
How To Effectively Organize Music - Part 2
"The better prepared we are, the more smoothly the worship time will flow, and this benefits everyone."

Last week, we covered the first three aspects of effectively organizing our music, which included storage, labelling, and format.
This week, we'll be looking at the last four aspects of this subject.
So, moving on now, the fourth aspect is...
Our music folder/device
This is what you play your music from, which, for most people, will be a folder of some sort.
As much as you can, try to avoid having no folder, or you'll find yourself in situations where the music falls off the piano, gets muddled up, or you find out a page is missing when you're halfway through a song. Also, you will definitely want to avoid having a folder that doesn’t open all the way up; this is why spiral bound music is great as it stays in position on the piano.
If you are using a device, then make sure the software you are using is user-friendly. When I play from my iPad, I use an app called “ForScore” which works really well. Although it does require a one-off purchase fee, it is certainly a great resource to have. A few of the features include the ability to write over the music and save your notes, and it's also very easy to arrange set lists and keep things well organized.
As you can imagine, this is a very important aspect to get right. We don’t want to have any issues with not being able to read our music or turn the pages properly.
Another simple tip is to just fold the corner of a page (if you’re using paper) so it’s easy to grab and turn; although this is more specific to if you're using a ring binder of sorts or a clear file folder.
If you haven't used clear file folders before, you will want to check the lighting where you play the piano from in your church as sometimes certain angles make the pages harder to read because of the reflection on the plastic. However, you can get matte versions of these folders which eliminates that issue.
Our music back-up
While this may not be relevant to some of you, I think it's still worth mentioning, particularly if you are using an iPad and it’s a new thing for you. You may find you have extra peace of mind by having a physical copy of the songs in a folder by the piano just in case something goes wrong. These devices are pretty stable, so once you’re confident, there’s probably no need to do this. However, it is always worth having some backup songs ready, even if that’s in your head or on your phone, because you never know when you might need them.
Our music admin
This aspect of our organization has to do with the CCLI side of things, so if that’s your responsibility, it just means you need to make sure the church’s CCLI number is printed on any word copies given to the congregation, or on any PowerPoint slides you use. The CCLI number is what helps to track the songs your church uses so the relevant license can be used, and doing this in advance when you make your files saves a lot of time.
The final aspect then is...
Our music record
While this isn't essential, it is certainly something you might find helpful, and that is to keep a record, either on paper or on your device/computer, of the songs you use each week. That way, you get a good big picture view of the variation of songs and how often you do certain songs, as it is easy to forget. Also, it helps if you include the title of the sermon and/or the main theme to give you a head start in song selection when the same themes come up again. It's certainly not a requirement, but just an idea that may be of benefit to you.
Hopefully, in going through these different aspects, you can see the importance of being well-prepared in our role, as we come to that time on Sunday when we sit down and lead God’s people in worship.
The better prepared we are, the more smoothly the worship time will flow, and this benefits everyone.
Just to recap, here are the 7 aspects of effectively organizing our music...
Our music folder (or device)
Our music back-up
Our music admin
Our music record
As we try to organize our music well, may it be our chief desire that in doing so, God is glorified and the church is blessed by a time of worship that isn't constantly interrupted or hindered by unnecessary distractions.
[Return to The Church Piano Player Website]
This blog post was written by pastor and pianist Kris Baines, from The Church Piano Player. Kris lives in the UK with his family, having recently moved back from New Zealand where he worked as a pastor for the past 26 years (also leading worship/worship teams). Kris has also spent over 35 years writing, recording, and performing music and is now bringing all that combined experience together to help equip church piano/keyboard players.
Check out the church piano player website for more information on online courses by Kris Baines.

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