Tips on teaching new songs

I recently joined Emu Music for a webinar on teaching new songs in local churches. 

Here are ten top tips from what we shared.

1. Give people the chance to hear the new song before you teach it, via church email lists, social media links or over your PA before services.

2. Get resources to your musicians early so they can learn the songs and lead them confidently.

3. Find a congregationally-friendly key (Bob Kauflin recommends the range of an A below middle C to a D in the octave above). This may not be the recorded key!

4. Don’t just copy the arrangement you find online. How can you use this song to benefit your church? Consider especially the structure (e.g. how many repeats) and even the feel (how could this be played more simply, or by fewer musicians?)

5. Spend more time practicing the new song in rehearsal, and actually practice teaching it in your rehearsal, too. (This might feel weird with no-one there, but it will give you much more confidence when the time comes!)

6. Introduce the song clearly: what is it about? Is there a Scripture that connects with it? Here’s an example: ‘We’re going to learn a new song now; it’s called You Are My Father, and it reminds us of the privilege it is to know God as Father and be children of God. 1 John 3:1 says: “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” I’ll sing the chorus then invite you to sing it back…’ (This will need some co-ordination with your service leader or minister.)

7. Teach songs simply and clearly. Have just one voice on the melody and one instrument supporting, so it’s clear how the melody goes. Break the song down into sections and have the congregation sing them back so that they don’t have to hold too much in their heads at the same time.

8. Sing the song for a few weeks to help people learn it and to discern whether it’s working.

9. Evaluate the song: is it helping your congregation? Are they singing it confidently after a few goes? Are they enjoying singing it? The wisdom comes in rightly weighing different opinions! (But that’s another column.) It’s ok if a song isn’t working! Don’t be afraid to retire it, learn from why it didn’t work, and pick a different song to teach that will serve your people better.

10. View follow-up conversations about the song as valuable pastoral opportunities. Both specifically about the song (e.g. Why might we be happy to sing this lyric, but not that one?) Or more generally about singing together (How might all need to lay down our preferences to serve one another?)

There’s lots more to say; you can find plenty more resources like this at emumusic.com such as webinars on choosing which songs to teach and a variety of other topics. May this help you when you teach your congregation to sing a new song to the Lord!