As a worship leader, do you have trouble keeping the band tight? Are there times when you wish you could supplement the sound of your band to include some parts that you don’t have? Using click tracks and loops in worship is a great way to add creativity to your band and fill in those missing gaps.

Don’t worry about what you don’t have, work with what you do have. No matter what, your team depends on tools they can use to make the sound of the band great to encourage worship.

Learn the value of making the most of your band, for the goal of your church’s worship.

9-26-17 WATCH SHOW #136

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Loops and MultiTracks

I’ve been using Loops and MultiTracks in worship since 2002, with no looking back. A few weeks ago, my band and I were leading worship at a nearby local church. Afterwards, someone came up to me and said, “Wow! I’ve never heard so much sound come from just four people!” As much as I wanted to take credit for the band members and myself, I knew that our secret weapon was sitting only a few feet away on the stage behind me.

Fill Out The Sound of Your Band

However, this is just one side of the computer’s many talents. While everyone in the band is rocking out to a click track and band cues, the computer is playing back tracks that enhance and supplement the sound coming from stage. For example, the tracks may contain sounds like shakers, tambourines, synth lead lines, or pads.

Unfortunately, we can’t all have a full orchestra, percussion kit, analog synth, or mandolin every weekend at church. Also, a church may lack in the quantity or quality of available musicians. If you’re missing a keyboard player one weekend, your computer is always ready and willing to fill in. Want to add those cool delayed ‘beeps’ and ‘glitch’ noises you hear on a recording? Play a long with a track! It’s also an easy way to add fresh and creative sounds to your worship experience.


[ctt template=”6″ link=”7Pl1I” via=”no” ]Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises! (Psa 98:4 ESV)[/ctt]  

Tools & Resources

If you’re using a computer, the preferred software choice among electronic worship leaders is Ableton Live. You can create your own loops and tracks and then use them to perform on stage. You also can build a set list and quickly change the key or tempo of your tracks. At first it may look intimidating, but once you give it a shot, I promise you’ll never want to stop. It’s also very affordable and works on both Mac and PC.

LoopCommunity.com offers a lot of free training videos and webinars. If you want to use a mobile device or tablet, check out a free app called Loop Community PRIME. With PRIME, you can easily create set lists, add click tracks, change the key / tempo of your songs and even customize your song arrangements! This is a great way for beginners to get started with using tracks in worship. There’s more power in your mobile device than what put a man on the moon. It’s amazing how much it can help enhance your worship experience and the sound of your band. Where do I buy tracks? I’m glad you asked.

A few years ago, I was preparing a worship set for Willow Creek and thought, “Wouldn’t it be cool if there was a website where worship leaders could download and share tracks for songs?” LoopCommunity.com was born which now provides practical resources for worship leaders around the world. Once you’re on the site, just search for any song and download the tracks you need. What makes Loop Community special is that we are a community. If you create your own tracks, upload and share them with the community…or download and support other worship leaders who make tracks.  


[ctt template=”6″ link=”7Pl1I” via=”no” ] There’s more power in your mobile device than what put a man on the moon.[/ctt]

The Fifth Band Member

So the next time you play and someone says, “Wow, I’ve never heard so much sound come from just four people”, just tell them you’ve decided to add a fifth member to the band. That is the power of technology in live performance.



Matt McCoy is a worship leader and songwriter from Chicago, IL. He is the founder of LoopCommunity.com and an Ableton Certified Trainer. He loves to teach churches and worship leaders about using tracks in live performance. He has been using tracks in worship for over 10 years and invented the LOOPTIMUS Foot Controller and PRIME Playback App.  



 

@MattMcCoy @BranonDempsey @worshiptt @WorshipTTU


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