives the thumbs up and we then proceed to the next instrument. The sequence is: click, drums, bass, e guitar 1, e guitar 2, a guitar, then keys.
Easy wins first- Now that the band has their in-ears set and ready, it's time to hit the music. We start with the music we already know pretty well. This allows us to knock out 2-3 songs pretty quickly. This feels good and is productive. If it's at all possible, run each song all the way through without stopping. This is helpful because it gives the band the confidence of going through a song without stopping, just like they will play the song on Sunday morning. There will definitely be mistakes and slip ups, but it's more important to build an understanding of how the song flows. In addition, the best way for people to learn and grow is for them to identify and fix their own problems. So after you do each song, turn around and ask the band and vocalists what they noticed and what needed to be worked on. Don't do the entire song over just to fix a spot. Just work the sections that are giving the team trouble, then move on.
New music- After you've worked your way through the familiar music, it's time to tackle any new music you might have planned. Everyone there should have been practicing all of the music before they arrived at rehearsal, but I've found it helpful to go ahead and play the song file over the sound system just for refresher’s sake, then let the band take any last minute notes. After listening to the song, go ahead and talk through the form, dynamics, riffs, and other elements. Answer any questions the band might have before jumping in to performing the song.
Come together and run It, all of it! Once the vocalists rejoin the rest of the team, it's time to run everything. We typically will go through the vocal sound check by playing through the first verse of a song. Each vocalist will sing until the sound guy gets his level and mix. Start with one vocalist and repeat the verse and add additional vocalists as levels get set. Now comes the service talk, through where it's time to look at the finished tech sheet. Discuss all transitions, scripture readings, and videos. It's time to run everything as if it were the Sunday service. Don’t just do lip service to welcomes and transitions, but go ahead and practice them exactly the way you're going to do them. This solidifies the verbiage and works out how long each element actually requires. After you've run the service, discuss any rough patches that need to be worked on. Don't beat a dead horse. If it can be fixed at home later on, or during office hours the next day, go ahead and make note of it. Send everyone off with a prayer.
This is not the perfect template or the only possible way to run rehearsal, but for us it's worked pretty well. What are your tips and tricks for running awesome rehearsals?
