05.20Writing vs Arranging
Realization: While vitally important to the presentation of a worship song, arranging is the least important aspect of writing a worship song. Agree?
The current state of my songwriting is: lots of ideas, very few songs. I’m having trouble executing… committing… finishing. I need someone to help filter and distill ideas and force me to publish.
I’ve been working on a new original for our Easter services and thought I’d share it with you all. We introduced it at our Good Friday worship service* and we’ll be playing it again this morning Enjoy! You came to give life, You came to give love To a world in need of saving You [...]
I’ve been using Twitter for 18 months now. I love the friendships I’ve made through it and the community that’s developed around it. I love the strange reactions from people who “just don’t get it” and the geniune excitement that comes from “oh, you Twitter too!?!” (I know, we’re early adopters… this is starting to [...]
01.19“New” Instruments
I once read an Elvis Costello quote where he talked about buying a bass guitar. He explained that he had never played bass before and didn’t really have any plans to master the instrument, but that he felt that the new instrument would open up new possibilities to him as a song writer. By taking [...]
I led worship for Calvary Hanford’s Wednesday Night service last night. It was a great time to lead in a more relaxed setting than the typical Sunday morning. There’s more time given for music, and more flexibility in song choice and arrangement. (It doesn’t hurt that I was leading solo, so I didn’t have to [...]
12.08Work and Creativity
I had an interesting conversation with a coworker the other day. For those of you who don’t know, I don’t work full time at our church. During the week, I work inside sales for a machine parts company. As much a I’d love to write music all day long, I enjoy my day job and [...]
So, one of my goals during my vacation last week was to spend some time working on a few songs. I can’t say that happened. I can say that I sat on a porch overlooking the ocean strumming a guitar and staring at a notebook. For two hours. With nothing to show for it. Except [...]
On Mondays I generally try to post something about songwriting. This week I didn’t pick up my guitar at all and frankly… didn’t spend any time thinking about my music. I did, however, reacquaint myself with a few artists I haven’t listened to in awhile. I tried to listen to artists who inspire me and [...]
I’m sorry. I meant for the post below to be a conversation starter. Worship leaders- do you use original music in your services? Why or why not? Worshippers- do you know if your church uses original music? Do you love it or hate it?