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How To Organize Your Worship Song Libraries
Something I have run across when working with youth and adult worship teams is to maintain a balance between songs we know well, songs that are getting old and new songs we should be working on. We keep a list of the songs we have done each week on google docs spreadsheet and that helps us to keep track of song use as we go along but I find it very helpful to sit down once or twice per year and really take inventory of our songs. Something I developed and have used for several years is the A,B,C,D method. Here is how it works. I take our list of songs we have used for the year or for 6 months and take time to categorize them.
A- The letter A is reserved for songs that are still relevant, and that we know really really well. I usually include songs that are very familiar to both the band, singers and congregation. I think of it like this, if I had to throw a songlist together and have my team play it with no rehearsal whatsoever, these are the songs I would choose.
B- The letter B is used for probably the largest group of songs. B songs are those that we know, but definitely need some work. Some of these are ones we have not done in a while but are bringing back, maybe because of their seasonal significance like Christmas or Easter music. Sometimes we just have let a song rest for a while and we are coming back to it. Think of it like this, if I had to pull a songlist and had at least 2 rehearsals to refresh over them, these are the songs I would choose
C- The letter C is used for the songs that we don’t know but would like to know. These are usually the new songs. Maybe I will get a new CD or hear something on the radio and we will want to work on these to use in our worship sets. These songs are also songs we use once or twice for special occasions, offertory or for special numbers.
D- The D list are those songs that we are giving a rest for a while. These songs include songs that may be great but that we have just overdone and they have lost their impact because they have become too familiar. The list also includes songs that for whatever reason they did not work. Maybe they don’t match the style of our group, or are too hard or too easy. Just because a song goes on to this list does not mean we will never use it, it just means it is out of our repertoire for that season.
Once your list is categorized then it will make it easier when it is time to choose songs. It is often difficult for a youth or adult praise team to learn 5 brand new songs each week. On the other hand musicians like to be challenged and doing all old songs doesn’t make sense either. Once you categorize your songs you can find a balance that fits your group. I found that if we use 5 songs in a set it works well to do 2B songs, 2A songs and 1C song. You will need to find the balance that works for your team.
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A great piece of software that is more fluid than Google docs is Adobe Bridge. I use Bridge to build our set list every week. I keep all my chord sheets as PDFs and then use bridge to label them, color code them, rate them, and sort them. If you have access to Bridge, it’s worth a try. Either way, I agree, keeping your songs organized makes a huge difference in the long run.
Carter, great idea I hadn’t thought of that. I guess I was looking at the google docs thing because it’s free and also I still have my song sheets as documents, mostly, and I can get to them wherever I am, including my phone or anyone elses computer. The key is to find something that works for you. Thanks for your comment.
[...] What new songs are you wanting to start off with when rehearsals begin? Last year I wrote about the process we use to evaluate our overall song list. It helps us to determine which songs we know we can play immediately, which ones we want to work [...]
[...] 1. Choosing a set for a season- There are literally hundreds of thousands of worship songs that you could use at any given time. We try to bring that down to a list of about 90 songs that we will use for a season. This gives us a manageable list to be able to look at and choose from. We try to make sure that the songs in the list have a variety of keys, tempos, and can be sung by a variety of people. The set is a suggestion that helps keep us focused, however if a song fits well in a particular service that is not in our set, we’ll go ahead and use it. At the end of a season (3-4 months) we will look at the songs and see what new ones we want to add, or which ones we need to give a rest for a while. (see organizing your worship libraries) [...]