Acoustic Guitar: Unplugged!
One of the really nice things about an acoustic guitar is its portability. Not only is it easy to bring with you wherever you go, you don’t need any electricity to play it. Because of that portability there are many times where you might be asked to lead worship for an event/gathering with just you and the guitar. Some of the most intimate worship experiences I have ever had have been in this simple acoustic/vocal setting. In this article I want to give you a few tips on how to make those worship times just as dynamic and powerful as it would be with a full band
Tip # 1: Create Dynamics.
A worship set should be taking the worshipers on musical “ride” if you will. Bringing the dynamic of a song up and down as apposed to playing the same volume through the whole song. For example on the verses of a song maybe use finger picking instead of a full on strum and when you build into the chorus switch to a full strumming pattern. If you want to bring it down into a bridge maybe use one strum chords for the first time, then start working your way into a full strum into the Chorus. For faster songs sometimes using a palm mute on the verses with 8th note down strums will establish a groove then open the strums up for the chorus. There are many ways to add dynamics with your guitar, if you have any suggestions I didn’t mention leave a comment and give us some ideas!
Tip# 2: Open Up Your Chords.
This is probably a preferential tip but I think in this setting, using open, full chords fills in a lot of the empty space that’s left with not having a band. Open chords add color and personally I think they sound much better on acoustic guitar for worship music. Another thing you might try is adding some bass notes into your chords like the common D/F#, A/C# or G/B. They won’t always work with what you are singing but sometimes they can add a little extra color to the chord
Tip# 3: Flow Through Transitions.
It’s not as easy to transition between songs uninterrupted when it’s just you and the guitar. Its important to not stop playing (unless singing acapella ) between songs. If you have your songs in the same key that is usually no problem. If they are not in the same key I would suggest using transition chords. There are chords that you can play between two keys that will seamlessly transition you to the new key without a hitch. For example going from D to A I could play D / Bm7 / E / / E/G# / A. That’s getting into a little bit of theory witch could be an entirely different article. If you are not to hot on your theory ( which I’m not) just Google “transition Chords” there is a ton of resources to help you find the best ways to transition between 2 keys.
These are just a few technical things you could try to enhance a worship experience playing just an acoustic guitar. Obviously there is a spiritual dynamic to this which is much more important than all the technical stuff.
