Charts: Worth the Effort!

From 'The Band' article by Tom Lane, found in Worship Musician Magazine.
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One thing that's proven true for me is I never regret putting time and effort into being prepared. My bad dreams usually involve me showing up for a gig and my amp and guitar are miles away, and I have to carry them up hill-through the snow-both ways before we count off a tune in 2 minutes. Crazy! But it shows that I hate being caught unprepared for sure.

It's hard to be critical of those who volunteer their time every week to be involved in worship at their churches. Above all else, it's a sacrifice that God sees and that's what matters. Yet there are things we can do better, which help the overall excellence factor with our music. If we're doing all we can do already, then that's all anyone can ask. Obviously we have lives to live and greater priorities than the worship team. But given that we're counting the costs, setting good boundaries, and doing what we commit to do... there's more we can do! For one thing we can prepare our music.

For most teams, the band has rotating members, making it hard to have consistency. Charts are normally words with chords above them which tell you little about the song unless you already know it or play through it a few times. Even when you know a song, playing with different leaders the same chart will likely be different. As a rule of thumb I like to know the road map before driving down the road. I can wing it no problem, and sometimes you have to, but it's better to have a heads up, especially if you're serving different leaders. I prefer a real chart with bars, repeats, notation, etc. As a leader, if I want my band to follow I should provide them with cues or charts with notation or specific marks or else give them the freedom to "wing it and fly by the seat of their pants" without letting it bug me.

The "All Skate" approach to a song is not my favorite. It means that a band is really just getting through the song, playing without considering what the rest are doing. Very little dynamics or thought put into specific parts. Just rhythm, chords, and everyone playing all the time, all the way through. It's best to play much less, at least until you know what's going on and make notes for the sections of a song. Even if you're not a reader you can make notes.

At the very least I do something like this for each song:

Song Title
Key= E, 4/4
I (Intro)- melody line
1v- pad/ethereal
2v- chunk
C- eighth notes, w/delay
3v- driving/bigger
C- power chords/Big!
O (Outro)- melody line, ends on 4


To not know where you are or what you're playing is simply winging it. Again, that's fine but if it affects other players or hinders the overall picture, then just do some homework! More often than not, I actually chart out a song onto one page using the Nashville Number system which assigns a number for chords and doesn't require re-charting to change keys.

So here's how simple a chart can be.

Mighty To Save
Key= G, 4/4
I     ||: 4   1   6-   5 :||
1v   ||: 4   1   6-   5 :||
           4   5    4/6  5/7
C    ||: 1   5   4 1   6-  5 :||
2v   same
C    same    /  /  /  /  >
B    ||:  4  1   5  6-   4  1   5 :||   5
C   same/down
C   Big!
*Underlining a bar means it’s a true split bar unless otherwise notated. Meaning in 4/4 time each chord gets half of the count = 2 beats.

Good players can play a chart down having never heard the song and still make it sound good. Not every leader provides good charts and that's why I've learned to write my own. I'm not the best reader out there but I compensate for my limitations by putting forth the needed effort. It's not about know everything, it's knowing what you need to know to do your best!

Over time it becomes second nature and instinctive. In the time it takes to learn to use your cell phone you can learn the number system. At a glance here's how it works: * For a more comprehensive look see: Chas Williams, "The Nashville Number System."

Scale in the key of C...
1=C, 2=D, 3=E, 4=F, 5=G, 6=A, 7=B

For keys with sharps and flats: Note, we don't normally write out sharp chords, we use the flat of the normal number for each chord in the scale. eg. in key of D: the normal 3 chord is F#, if you play an F it is called the flat 3 (b3) instead of 2#, and the normal 7 which is C# is called the flat 7 (b7) instead of 6#.

Scale in the key of D
1=D, b2=D#, 2=E, b3=F, 3=F#, 4=G, b5=G#, 5=A, b6=A#, 6=B, b7=C, 7=C#

Scores are great but I find most can't read them or they're so long you need two stands on stage to see them. Most worship songs really can be reduced to a one-page chart. However, for songs with hits, riffs, and other notation, a score is likely best. Most Nashville Number charts I see actually notate the rhythms and accents above the bar as needed and that usually suffices. Find what works best for the team you're leading or teach them how to read!

The way I look at it, even if you’re a band doing your own thing, the more work you put into charting out your songs coming into a rehearsal, the more your own ideas become solidified. For leaders, the best thing you can do for your team is take time to commit your thoughts and needs to paper; leaving far less to imagination and improv unless that’s what you desire.

A great thing about worship is that it’s about heart more than our skills or rules. There’s a lot of room to be creative, expressive, improvisational, and spontaneous. I find the more prepared I am, the more I can let go and be flexible to enjoy the presence of God and making the music.

A lot of other people's time is wasted simply because someone doesn’t take the time to prepare. Try to not let it be you!

(Nashville, TN is home for Tom Lane though he is involved in ministry and music around the world. As a singer, songwriter and guitar player, Tom has been teamed with worship leaders and artists. He continues to record his own work, lead worship, and writes regularly for various worship publications worldwide).
This article appeared originally in the September/October 2011 issue of Worship Musician Magazine.