What I learned from a P&W fail

After sitting through a painful P&W portion of a service, here are some things that I learned... (Sometimes the best lessons come from a failed experience.)

Know when to cut it off - I think most people know when a song is not going well. After about 2 minutes, if it doesn't get better, end it.

Blending is essential - Blending is something I learned a lot about from singing in my college's concert choir. It should sound as if there is one soprano, one alto and one tenor, all singing together. Not 30 different voices. The voices should match in volume, pitch and even enunciation (e.g, the word is pronounced "sord," the "w" is silent.) In a choir, if you have 2 sopranos and 7 altos and 2 tenors, the altos should not be the loudest or only part one hears. The altos should bring down their volume so that it matches the level of all three parts. This is why we have a choir director. Now, P&W is slightly different b/c there's not typically a director. The singers have to self-moderate. Each singer must be able to do this on their own innately.

Be direct - Asking for volunteers can often backfire, especially with singing. There are people who like to sing, but don't do it well. P&W might not be the right setting for those. Since there are typically fewer people on P&W, you need those people to actually sound good. We're not a big church so having a true audition might be overkill. But if you're going to be singing in front of large groups, an audition might help you have an understanding of someone's abilities. In my opinion, if you know of people who can sing, but are simply not on the praise team, go on an ask if they'd join. They just might say yes. And of course, it helps to have true "worshipers" on a worship team. Equally important.

Sunday's Playlist
He's Able
I Worship You Almighty God
You Are Holy (oh so holy)
Open the Eyes of my Heart

P.S. The skill of clear and expressive speech, especially of distinct pronunciation and articulation is called elocution. This is what we should strive for as singers. Don't you just hate it when you've found out you've gotten the lyrics wrong?! Here's my all time favorite incorrect lyric from yours truly: The words are "if you want to taste my kisses in the night, jump for my love." Here's what I was singing: "if you want to take my temperature tonight, jump for my love." I know it doesn't make sense, but that's what it sounded like to me. :)