Flying Solo

This past Sunday, I had the opportunity to mix in the main sanctuary (or "Centre") for the first time on my own. Since the beginning of my internship, I have been learning how sound works and developing an ear for artistically creating a good mix. I spent many weeks in the broadcast room with my personal soundboard getting to know how EQ's work, how to set the correct gain level, how to use the compressors, and how to get even volumes between the instruments. There were also a few times when I was able to try mixing at the main board alongside one of the main sound men.

Finally, this week I was given my first opportunity to take everything that I had learned and really apply it. I was in charge of running the sound from the beginning of sound check all the way to the end of the last service. One of the regular sound men was there the entire night to lend a hand in case I needed help and to critique my mixing.

Overall, the night went very smoothly. no major problems aroused, and I felt pretty confident in what I was doing. The worship team that night was comprised of musicians from Rockharbor's high school and Jr. high ministries, so the nervousness of mixing for adult players was eased. I did experience a few problems during sound check, however. Up to this point, I had learned set my EQ and compression levels based on what I was hearing from the broadcast room speakers. The Centre is a much larger room and contains a different acoustic dynamic, so the levels I was accustomed to setting needed to be slightly adjusted. I was having a difficult time getting a good vocal mix without having the microphone feed back. After a few attempts at adjusting the EQ, my sound supervisor Jared suggested that I had my compression level too high. After bringing down the compression level, I had no more problems with the vocals.

I faced only two more difficulties throughout the night. One was that I sometimes did not make the vocals loud enough to hear over the band. Now, this task is trickier than it seems because of style Rockharbor likes to have their music. Every instrument should be at equal volume with the vocals resting above the mix slightly enough to be heard clearly. They should never be too loud nor quiet. Because the dynamics and volume levels of the songs constantly fluctuate, the sound man must always pay close attention the vocal levels and adjust them to match the band. My main problem was that many times my vocal levels laid slightly below the mix when I should have pushed it above the mix. This sensitivity comes with practice and a continual development of the ear.

The second problem I encountered was my not having enough control over vocal delays. All vocal channels are linked to an auxiliary channel that runs through an effects rack with a delay setting. Therefore, depending on how high one pushes this auxiliary fader, he can increase or decrease the volume/presence of the delay effect. At Rockharbor, the delay is primarily used to "fill in" the vocals - especially when long vowels are sung. The trick here is that the delay must never be too noticeable. The sound man must be quick to pull up and down the delay fader within phrases. Once again, this is another sensitive skill that can be developed with experience.

Overall, I was extremely excited and blessed to be such a crucial part of the service. I love music, and I feel that mixing has become another extension of that love God has given me. Rockharbor has an amazing quality sound system, and the church takes the power of music very seriously. Although learning how to mix artistically has been a challenging and long process, I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to develop my skill at such a high standard (especially compared to most other churches). I strongly believe that if I am going to offer in worship the gifts God has given me, I want to be able to offer the best I can give.