[Tony]

This is either Part VI, or Part I of a new series. I haven't decided yet. It's also probably not complete, but I'm tired of looking at it:

As usual, these are my opinions posted here. Granted, I think they’re fairly accurate ones acquired over time, and you will have to make the effort to convince me otherwise, but that’s one of the reasons I posit them. If you’ve got something to say that will make me reconsider, then by all means do so. I’m a big boy.

Melody and Rhythm
What is a song? I believe it is an artistic expression with three basic components: lyric, melody, and rhythm. Since I’m talking about corporate worship singing, let’s assume the lyric component without further discussion, and explore the other two a bit.

Melody is probably the first thing we think about. Is the song melodically pleasing? Is it accessible? Is it interesting? Depending on the message and tone of the song, the melody can be very simple (“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross”) or complex (“Let All Things Now Living”). A really good melody is quickly grasped by the congregation without being boring. It is a composer’s challenge to write a melody that is unique without being too difficult to memorize. Classic tunes are set to new texts because of their strong melodic quality.

Equally important, however, is a song’s rhythmic quality. Rhythm comes from syncopation in the melody, or from the accompaniment beneath. The placement of words and syllables in the lyrics’ meter has a rhythmic impact. Words themselves also have rhythm, and on top of their meaning, some words are more interesting to sing than others.

To me, a good song requires movement. Relying only on melody, regardless of the strength of the message, is dull. It cheapens the meaning of the words, and in my opinion, would have more impact if they were simply read aloud as a poem instead of sung. However, relying only on rhythm, regardless of the “groove” factor, also detracts from the lyric. We sing the song because it’s fun rather than true and fun. Vacuous.

I confess that I more often err on the side of rhythm than melody. I prefer movement over pretty. I hate what Lawrence Welk did to pop songs with his orchestra. Worship music that doesn’t move I’ve called Prozac Praise. My Muppet Test for songs also indicates my preferences – if I can imagine Kermit singing it, it’s too precious for congregational singing. Vapid, lifeless, come to mind.

If I have to do a Prozac Praise song, I will do what I can to bolster its rhythm, trying to add movement. And if I’m in the congregation, it is extremely difficult for me to experience the value of Muppet songs. It is harder for me to overcome Vapid than Vacuous. That may be my own baggage, but I’m pretty sure that I’m not in the minority.

Meeting Dynamics
Let’s talk about general group dynamics for a moment, outside of the context of corporate worship. Large group meetings require certain elements to be successful: Purpose, Content, Energy, and Flow. And meetings require Leaders and Participants.

Purpose: Why are we here? Groups need to be reminded of this each time they meet. It sets expectations and focuses participants for appropriate behavior.

Content: Purpose is not enough. Once we know why we are here, we then need to know what we are to experience together. Without content, the meeting is simply a party, and a potentially boring one at that.

Energy: The group must be engaged to participate in the meeting. This is usually done with a high-energy opening, an ice-breaker. Energy levels are then gradually lowered to help the group settle into the more focused portion of content delivery. Finally, energy is raised again at the conclusion of the meeting so that participants can depart with a sense that something was accomplished. Imagine an inverted bell curve. This pattern can be varied occasionally, but meetings that are only low energy will fail with repetition. Meetings that are only high energy are too exhausting to sustain.

Flow: Good meetings transition between active and passive participation by controlling the flow of content and energy. Flow does not happen naturally, and without it, boredom or chaos will soon follow.

Let’s bring this back to the corporate worship event. What is the Purpose? Worship is the gathering of the Body of Christ to express gratitude, confess sin, experience forgiveness, and hear from the Creator. It is a time of activity, singing, listening, and responding. There are lots of great definitions proffered by far better thinkers than me, but that’s my boiled-down version.

The point is we need to be reminded why we gather every time we meet. In the traditional model of worship, this is the Call to Worship. I believe this generally needs to be a high-energy activity. It needs to be strong and declarative, and it needs to be God-focused. We need to be engaged, reminded of our corporate identity, and stirred to act together, which is difficult to achieve in a low key presentation. It’s not entertainment, but it should be, for lack of a better term, entertaining.

After the Why of Purpose has been established, we can begin to explore the What of Content that we’ll experience together at this particular gathering. I’m a big proponent of thematic worship, where the content is introduced early in the service, and maintained throughout. But I suppose it doesn’t have to. Churches that follow a lectionary don’t always have a streamlined theme, but even then the content is clear, and the service can be a cluster of mini-themes.

I believe we do a disservice to ourselves if Scripture isn’t used in the service, as it is our ultimate source of Content. We claim to be People of the Book, so let’s get the Book in corporate worship. We can sing it, view it, read it responsively, pray it, and hear it from the platform.

Energy is a dynamic that we can use to keep people engaged. I believe the inverted bell curve is useful in planning worship, as it allows us to prepare to hear the message, or to give an offering, or to come to the Lord’s Table. It is difficult for groups of people to participate in a constant state of low-energy activity, even if the content is strong.

It’s also difficult for most of us to stay focused when leaders do not work to control the Flow of the service. If we are going to string several songs together, which is a prevailing style in corporate worship today, then we need to make smooth transitions between the songs, or at least eliminate awkward breaks where people wonder what is going on. Transitions can be made musically, or orally, or visually, or in combination, but leaders must think through the process ahead of time. If we’ve taken the effort to select the order of the service, we need to help the people understand what it is we’re doing so that they can experience the same flow of thought. I believe this seldom happens organically for groups of people, so we need to direct it.

Lastly, I think we need to keep in mind that this is a corporate event. Certainly there is individual involvement and personal reflection. We bring our personal context to the gathering, and may react to certain elements more internally than others. Certain songs seem to be addressing just me and my God, and I find myself singing only to Him sometimes. Words from the sermon may convict me, but not you, and therefore my reaction will not be the same. You may experience the Lord’s Table with more gratitude on a particular Sunday. Individual results may vary, as commercial disclaimers say, but the event is still corporate. Leaders need to keep the context of Group in mind as they plan and direct the service.