For Christmas this last year I got a banjo and a mandolin! I know I’m spoiled, but that’s not what this post is about.

I have been looking for ways to incorporate “different” instruments into worship. We have our usual worship band instruments like guitars and pianos but sometimes its fun to shake things up a bit.

Here are a few ways I’ve included some of these not so common “worship” instruments recently.

1. One week in December we had a very eclectic worship team. We had a trumpet, a violin, a clarinet, an electric and an acoustic guitar all playing together. We has a congas for a rhythm section. I wasn’t sure how it was all going to come together but it was a huge success, all the instrumentalists were talented enough to make it work and keep out of each others way musically. I was really impressed and had very little do to with how successful it all was.

2. On our Christmas eve service we played the song “Born is the King” from Hillsong which features a banjo throughout the song. I had only had my banjo a week or so but the part was a really easy strumming pattern so I took a stab at it. It went over quite well.

3. A few weeks ago we did the song “better together” by Jack Johnson and had a ukulele and a banjo playing during that song

4. For our youth worship band I have been sitting in playing my mandolin, some songs it works really well on but some not so much.

All of these “special” songs were a big hit with our people, it just freshens things up a little bit to do something different.

What kind of things do you do to incorporate other instruments into worship or to steer away from the norm once in a while?