I played a new little arrangement for dear friends tonight, and it included a tasty reharmonization that arrived once in each verse. My brilliant musician friend reminded me, don’t overuse the good stuff. As he said, overusing a powerful move can dilute its power. The surprise of a reharmonization is what makes it potent, and when it’s repeated over and over, it makes itself a little boring in the repetition.
The arranger’s dance is constantly balancing the new and the familiar. Too far in either direction and you fail to realize the potential of the song you are arranging. Either you’ve sacrificed your voice to the original version, or you’ve compromised the original version with your creativity.
Be careful!