Many officers are recognising that to attract outsiders to the Army, sometimes it is necessary, to quote Paul, "to become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some." (1 Cor. 9:22b). The musical language of the secular world can be understood by simply turning on a radio. And yet the Army has a rich heritage of brass and songster music that still speaks volumes to many. Can we possibly offer both? Is there a way of pleasing everyone?

What I am undertaking in this article is to give practical tips and guidelines for making a blended format work, and to give you ideas for mixing the old and new in as seamless a transition as possible. To accomplish this we need to encourage brass bands, songsters and contemporary bands to co-operate with one another.

Let me insert a stop-point here by stating what I believe one should not do to begin the process. Here's the scenario: Your corps has a contemporary band. They are allowed to lead some praise and worship for ten or fifteen minutes at the beginning of a service. Or, they lead a "contemporary service" once a month, usually in the evening.

Why is this not the way to go? It sets up an "us versus them" approach to worship music. "We'll let the young people do their thing, and then we'll have our traditional service." The contemporary band, in turn, plays songs that are not only new and difficult for older congregational members, but hurts their ears in the process. Yet there is often no other opportunity for contemporary enthusiasts to play the music that ministers to them.

Alas, all is not lost! Here are my "twelve commandments" for successful worship-blending:

1. Get the brass band to play the contemporary choruses. Brass band enthusiasts often find it much easier to learn a contemporary chorus while singing to a brass band. The Hallelujah Choruses series* and Scripture-based Song series* is designed exactly for that format. Also check out Fusion* from the S.A. Australia Southern Territory.

2. Get the contemporary band to play the hymns! There is a huge fear that we are losing our heritage by focusing on newer songs while neglecting the songbook. Yet many hymns lend itself to a contemporary format (try Chris Tomlin's The Wonderful Cross, for example). The recently released iworship series* features contemporary arrangements of All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name and Blessed Assurance, and the aforementioned Hallelujah Choruses series carries contemporary versions of hymns. Although the rhythm might change a bit, and there might be a new added chorus, the melody and lyrics don't change at all. If it is tastefully done, both traditionalists and contemporary enthusiasts can joyfully sing together. And everyone already knows the melody!

3. Mix up the bands. The Hallelujah Choruses series and Australia’s Instrumental Praise* can be adapted to add piano and guitars to the brass band mix, or conversely, for adding punch brass to a contemporary mix. The S.A. Australia Southern Territory has also produced the Crossover Series*, featuring hymns arranged in a contemporary style for brass band, rhythm and piano.

4. Don't introduce a lot of new songs at once. Congregations can really only handle one or two new songs a month comfortably. And if a new song is introduced, it should be repeated frequently in subsequent services until the congregation is comfortable singing it. A word should be said here as to how to introduce a new piece. The first time through a chorus will be more a "performance", as the congregation doesn't know it yet. So if the song has verses, the first verse will need to be repeated (after the first chorus) so the congregation can try to sing along. Or, have a soloist sing the verses with the congregation joining in on the chorus. The congregation can learn the verses another time. Always repeat the chorus at the end so the congregation gets an extra shot at it.

5. Always sandwich a new song between two familiar pieces. A congregation has a hard time worshipping if they are struggling to learn words all the time. Singing familiar pieces before and after a new piece helps the congregation to feel that they have been included when the worship was planned. Another option is to teach the new piece at the beginning of a service as a "prelude", to be repeated later in the service.

6. Vary the instrumental landscape. It is an interesting phenomenon that simply by changing the expected instrumentation of a piece, a congregation will receive the message of a song in a fresh light. Keep your congregation alert by combining instruments in unique and creative ways. For instance, have your contemporary singers lead songs with a brass band backing; or, have the guitar and piano play one verse with brass coming in on the chorus or subsequent verses. A back-and-forth approach is successful as long as there's a leader with a good ear for what works and what doesn't. And don't be afraid to pare down the instrumentation. All brass band composers know that all instruments playing all the time will eventually cause a listener to tune out, as well as wearing out the performers. The same is true of contemporary bands. Allow for a solo guitar or solo keyboard some of the time, in order to change the texture. Unfortunately, contemporary music has often been equated with loud music. Yet there are a lot of very beautiful and slow contemporary worship pieces out there, and sometimes they are best served with a minimum of instrumentation. (As an added note - try finishing a worship-set with an ‘a capella’ verse of something. I Love You Lord and Praise the Name of Jesus work well here, for example).

7. Allow the contemporary band to play in unexpected places. I don't mean locations, but different spots in the service. Let the contemporary band do the appeal, or the prayer time, or the closing song once in a while. A solo acoustic guitar on the appeal can be a powerful thing, as well as being a nice change of texture from the normal piano-organ mix. Also, how about letting the contemporary band accompany the songsters once in awhile? Or, let the songsters introduce a new worship chorus once in awhile!

8. Make a permanent place on your platform for the contemporary band. Granted, this can be tricky, depending on the size of your platform. But the congregation needs to see that they are as much a part of the platform personnel as the band and songsters.

9. Choose your choruses carefully. The top ten contemporary hits are not always the most congregational-friendly. Alternately, there are a lot of contemporary hymn-writers out there that use simple melodies and rhythms that sound like hymns although they are current (take a look at some of Stuart Townend's offerings). Grace Alone and Be Still for the Presence are two popular examples. Also, watch your keys. Some of the contemporary hits are a little high (or low) for the average congregation. For instance, I've lowered Trading My Sorrows to G and We Want to See Jesus Lifted High to E to make it a little easier to sing.

10. Change the orchestration to suit your band. Somehow we have it in our heads that we have to play it exactly as it is on the CD in order to play it at all. Unless you have the players to pull it off, it's better to come up with your own arrangement. No professional artist records things the exact same way anyway. For instance, compare God of Wonders on the iworship CD with Rebecca St. James' version of the same song. Quite different. Don't be afraid to experiment to make a song your own. This includes speeding up or slowing down the tempo as needed. Recently our band did the hymn I've Found a Friend in Jesus (tune Lily of the Valley), but we slowed the tempo right down and used more contemporary chords. The result was a much more worshipful, thought-provoking version of the original hymn.

11. Love your congregation with a servant-heart. As worship leaders, you are not there to make sure that your favourite songs are being played! You are there to assist the congregation in worship! If a song isn't helping to accomplish that, drop it from your play-list, or find another way of presenting it. Be sensitive to the needs of your congregation. Change can be very threatening to people. There is an old question that can be applied here: "Do I want to be right, or do I want to win the argument?" It is unproductive to needlessly get people's backs up. I find that when a congregation sees that the contemporary band is willing to play some of their favourite songs, they are much more willing to accept some of theirs.

12. Set an example of worship. There is an old saying: “If you feel like smiling, notify your face“! The way you present yourself on stage will, first of all, allow a congregation to see the way that you are comfortable in worshipping. They will, unconsciously or not, measure the sincerity of your heart by your stage presentation. Secondly, what you do will instinctively give a congregation permission to do the same (raising your hands, closing your eyes, etc.). Approach worship with a humble attitude. Pattern your thinking after Paul's in 2 Cor. 4:5: "For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake."

Personally, the main reason I love to introduce new choruses to my congregation is because the songs have touched and moved me in worship, and I positively believe it can move them as well! I badly want them to have a glimpse into the depth of emotion and thought that a song has to give. Using the above guidelines are practical ways to help you accomplish just that.

Has your corps found successful techniques for blending old and new that might be useful to other corps around the Territory? Send us your ideas!

- Kim Garreffa