The Guitar in Worship

The use of stringed instruments in worship goes back into the Old Testament and has a history of its own in the Christian church. In recent years, the guitar has been frequently used to lead music for worship. This article explains where and how to use the guitar.

The use of the guitar in praise of God is founded solidly on biblical precedent. The Psalms come immediately to mind with their frequent mention of instrumental praise (e.g., Ps. 33:2; 71:22–23; 92:3; 144:9), and even a cursory reading of the history of Israel reveals the regular use of stringed instruments in worship.

Today, the re-emergence of stringed instruments (specifically the acoustic guitar) can be traced back to the 1960s, an era now famous for its proliferation of folk music, the vox populi. Popular singers like Peter, Paul, and Mary, and Joan Baez (to name a few) captured the public imagination with their simple, immediate, troubadour style, reflecting the concerns of the day in song. The drug culture, the sexual revolution, and protest against the war in Vietnam were all critical elements in the formation of a new counterculture.

The nearly simultaneous appearance of the Jesus Movement, so prevalent among youth of the day (a counter-counterculture) and the beginning of the charismatic renewal converted much of this dynamic energy and brought it, often through the popular Christian coffeehouse venue, into the more formal church environment.

The Guitar in Corporate Worship

The reintroduction of the guitar into corporate worship has not been without difficulty, but this has not negated its usefulness to the people of God in the offering of praise. As the church finds its life expressed in settings other than the traditional church building (e.g., house churches, prayer groups, cell groups), many will find the guitar, portable in a way that the organ and piano are not, to be the instrument of choice.

Two different approaches are possible when using the guitar in worship: as an accompanying instrument in an ensemble to support corporate song, or as a principal leading instrument in the hands of a worship leader. As an accompanying instrument, rhythm and harmony are the primary contributions the strummed (or folk) guitar gives to instrumental texture.

Classical Style. The classical style of guitar playing is suitable for a wide range of music; repertoire is limited only by the player’s ability. Its inclusion in an ensemble can provide a pleasing textural element. As a lead instrument, the classical guitar is less effective, except in the most intimate settings, because of its lack of natural aural presence.

Leading Corporate Song. Using the guitar to lead corporate song requires an understanding of the ethos of folk-worship leadership. The roots of this type of leadership are found in the tradition of the troubadour (the storyteller) and the accompanying characteristics of interaction and spontaneity. The guitar is eminently well-suited to be a vehicle for allowing the worship leader to relate back and forth with the people who are gathered, to manifest that ingredient unique to folk-worship leadership: interaction. In Judeo-Christian worship, the use of responsorial psalmody reflects this tradition: a cantor/soloist/storyteller sings the verses of a psalm, and the people respond with a simple memorable refrain or antiphon. This verse/refrain structure remains an effective song form in sacred and popular music alike.

Visible presence makes interaction easier. However, in circumstances where this is not possible, folk leadership can be affected through audibility alone. This technique, common in African music and discernible in American spirituals, employs the call-and-response form, a variation of verse/refrain. Either visible or audible presence alone can be effective, but clearly both are desirable.

The guitar’s usefulness can be increased by the development of a variety of strums to interpret different musical moods. The use of a pick (or plectrum) will not only make playing more audible but will add rhythmic clarity as well. (See Leading Worship with the Guitar, a teaching video produced by Celebration, P.O. Box 309, Aliquippa, PA 15001.)

It should be noted that the folk guitar is not suited to all idioms found in today’s corporate worship. This is especially true with traditional four-part hymnody. However, since many enduring and endearing hymn tunes find their origins in folk melody, a unison rendition of the tune, accompanied by harmonies idiomatic to the guitar, can add a new dimension to one’s experience of familiar hymns.

Choosing a Guitar for Worship. The choice of an instrument will depend on the player, the circumstance in which it will be used, and the musical material to be played. The most commonly used steel string guitars are the six-string and twelve-string. Either is suitable for leading corporate song.

The six-string guitar provides a well-defined sound for crisp, articulate playing. The twelve-string guitar provides a cushion of sound, rich in harmonic texture, with octave strings creating its characteristic “ring.” Those same octave strings, however, increase the challenge of maintaining a well-tuned instrument.

A nylon string guitar is meant to be plucked or strummed with the fingertips. The use of a pick produces a muffled tone, and as was noted above in the discussion of the classical style, its usefulness is limited to very intimate settings of worship.

The electric bass guitar, while itself, not an acoustic instrument, can be extremely useful in an acoustic ensemble, providing both rhythmic stability and harmonic foundation.

Amplification. Finally, mention should be made of sound reinforcement, an ingredient that is often critical to the success of the acoustic guitar in corporate worship. There are various ways to amplify the guitar other than a factory-installed design. The most successful method is with either a flexible strip microphone, which is attached directly to the body of the instrument or with an internal pick-up placed in the soundhole. The player thus has freedom of movement which is not possible when playing before a stationary microphone, and the actual resonance of the wood body is transmitted with less “air noise.”

The acoustic guitar can be quite versatile in the hands of a sensitive worship leader and continues, as it has for centuries, to be a fitting instrument to make music in praise of the Most High God.