arrangements / compositions help

[AdlerAugen]

In a few months, I'm going to have to perform with/ direct a group of 58 people, and I wanted to arrange a piece meant for piano/ voice into something with more instrumentation. So far I know I have at least 2 guitarist and 1 bass (me, but I may hand it to someone else), vocals, and trombone. What I wanted suggestions on is how I would arrange some parts other than the bass lines, such as the rhythm guitar and the lead, so that the emphasis is more vocal. The genre of music is christian choral music, SATB. If you have any recordings of stuff I could listen to that would give me an idea of what a rhythm guitar is s'posed to do it would also be much appreciated. (Why I may hand off the bass is to either direct or play piano if there aren't any pianists in those 58 people. I KNOW I'll have to do piano at least to teach them their parts but performance...eh)

[jady]

What is the song you are arranging? what is the style and tempo (slow rock, fast rock, more light pop, etc)?

Generally the rhythm guitar has a less important roll in this type of music. feel free to let the electric guitar have sections that they dont play. having them sit out for the verses and come in really big for the chorus can be a really powerful effect.

Unless there is a lot of lead guitar lines to play, you might consider having one electric guitarist and one acoustic guitarist for a nice texture variation.

In this style of worship music it is generally the choir and lead solo vocals that are the spotlight so just keep everything else under that and it should sound fine. use the drums, bass, piano, and acoustic/electric guitars to set up the foundation and texture, use horns to accent the choir with punches and little riffs here and there to add excitement, and let the choir shine.

Less is more when arranging church choir music. I know you want to shine as an arranger (we all do) but try to avoid putting every cool nugget in your bag of tricks into one tune.

KEEP IT SIMPLE........and you'll arrange a hit!!!!

[AdlerAugen]

Actually it's for a school competition...but that's interesting about having a rhythm guitar just sit out for a bit of the time. It does bring back some reading I've been doing mainly on the bass, about less being more, to fit the song, and that rests are just as important as the notes themselves. The song itself is called "Almighty Father" and written originally for piano and SATB voices. I wasn't planning on including drums, even if we can find a player, because of past experience, there simply won't be enough room on the stage for them, especially considering the size of this group to work with is significantly larger than anything I've worked with in the past (at least double the size).

You're absolutely right in that I want to shine as an arranger, I really want something to look good on college apps and other resumes, and I'll definitely put your advice to use, including not 'putting every cool nugget...into one tune.'

EDIT:

The song itself is more traditional, and isn't rock or pop, more of a contemporary song in traditional style with somewhat uptight chord structures and rhythms, though not as uptight as hymns and such, as it plays around a bit.

[jady]

Cool, I'd love to hear what you come up with, maybe post an mp3 or something.........