I may make my debut playing keys in public this Sunday morning. Our sound engineer is suffering with a heavy cold at the moment so I could end up flying the desk instead but, if not, I might sit at the keyboard.

Can I play the piano? I’d have to say not really but I can name the notes and put together simple chords. In a worship music context, that is enough to get started. Certainly when playing background patches rather than realising a full two handed chord, you can make do with very little – there are more than a few songs where one shape and a suitably ethereal sound will make do for an entire song!

The reasons for my interests are two fold. Firstly, I’d like to develop my keyboards game. It’s a very versatile instrument for the musical director part of my job. Ultimately I would like to be able to sit on the organ and play hymn or two, supporting a congregation. We do have one or two keyboard players in the congregation but various factors like health and availability mean it isn’t something we can regularly field. Secondly, I recently bought an Arturia KeyLab Essential 49 midi controller. As well as giving me an interface for working with recording software, it means I now don’t have an excuse not to put in some practise in developing acceptable keyboard skills. The 49 keys are on the small side and not fully weighted but they are more touch sensitive and playable than the tiny ones on the 25 key controller I bought a few years ago.

I think I’m just about good enough to play in church – and disciplined enough to stop when it sounds bad – so this is a plan to lay down the live experience which I find to be an accelerated way to progress. I’ll still be a bassist but I’m also committed to developing my broader musical skills.