Introducing a new song to the band or to the producer is one task that can be very difficult if the one introducing the song cannot play an instrument. I consider it an art form on its own because without certain communication skills it can be a very tiring process, I was part of a number of such sessions many times where the band would be struggling to try to figure out the direction the new song is supposed to take since the one introducing the song would be struggling with the process.

When an artist who cannot play instruments comes to the studio without a band the producer is expected to create the instrumentation on his own, if session musicians are to be used usually it would be at a later stage after the basic structure, the map of the song has been laid down. This can be a bigger challenge for the producer especially if he works alone, for a band it would be an easier task since everybody can put their heads together and figure out the song’s progression.

Every single song has what is known as a chord progression, which means the flow or sequence of the chords accompanying the song, the reason why you can sing “Tose dzvamu” and “Murambinda” on the same instrumentation is that the two songs have the same chord progression and the same time signature, the time signature is easy to find if you have the chord progression. No matter how good you play your instrument if you do not get the chord progression right you won’t be able to go anywhere & the singer will also not be able to sing with your accompaniment, so the first thing to get right is the chord progression.

Deciding on the groove, tempo and everything else is far much easier than figuring out the chord progression.
So the first step here is the singer has to be able to help you get the chord progression of the song first, if the singer can play an instrument, even at an amateur level or if he/she can mimic one key instrument on the song, especially the song’s progression‘s root notes on the bass, it will help the band or the producer get the direction of the chord sequence faster.

Most singers who cannot play an instrument will first sing for an instrumentalist before they take the song to the band or the producer, and if it the song is complicated a chord chart can be drafted, this is a very wise thing to do and this will also help in the sense that some songs when sung, even if you have never heard the song before, you can clearly visualize the chord structure in your head instantly by simply carefully listening to the melody, especially if it is songs with a simple chord progression. But there are songs whose melodies will be very difficult for you to figure out where the chords are going, so in such cases, it would be easy if the chords are written down on paper or it would be easier if the singer can play or mimic an instrument, but some singers cannot do that & it becomes a stressful nightmare. This happens a lot especially if the song is a ballad, jazzy song, or any song with a complicated chord progression, it is a bigger nightmare if the vocal melody has a lot of rest that is moments the singer stops singing during the course of the melody.

Therefore in such cases where the composer cannot play an instrument, it would be easy if he or she first works with somebody who plays an instrument, figure out the chord progression and write a chord chart for the song which will be used Every time the song is introduced to those who have never played it before.

Due to experience, there are instrumentalists who are now very experienced in quickly figuring out a song’s chord progression, even if they have never heard before that it is like magic. A good number of Zimbabwean church musicians are very skilled in that area, I worked as a full-time church musician for 6 years, 1994 to the year 2000, and my ear was trained by default because in churches congregants have a habit of just standing up, go to the mic and sing without practicing with the band, during my first it used to irritate me until I finally got used that is when I ended up accommodating the system and ended up with a very sharp ear, but all the same, i still find some songs difficult if hearing them for the first time.

Two or more different chord progressions can be played for a single melody and they will all work perfectly well with the melody, but in terms of feel or mood the composer might prefer one of the progressions to another, but if the singer cannot play an instrument it will be difficult to explain to the band, that is why it is encouraged that every composer should learn to play an instrument especially piano or guitar. Learning an instrument will help the composer to better explain themselves when presenting the song to the band or the music producer. This will also help the singer to have his/her song played the way he/she wants because he/she can better explain herself.

I noticed that artists who play an instrument or who understands instruments can easily tell when the band is losing direction in terms of feel, that is why artists like Leonard Dembo, Thomas Mapfumo, Oliver Mtukudzi, and many others who are also instrumentalists changed instrumentalists constantly but their sound never changed, I got the opportunity to work with Oliver Mtukudzi for a number of years, he was an acoustic guitarist & understood the bass, although he was not very prolific in playing it, he could compose great bass lines, but although he could not play lead guitar or compose lead guitar lines he knew it when the guitarist’s playing was taking a wrong route and would rebuke you instantly, of all the years I worked with him he never gave me guitar lines to play but knew every time I was taking a wrong route, I have seen very few artists who cannot play an instrument do so.

Playing an instrument will also help you to have a better knowledge of music structure. A lot of people who do not play an instrument usually have moments where they write melodies that do not fit in the bars of the song and at times it is very difficult to explain to them where they are going wrong.

This is a snippet from Chapter 13 of my book “Following the Melody” (2017)

SINGERS MUST LEARN TO PLAY AN INSTRUMENT

If you ask any producer and instrumentalist, especially session musicians, they will tell you that trying to learn a new song from a singer who cannot play any instrument and who does not know basic music terms at times turns out to be hard, stressful, and difficult work.

I am not saying everybody should be a super instrumentalist, but having knowledge of basic chords helps the musicians and producers to get where the song is going fast. So instead of wasting energy on trying to make sense of what you are badly trying to explain with your mouth, it is more productive if they spend the energy on improving the song after you clearly give them the direction with an instrument. Remember you do not have to be perfect.

I will never ever forget this lady who told me in the studio. Pointing in the air with her fingers, she said, “I want a guitar line that goes ti-ri-ri-ri.”

When you do music for those in the corporate world, they sort of know what they want but cannot explain it. But this is understandable because they are not professional musicians. But for those that want to pursue music as a profession, you need to up your game in that area and at least learn one instrument. I know it demands too much of your time to learn an instrument, but it will also help you to appreciate what instrumentalists go through.

Learning an instrument also helps your mind to understand better about counting music bars. At times singers who do not play instruments have a tendency to sing out of time and bars.

Every singer knows that composing a song on an already existing instrumentation is the easiest way to compose. Even the least talented songwriters can come up with something. So, even if one is not a good instrument player, one will find it easy to compose whilst playing an instrument than composing music using the mind alone. Learning an instrument, therefore, makes life easy for you as a singer and composer and for the band too.

Therefore learning to play an instrument should be a must for every composer.