There's a GAL I want you to meet

There's a GAL I want you to meet…

In my last article I included a pdf for a form I've developed called "Guideline For Analytical Listening". (From now on I'll refer to the form as GAL.) Because I believe the information on this form can be very valuable to you, I'm going to devote this article to showing you how the form can be used. Click here to download the completed pdf for the song "Great Is The Lord" or click here to download a blank form that you can fill out as you proceed through this article... The arrangement of the song I'm presenting here is featured on Maranatha!Music's recording, "The Power Of Your Love", volume 16 in their Praise Series. This is one of my favorite worship songs, and this arrangement is completely inspiring to me every time I listen to it.

Let me start by summarizing why I feel strongly about the value of filling out one of these GAL's. Some of you are new to the world of electronic keyboards. Having come from past musical experience where you played only acoustic piano, you are not quite sure how to use some of the many sounds that are featured within a keyboard you or your church might have purchased. I am quite confident that one of the best ways for you to grow comfortable in using any new sound is to study recordings on which similar sounds are used. The GAL is a helpful form on which you can write down what you learn from that study. My intent in the weeks to come is to compile a library of completed GAL's here at kerrtunes.com along with mp3's of the songs analyzed, so that when you are looking for some hints as to how to use a certain type of sound or play a specific musical style, you can find help in this library.

Space is provided on the blank form for information that will help you find the song in the future: the recording containing the song, the song's title, and the song's style. It is handy to record the tempo of the song as well. Noting the style and the tempo will be especially beneficial in the future if you're working on a song for which you can't find a recording. Find a GAL that you've filled out or one in the library here that has a similar style and tempo and you'll probably find some direction as to how to create your keyboard parts for the unrecorded song.

So, if you've downloaded the completed GAL form or a blank one that you'll fill out yourself, let's look at what information is contained on the form for "Great Is The Lord". The GAL asks you to specify what type of sound you're hearing from the keyboards. Why not listen to the mp3 of the song now and read the things I've included in the completed form or give some thought to what you might write in the blank form? Here's a link to the mp3.

Isn't that a beautiful song and a powerful arrangement? As you listened to this recording of "Great Is The Lord", you heard that a pad sound was featured in a very conspicuous role. In fact, the pad sound is almost all that is heard for the entire intro. This is a very unusual example, and the result is a very dramatic intro that definitely leaves lots of room for the arrangement to build as the song develops. It also allows us to easily scrutinize the voicings of the pad part. For those of you who are interested in reading a transcription of this part, click here to download its pdf. This intro illustrates some important aspects of well-created pad parts.

A very significant feature of the intro you've heard here and of pad playing in general is the use of a common tone or drone note throughout the progression. Listen to the intro in the mp3 again or check out my transcription of the part and you'll observe that the note A above middle C is held throughout the example. This unyielding note creates musical tension and adds a great sense of momentum to these measures. Doesn't it sound as though you've come "home" when the A2 chord is sounded in measure 6? If you're listening to the mp3 where you have access to a keyboard, play the A above middle C occasionally as you listen. This will help you hear the unchanging note. This concept is addressed in my instructional video, available here.