What do all the song section abbreviations mean in Worship Backing Band?

Timeline

We’ve had a few customers asking about the song section abbreviations in the timeline of the Worship Backing Band player. We’ve tried to make them as self explanatory as possible but of course there are one or two that might mean different things to different folks. So below is a list of all the abbreviations we’ve used over the 150+ tracks we’ve produced so far, and If we’ve missed any do let us know! Of course, not every abbreviated term is commonly used by every person, so I’ve described a few of the less obvious ones below.

I – Intro – is always an intro so will never come in the middle of a song so not to be confused with and instrument (INST)

TAG – a short repeatable section often after a chorus, but not to be confused with a Bridge or a Link!

L – Link. Generally a simple 2 or 4 bar section between the end of a chorus and the start of the next verse. These tend to be very simple short chord sequences are often repeated at various points of the song so wouldn’t qualify as a BND or INST. Also L2, L3 etc. are likely to be all the same chord sequence.

BND – Band – an individual section with only the band playing that doesn’t seem like a full instrumental. Perhaps 4 gentle bars after a big chorus leading to a very quiet verse.

AL – Ad-lib. There are one or two of these and they are generally over the chorus chords. They are designed to encourage worshipers to sing something ad hoc or spontaneous. If that’s not your particular worship tradition then either sing the chorus again or miss out the section completely using the player. Also we often number each section so it’s easier for the band to understand whereabouts in the timeline the song is jumping if you choose to move from the standard arrangement. E.g. V1 and V3 may have the very same lyrics but perhaps a different dynamic so the numbers help everyone to know the difference.

Here’s the full list

I – Intro

V – Verse

VA – Verse part A

VB – Verse part B

PC – Pre-Chorus

C – Chorus

L – Link

B – Bridge

INST – Instrumental

AL – Ad-lib

BLD – Build T – Tag

BND – Band S – Solo

R – Reprise

O – Outro

E – Ending

FC – Final Chord

What about the stems?

This article explains all the instrument stems in detail.