• Bass Song Learners
• Matt Weeks new album
• Ask the Expert – different guitar styles, teaching new songs
• Why study voice – guest article
• Sing Happy – save 20% on new vocal warm-up CD
• Esher CRE – free tickets
• Competition

Bass Song Learner Lessons Launched

To compliment the teaching on the Musicademy Worship Bass DVDs we have developed a series of online lessons called “Song Learners” which help to develop your bass playing style with tasteful creative parts. Each song section is broken down step-by-step so you don’t miss a note and culminates in a full play through that you can use again and again as a practice tool.

Songs used include In Christ Alone, Indescribable, Everlasting God, a beautiful rendition of Paul Baloche’s Offering and a fantastic but challenging gospel version of Oh Happy Day.

We also have 22 acoustic guitar Song Learner lessons – click through to the website for more information.

Matt Weeks new album – Here Comes the Dawn

Matt Weeks is the presenter of our bass DVDs. As well as being an outstanding bass session player Matt is also a producer and talented singer songwriter. It’s been six years since he last produced an album of self-penned, self-played songs. Finally, the new album has arrived and is available through Musicademy.

Here Comes The Dawn is a collection of 10 songs that vary in style from the acoustic, singer-songwriter to groovy brass-flavoured funk. There are also three instrumental Interludes which give short bursts of musical variety that reveal Matt’s diverse musical heritage.

With a little help from some fine musicians, Matt has played, sung, and produced this whole project. Finding time in between the many sessions and tours it is no wonder the album took so long to finish. Check this album out for some fine playing, great songs and a musical journey that will keep you on your toes.

Click here to download a sampler.

Ask the Expert - Styles of Guitar Playing

Chief Allan Hewey from Maine in the US sent us a suggestion for a new feature. He writes: “As a guitar player I am always trying new riffs or styles. Maybe a small monthly segment on a particular rhythm style or riff would be fun and exiting to look forward to. I know I would watch for it in my emails just to learn one new thing a month. Modelled after your excellent guitar series would be great.

Andy replies: Sounds like a great idea. Lets kick off with a typical U2 type style. This has always been popular in churches since the Edge’s style leans more towards rhythmic ‘pad’ sounds than a typical lead guitar rock riff. A U2 style sound is great for songs with big dynamic changes and great for filling up space behind very clear melodies in a way that is not so much a ‘lead’ part that it becomes like a distracting counter melody.

I tend to think there are three clear parts to his sound. Firstly his distinctive use of effects, second his basic guitar tone and third his choice of chord voicings. For his effects the most often recognised U2 tone is the use of crochet triplet repeats with a delay pedal. Think ‘Pride, In the Name of Love’. This essentially means if you have a bar of 4 beats the delay pedal needs to squeeze in 6 equal repeats in every bar. It’s not as complicated as it sounds. Set your delay up for around 4 or 5 repeats until the note dies and first synch it up to the ¼ notes, i.e. every beat. Next, turn the delay speed up until the next available delay sound that seems like it synchs up. If you’ve done it right you’ll be hitting the crochet triplets which will sound like some notes hit the beat and others fall rhythmically between beats. The advantage to this is that if you play any kind of strummed rhythm it will give you some extra repeats back that help drive along the song. Just make sure you get it in time! Many delay pedals like the ubiquitous Line 6 DL4 now have this facility built in. To this you can add some compression to add attack to the tone and stop it getting muddy, particularly helpful if you play something like a Les Paul with a darker voicing. Also add a bit of overdrive but be careful not to add to much gain. Most classic rock sounds actually have less drive in the tone than you think. Lastly, a bit of chorus can add to the shimmer but again don’t overdo it or your sound will get lost in a big ‘soupy’ wash. Not nice!

For his tone the Edge uses a variety of guitars from Fenders to Gretches to Gibsons. However it’s his amp choice that really adds distinctiveness to his tone. Edge uses a combination of Vox AC30 and old Fender ‘Tweed’ Deluxe’ amps. Both of these are relatively low powered compared to your typical stadium Marshall Stack or whatever. But they both share a beauty in their clean or just breaking up voicings. The Vox being brighter and the Fender being ‘throatier’. If you haven’t got something close to one of those then again a good compressor can add a subtle shimmer to help the higher notes cut through.

Lastly for the chord voicings - it’s worth studying some tab or songbooks on how U2 songs are actually played. It will give you loads of ideas to get away from the familiar shapes in worship songs. For instance, Pride is played using four chords in B with D shaped CAGED chords up on the 12th fret. So imagine a D played on frets eleven and twelve and an A played two frets lower. Try something similar for a song like Blessed Be your Name or Open the Eyes of my Heart and see if it works. If you’re not familiar with CAGED chords we go into it a lot in the Intermediate Guitar DVDs as I consider it the most useful tool in unlocking new chord shape possibilities.

If you would find a video demonstration easier to understand, we have an online lesson showing chord formations and how to use delay for U2’s Beautiful Day. Next month we’ll be looking at mixing Reggae and Metal – Maybe! (not).

Ask the Expert - Styles of Guitar Playing

There a number of ways to introduce new songs to a congregation. Graham Kendrick teaches his songs line by line, Stuart Townend tends to teach songs in sections as the lyrics change but the melody remains the same and Matt Redman often injects the new song straight into the worship set and lets the congregation figure it out as they go. So there are many ways you can do it but it does depend on how simple the song is and how strong a song leader you are.

The key thing is not to introduce too many new songs per service. One or two is all most congregations can hope to remember. Where you place them in the song list also has a bearing too. Many people find it difficult to engage with new songs so perhaps try it as the very first song in a prescriptive way and then use it later in the set as a more worshipful expression once it’s sunk in a little. Another option could be to have a good recorded version of it playing on the sound system as people mingle before church.

You could also try using it in house groups a few weeks before you intend to use it in church or even send round an MP3 to some of the ‘keenies’ before Sunday so at least a few key church members are right there with you when you introduce it. However you choose to teach the song to the congregation, don’t be afraid to highlight a lyrical or melodic correction at an appropriate point in the service (i.e. not in the most sacred worshipful moment) as once people start to sing a song wrong its extremely difficult to get them to undo their learning at a later date.

An advantage to worshiping with new songs is that people have to concentrate hard on the lyrics so good ones tend to sink in more immediately. So try sandwiching a new song with a very familiar simple old song that worshipers can let go with.

Don’t be too adventurous with the song choices. Can your band comfortably play it? Can the congregation even sing it? Sometimes it’s actually worth over rehearsing the song before you use it publicly just in case you kill it on the first outing. I’ve seen many times when a worship leader brings a new song to the band just before the service and the band just don’t know it well enough by the time the service starts so lead it without any real conviction and it flops.

Why Study Voice?

Laura Donohue, a Nashville-based professional singer and vocals coach to major label artists, Broadway stars and opera singers, has kindly agreed to contribute a guest article to the newsletter this month. Laura’s husband Chris appears on our new worship bass DVDs You can find out more about Laura at her website.

I am frequently approached by commercial singers who wonder if and why they should take voice lessons. The answer is usually obvious for singers of opera and even musical theatre as those types of singing are based on highly developed technique. Commercial singing, however, calls for a completely different approach, one that is “untrained” and “natural”. Do these singers still need to study voice? Absolutely.

Let’s examine the first and perhaps most important reason: lessons preserve the health and longevity of the voice. Healthy singing is an incredibly complex process that depends on the smooth operation and coordination of a number of physiological areas. If any one of those areas is weak or altered, the entire voice is affected. The vocalist who doesn’t breathe properly, for instance, and consistently sings with an under-supported tone is unnecessarily taxing the vocal cords and may end up with a voice disorder stemming from vocal fatigue. Disorders can range from minor (mild laryngitis that can be healed with simple voice rest, for example) to permanent, non-reparable damage. Proper voice training teaches the singer how to produce sound that is non-stressful to the vocal cords. When healthful technique is combined with a healthful lifestyle the likelihood of a voice disorder is greatly diminished if not eliminated. Vocal damage is traumatic and painful for singers who experience it and recovery can be quite difficult.

This leads me to the next reason: lessons help in the maintenance of the singing career. In addition to causing emotional trauma, vocal cord surgery and subsequent therapy are expensive and time-consuming. Time spent in recovery is time lost. Cancelled tours and missed engagements are costly to both the singer and the record label. The inability to sing because of vocal illness or injury can shorten a singer’s career.

Expert vocal training also gives the singer an increased understanding of how the voice operates, which leads to a better knowledge of one’s own unique instrument. The singer who truly knows his or her voice is able to sing with confidence. The singer who knows his or her voice is able to build on its strengths and diminish its weaknesses. Voice lessons help the singer recognize and eliminate his or her own personal excessive tensions brought to the singing process. Ultimately the student sings with greater ease and less effort.

Another reason to study voice is for the increased range, power, stamina, and flexibility that come about as technique develops. Just as athletes refine performance by training, the singer who studies voice is able to further develop the muscles and complex body functions necessary for masterful singing. No matter how accomplished the singer, there is always room for improvement, and the discerning voice teacher will guide the singer toward utilizing full vocal potential.

Vocalists also take lessons to learn the discipline of daily vocalisation and a healthful lifestyle. Vocal training is not complete unless it teaches how to care for one’s voice on a daily basis and not just in performance situations. Daily vocalisation is to the singer what the daily workout is to the athlete. It strengthens the vocal apparatus, prevents injury, and maintains the overall health of the instrument

Last, but certainly not least, singers study voice for the ultimate goal of better communication! Singers with an extensive understanding of how the voice works are better able to communicate the message of the song. When excessive physical and mental tensions are relieved through voice lessons and healthy singing becomes automatic, “technique” can be set aside and the singer can focus on reaching the listener with an expressive and powerful instrument.

Hopefully Laura’s article has convinced you of the need to invest in, and take care of your voice. Go to our webstore for daily vocalisation exercises and, of course, our worship vocals course DVDs.

Sing Happy – save 20% on new vocal warm up CD

Sing Happy is a set of 16 vocal warm-up exercises on CD. We often get requests from men who would like a more male-friendly set of exercises (both our other warm up CDs are presented by women). Having said that, this CD will also provide some variety for female vocalists who would like to try some newly devised exercises

Written by Paul Knight, an experienced actor, musician and vocal coach, these exercises have been used extensively by singers working in the performing arts. In fact, they have a distinctly “musical theatre” sound to them. Each exercise is initially demonstrated leaving you to complete them with piano accompaniment.

To give you an idea, the exercises includ

Vocal siren - create an ‘ng’ sound (as in sing) which is also great for smoothing out your break between head and chest voice

Hum changing to ahh - a gentle hum allowing the lips to vibrate with a relaxed jaw moving to ahh sounds

Ooh ahh and ee ay - experiment with different placement of vowel sounds and sense where they resonate

Mad - Italian hard ‘a’ sound. Go deep into the growl of the voice

Yah - With a relaxed jaw, placing the vowel carefully

No-ah - open throat and a smooth transition between oh and ahh avoiding the Nowah sound

Brrr - an exercise to aid note placement

Diaphragm staccato - a gentle diaphragm movement

Legato, intervals - ensuring that the bottom note is correctly placed each time and that you are not sliding up and down the intervals

Delay- this exercise is to be sung on delay, delight, receive and remove singing at the front of the vowel and keeping the dipthong until the last moment

Plain bun plum bun - correct placing of plosives

Sister Susie - correct placing of ’s’ practising using the hard and soft ’s’

t’adoro - gradual controlled crescendo into the centre of the sound

Maria - gradual controlled diminuendo. This exercise demands considerable support

Scales - fast scales using ma, me, maw and finally legato ahh

Senor Pieta - a melody comprising intervals up the scaleWe’d like to offer our newsletter subscribers a 20% discount on both the CD and shipping – just put the code SING HAPPY 08 into the discount coupon box at the checkout. You’ll also get the shipping discount on anything else you buy at the same time.To buy just click through to our webstore

Free tickets for Musicademy workshops at the Christian Resources Exhibition

Musicademy will be at the UK’s Christian Resources Exhibition in Esher Surrey on 14-16 May. As well as exhibiting in the resources area Marie, Andy and vocals tutor Gayle Bamberger will be running a number of training seminars and workshops. Tickets are normally £5 on the door but you can order them free-of-charge through our webstore.

On the Friday afternoon, we will be running a 2.5 hour workshop delivering practical training for the whole worship team. It will be packed with ideas to help your worship team play together more cohesively and improve their sound and skills. Suitable for the whole team, the workshop is in four parts:

Vocals training – improve your vocal skills and learn to communicate the meaning of the words by exploring how we sing.

Building the groove – a practical session on how to make your band sound together and improve their arrangements by deconstructing rhythm patterns (bring guitars if you like)

Tips and discussion on worship leading skills, musical communication, creating a unified team and maximizing the effectiveness of your sound checks and rehearsals

Click through to our webstore to order your free tickets and exhibition brochure.

Competition result

John Wesley from India last month’s competition. We’ll let you know what he thought of the downloads in due course.

Win Five Free Song Learner Downloads

We really like to know what you think of our newsletter and the Musicademy products so please take a couple of minutes to answer these questions and e-mail them to us. One respondent will win five free song learner downloads and we’ll let you know what they think of them in the next issue.

1. What did you think of this newsletter?
2. Which articles did you particularly enjoy?
3. Any questions for our “Ask the Expert” feature?
4. Any suggestions for content that you would like to read in the future?
5. Any suggestions for websites we could recommend people?
6. Have you bought a Musicademy product or downloaded a lesson and what did you think of it?

Please e-mail your responses to enter the draw!

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