Sound Sanctuary

And keeping your standards high

Sound Sanctuary is a unique part of FOH, but it shares a common thread with every column, article and review in this book: We all like working in this business of sound (at least I hope we all do). I have made this rather obvious statement because I will be writing about a subject this month that is at the center of every live sound and install company — the process of bidding a job. Particularly, bidding an installation job whether in a house of worship or any other place, for that matter. (I am not going to talk about live sound bids, even though I do bid shows for various worship houses. Because of what I am currently working on, I will stick to install bids.)

No miracle required, just hard work.

Most of the work I get with regards to worship sound comes from referrals. What I would like to talk about this month is how to get yourself into a position where you receive an abundance of referrals. It’s like Jesus with the loaves and fishes (John 6:10). Somebody had to give him the first fish and the first loaf to get the ball rolling. So, maybe I can help you get that first fish.

It may not be rock ‘n’ roll, but the band sure rocks

Over the last several months, I have talked to you about installing worship sound systems, dealing with the church hierarchy, training volunteers, getting paid, etc. What I have not spent any time on is mixing church, gospel and worship groups and going out on the road with a worship band.

This is the scenario: You contacted the right people at a particular house of worship, sold them on a sound package for their sanctuary, installed the system professionally and got paid well for your work. Now what? I would think that you included some training of the staff or volunteers in your bid. But what is going on with that sound system six months later? Or a year or two from your original installation?

For the last few months or so, I have been writing to you about installing worship sound systems, dealing with the various personalities and hierarchy of church politics and government and getting paid for your efforts. However, in the last month I have been asked to improve the acoustics of two very different worship spaces. The first one is at a Christian camp in the San Bernardino Mountains of California known as Camp Cedar Crest. This camp has a large central auditorium that is used for a variety of worship music and speaking events. The second is located in the basement of a small church in Newport Beach, Calif. that is currently being used for storage. The church would like to turn the space into a youth area where programmed and live music could be played. The fact of the matter is I very rarely get a call to treat the acoustics of a room, and to have two calls in one month is really a phenomenon. I have no difficulty walking into a room and hearing that the acoustics suck. Or entering a sanctuary that has just heavenly acoustics. The challenge is to get from suck to heaven. Obviously I am willing to have a go at it.

As we get into the new year, most of us are planning how we can make 2007 more financially profitable than 2006. Now don't get me wrong. I really, really enjoy making good sound, regardless of how much money I make. However, money does make life more satisfying (especially getting the bills paid on time). So, I want to make great sound and get paid buckets of money for it.

This leads me to the subject that I will be discussing during this installment. This is a subject that I am definitely uncomfortable with, but it needs to be discussed. The question is: What do you do when that house of worship that you worked so hard on, or that religious organization for whom you (and your crew) set up a sound system for their big revival or awards event, doesn't pay you? If this happens with a secular organization, individual or producer, I make the appropriate phone calls, have my attorney send a letter and ultimately go to court to get my cash. But when you add God to the mix, the dynamics change for me. I'll let you in on what may seem obvious. I work in the worship sound biz because I believe in a God and I believe that God wants me to do this work. In other words, I am very sympathetic to the mission that many of these religious groups have. So when I get stiffed for a worship gig, it puts a different spin on the whole job.

Generally speaking, when we think of house of worship installs, we envision FOH speakers, monitors, outboard gear, mics and a mixing console. That is obviously a very simplistic vision, but it does cover the basics. Well, a short time ago I discovered the "other buildings." Just about every church, temple, synagogue, etc., has additional multi-use buildings at the same location.

I got a call to give a bid on a portable sound system for the youth house of a church in Glendora, Calif. This building was a former home that the church had purchased and set up for the youth of their congregation. The youth pastor wanted a small system to be set up in the living room area with additional speakers to be installed out in the patio area. He also wanted this system to be portable so that, for various events, it could be set up out in the back yard of the house. However, the main use of this system was to provide programmed music for the youth who visited and volunteered at the house.

Hey, friends, if you are reading this article because you missed church last Sunday, you've come to the wrong place. Even though I attend church regularly, I cannot offer any absolution for your sins. However, if you want to create better sound at your home church or get some valuable insight into the mechanics of house of worship installations, you're talking to the right guy.

In this particular issue we will be looking at personal monitors (a descriptive term for monitoring headphones that fit inside the ear canal) for the worship team (that would be a descriptive term for the musicians/singers that lead the congregation in worship songs). There are a variety of PM products available on the market, and certainly PMs are by no means new phenomena. So I am not going to explore the different manufacturers or the pros and cons of wired versus wireless systems. You get out there and do your homework on what products will serve your particular client, and I will try to add some insight to the rest of the process.

I am certainly not attempting to be blasphemous with the title of this piece. If anything, I just want to add a little levity to the very serious task of getting a realistic budget when delving into a house of worship sound project. If you read my last piece (and I hope you have), I described my modus operandi for approaching worship sound. I'll give you the Reader's Digest version.

First, I talk with the musical director and the pastor, priest, rabbi, etc. Then I go to a service and listen. Next, I get into the sanctuary and crank up the existing system. After that, I simply offer my recommendations. Let me make a quick point here. I belong to a church and believe in a God. It is a fact that many churches believe that the money they collect from their members is God's money. Keep this in the back of your mind when you are making your pitch. It's also a good idea to visit some of your local houses of worship just to listen to the systems.