How To Unstick Your Lowest Fader: ARTIST

On a Sunday afternoon, my wife and I were hanging out on the comfy couches in our living room with two of our sons, thirteen and sixteen. We talked about personality and how it plays a role in our actions. For simplicity’s sake, we brought up the DISC assessment.

I have a 24-question DISC test in Excel, so I had my thirteen-year-old take it to see if his D or I was higher. They were both at the top of the chart; notably, his C was at the bottom.

I started talking about the DISC using Five Faders language (if you’re new to the Fertilizer, get the scoop at https://www.adlibmusic.com/five-faders), but I quickly realized the significant differences between the way we use the Faders and how most personality systems work. I said, “I wonder how to tell if you are a healthy DI or if you could express it with more health and integration. And what strategies you could use to raise your C or S when needed.”

When you take the DISC, you often learn what box you’re in and some strategies to communicate with people in different boxes. Yuck!

With the Faders, you learn your primary motivation, followed immediately by how to become the healthiest version of that Fader and how to raise your other Faders when love requires it.

There are no boxes in the Faders! We are active mixers, not set-it-and-forget-it mixers. We all have every Fader. But it could be stuck at the bottom.

I want you to have the necessary tools to move your Faders. Sliding Faders that haven’t moved in years can feel unnatural, difficult, or uncomfortable. So this is a series of how to unstick your lowest Faders.

We’ll start with the Artist Fader.

The Artist is a Craftsman who creates beauty and usefulness. They notice nuance because they want to express emotion through music.

The first step in moving a stuck Fader is to get some WD40. (Ok, not on a real soundboard…please!) If you don’t value something, you won’t believe it’s worth any investment. And you must! That’s the first step.

There are probably some myths you believe about this Fader. Maybe you’ve experienced the unhealthy expression of the Artist, we call the contemptuous and perfectionistic Rock Star. You know, the kind that leads 4-hour rehearsals to get everything just right?

But replace that image with a healthy Artist. We call it the Craftsman - someone who can take raw materials (untrained or ill-prepared musicians) and create something that serves its purpose (leading worship) beautifully and compellingly! This is our aim.

Next, look inside your heart and notice what’s coming up. “I don’t have an artistic bone in my body!” “I’m not a professional musician.” “Most of my team are better artists than I am.” “If I focus on the music, we’ll miss what’s most important.”

How will you deal with this self-talk? You must confess and replace it. “I have not developed this yet, but I’m working on it with God’s help.” “I’ll never have the desire to make a living at music, but I want to give Him my best every time.” “I want to serve my team well.” “Let’s work hard to make this music ‘sing,’ so that during the service, we can focus on Jesus.”

Lastly, here are some practical strategies to grow as an artist.

Learning to Listen

It would help if you learned to “listen in tracks” to understand how everything fits together. This means hearing each instrument in a recording and following it through the song. You can use some free backing tracks in Prime or Playback to solo each instrument to get familiar with how it sounds.

And I’m talking about both listening to the drum set as a whole and also noticing the kick drum pattern, the snare drum pattern, or even how open or closed the hi-hat cymbals are - and more importantly, what the effect is on that part of the song. You can also use the oblique strategies found in this Fertilizer: https://www.adlibmusic.com/worship-fertilizer/365 to develop your curiosity.

Understand the Basics

What are the fundamental roles of each instrument? I’ve heard worship leaders say, “I don’t speak drum. I don’t even know what each one is called.” They say it almost like an unskilled badge of honor! But it will help you serve more effectively and honor your team if you learn it.

Here’s a tiny crash course that George Yellak, Kyle Smith, Jake France, Darin Esterly, and I wrote:

• Drums are the railroad tracks that the rest of the band rides on, and they can make for a bumpy or smooth ride. They help phrase the melody, signal changes and dynamics in the song’s sections, and establish groove (the subtleties of rhythm and tempo intensity).

• Bass guitar establishes the root rhythm patterns of the song and solidifies the railroad tracks with the drums. The bass supports the leader and singers and sets the band’s musical integrity.

• Keys/Electric guitars share the primary roles of Tone Color, Chords and Harmony, Rhythm, and Counter Melody. They support the band through texture and colors. They fill the most space and lead musical transitions, intros, and interludes.

• Acoustic Guitars often establish the basic form, playing the inside rhythms. Their primary roles are Chords and Harmonic Structure and Rhythmic Structure.

• Horns, Strings, and Woodwinds​: ​Create excitement via dynamic power and lay down harmonic richness. They are like the catsup on fries.

• Vocals guide the congregation in what to sing and are the primary communicator of truth.

Bring in Help

Someone on your team has a higher Artist Fader than you do. Ask them to show you how to listen, prepare, think, and play…as an Artist. Ask each player on your team to teach you their main musical role in the band.

Lastly, try one of these “How to get along with me” for Artists:

• Show up with your parts learned

• Ask me if what you just sang/played felt musical

• Listen and respond to each other in the band musically

• Act like a pro – work hard to create beauty

• Get better at your craft

• Always bring your personal best

• Take musical risks and direction

You can also find resources on the Artist Fader in past Fertilizers by searching by that topic: https://www.adlibmusic.com/worship-fertilizer/category/Artist+%28Faders%29.

Next week, we’ll get your Shepherd Fader unstuck. (Linden, I may be calling you in as backup!)

-Dave Helmuth
(purchase my book, "Worship Fertilizer: (the first hundred)" HERE)

How To Unstick Your Lowest Fader: ARTIST (Nº 367)