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December 2001 Table of Contents
Cover Story
Choirs in Worship: The View from Here!
By Camp Kirkland
As a director, writer, and arranger of church music for the last 30 years, I have had the privilege of looking in on what has been happening in our church music programs from a unique vantage point. One of the most interesting events that I have been able to witness is the change in the role that choirs play in worship.
That role has changed as developments such as the Praise & Worship movement have come along. This movement has re-birthed the desire for congregations to have experiential worship rather than "spectator worship."
When I first began arranging for choirs in the late 70s, the choir served as the primary worship-leading group. Their key role was to provide music that was primarily listened to while they communicated what corporate worship was about. Thus, the congregation felt much like spectators at a church event. A great deal of importance was placed on the way a choir sang the music of a song. In this process, the choral sound overshadowed the presentation of the lyrics. Ministers of music spent more hours perfecting that "sound" in an attempt to communicate the message of a song.
However, this often came across as pedantic and stiff. The result of this was that congregations longed for the opportunity to participate in experiential worship-worship they could connect with and become involved in. In order to engage the congregation, choirs needed to become models of worshipers instead of just performers. As the movement away from performance-driven choral music began, churches experimented with (or returned to) songs of testimony and praise.
Experiential worship dates back centuries. The whole Reformation movement was based upon the desire for the people to be able to participate in worship in their own language. In the modern past, we used "singspirations" as an attempt to involve the "average" person in the musical/worship experience.
In the turn toward our present day, experiential worship had various beginnings. It wasn't called a Praise & Worship musical, but Alleluia! A Praise Gathering for Believers was one of the first of its kind to bring the congregation into the experience of worship. It was one of the first musicals to use spoken and sung testimonies effectively, and the choir played a key role in leading the congregation through that experience. This was definitely one of the starting points for much of what we see happening in worship today.
Another beginning has been the frequent and unique use of soloist. In the past fifteen to twenty years, this has led to another model found today in many churches across the country. In this evolution, the role that used to be called "song leader" or "choirmaster" or "minister of music" has evolved to a more interactive and connecting role in regards to the congregation, called the "worship leader." Integrity Music, Brooklyn Tabernacle and the Maranatha Praise Bands have served as models for this worship leader style.
The Praise & Worship movement has brought the experience of worship, the soloist, and the worship leader into our weekly services, but it has also affected the very songs we sing. Many songs of today often have many words and more syncopation, which makes clear delivery of the lyric more challenging.
The candidate who, I think, is best able to communicate the message of a song is the soloist. The soloist is not totally controlled by the melody or rhythm of a song and has the ability to enhance its message with more emotion. The choir has the greatest challenge when it comes to this communication. That is why I often have them sing in unison to help the congregation hear the song almost as a soloist would communicate it.
I also find that churches using Praise & Worship music on a regular basis tend to try to use a greater number of new songs each week. The caution to this is that music ministers need to allow time for their choirs and praise teams to learn the music well. The purpose of this is for them to live with the songs long enough so that the message of the song can first minister to them. Then and only then can they lead the congregation in experiential worship.
Over the last several years as experiential worship has peaked, I have found some churches toying with the idea of phasing out their choirs. But for every church thinking about this dramatic change, I see a dozen others, fully committed to the choir. I don't think the choir is going away. Instead, I see new techniques being used with the choir.
Some churches have gone to a "praise choir" concept. This is where the presentational anthem approach is dropped and congregational support becomes the key role of the choir. In some respects, this approach is almost like having a large praise team in the choir loft. I often see ministers of music or worship leaders who don't want to diminish the role the choir is playing in the worship, but they also want to use a praise team. In this case, they begin to look for material through which they can easily combine the praise team and choir. However, this material is not easily found, however more material is coming on the scene.
For those of you in that situation, I am glad to say that material for the combined choir and praise team is becoming available. I immediately think of a new resource I've worked on recently called Choir & Praise Team: Sing of His Love, which is published by the Lillenas Publishing Company.
The songs in Choir & Praise Team...are all strong message songs. Some are new; some are standards. This collection gives the minister of music the opportunity to use the praise team and the choir together in a unique but substantial way. The praise team in this collection is used primarily as a soloist would be. Sometimes the choir serves as back up to the praise team, but at other times, the choir takes the lead.
In addition, because of the keys that were selected, every one of the songs can be used with the congregation but remain accompanist and guitar friendly. All of the arrangements are fully orchestrated in a local church friendly style. However, each arrangement will work with only rhythm section as well. I think that Choir and Praise Team: Sing of His Love is a logical solution for those looking for the most recent innovation and evolution in choir music.
Through the years I have seen new ideas come and go. Some have worked, others have not. As we church musicians move forward into this new century, it is my prayer that we will be open to new ideas as well as old ideas; that we will be looking for innovations and renovations.
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