Establish Pitch Before You Start The Song

Starting a song on the right pitch in the right key is necessary for worshipers to be able to particpate without distraction.  A capella worship leaders need some way to establish the keytone in their mind before they start the song. 

Use of a pitch pipe, tuning fork or some other form of reference tone is a must.  Very few are blest with perfect pitch or pitch memory, so we have to depend on these devices to help us find the key and then the starting pitch. 

You will have to spend some time training yourself on how to recognize the keys.  There are several methods which are pretty simple.  One is to memorize all of the key signatures. Not impossible but difficult for the beginner.  There is a far easier method for learning the name of a key signature.  First you need to memorize two key signatures C major has no sharps or flats in the key signature.  F major has one Flat.

Finding The Key When the Signature Has Flats

For key signatures with flats you only have to look at the second to the last flat and that is the name of the key signature.  Here we see a signature with three flats, reading from left to right B-flat, E-flat and A-flat.  The second to the last is E-flat which is the key signature name.  Remember with flats you always look at the second to the last flat and that is the key signature name.

Finding the Key When the Signature has Sharps

For signatures that have sharps we look at the last sharp and go up one half step, and that will be the key signature name. It is really that simple.  If the last sharp is on the F-sharp then go up a half step to the G and that is the key name.  In the example to the left you see the last sharp is G-sharp go up one half step to A.  That is the key.  This is really simple but so vital to pitching your songs correctly that you should spend time learning how to do this.  Learn to do this quickly so you are not wrestling in your mind wondering what key to blow on the pitch pipe.

Just having the correct key does not mean you have the correct starting note.  Not every song is going to start on the key tone of the scale.  You might have to sing up or down the scale to the starting note.  Practice this often.  Fortunately, most songs in your hymnal will begin either on the key tone (Do or 1), the 3rd (Mi or 3) or the 5th (Sol or 5) of the scale.  Learn to sing the simple arpeggio: Do, Mi, Sol, Mi, Do or 1, 3, 5, 3, 1.  This will aid you tremendously when it comes time to pitch the song and start it quickly.  

The congregation you lead will appreciate you for spending the time learning to correctly pitch and start songs.  It will eliminate the distraction that comes from straining to reach notes that are too high or low in the the poorly pitched songs. 

Joe Chase