A soft wash of electric guitar can make a quiet moment in a set feel full. Left running through every song, the same wash turns the mix into fog. Swells and pads work best when they have a job and a place to sit.

What a pad is for

A pad fills space the rest of the band leaves open. It can hold the harmony under a spoken moment, carry a transition between songs, or give a sparse verse some width before the drums come in.

If the keys player is already holding long chords in the same range, the room doesn't need a second pad. Talk with them at rehearsal about who covers which sections.

How to play a swell

A swell is a note or chord that fades in with no pick attack.

  1. Turn your guitar's volume knob, or your volume pedal, all the way down.
  2. Pick the note or chord.
  3. Bring the volume up smoothly over a beat or two.
  4. Let it ring, then turn down again before you pick the next one.

Practice slowly at home with a metronome until the fade is even and you can't hear the pick. A volume pedal leaves your picking hand free and is easier for most players to control, but the knob is fine while you learn.

Delay and reverb

Delay and reverb turn single swells into a wash. They also pile up quickly.

  • Delay. Set the delay time to the song's tempo so the repeats land with the band. Many worship guitarists use a dotted-eighth setting, which fills the gaps between beats. Keep the repeats low enough that they die away before the chord changes.
  • Reverb. A longer reverb smooths out swells. In a room that already has a lot of natural echo, use less than you would at home.
  • Ask the sound tech. Effects that sound lush in your in-ears can sound muddy out front. Ask how it's coming across in the room.

Stay out of the singer's way

The lead vocal sits in the midrange, and that's also where a full guitar chord lives. Two ways to keep clear:

  • Play higher on the neck, above the voice, using small two- or three-note shapes.
  • Go lower and simpler, with one or two notes, and leave the middle open.

Six-string chords drenched in reverb tend to cover the vocal. Thin them out.

Part, pad or nothing

Each section of a song usually needs one of three things from you: a written part, a pad, or silence. Listen to the recording before rehearsal and decide.

  • If the song has a guitar line people recognize, play the line and skip the pad.
  • If the keys or acoustic are carrying the chords and the top of the mix feels empty, a pad can help.
  • If the band is already full, lay out. Sitting out one section gives your entrance in the next one more weight.

Leave room

A few well-placed swells will do more for a song than eight bars of constant wash. Pick your moments and keep your effects in time with the band.

For more on finding your place in the band, 5 Important Roles of the Worship Guitarist covers your role, your attitude and knowing when to play less. Approaching Your Instrument Professionally is a short read on how you and your instrument work together.