Heyhey! I just realized that my last post was on the 4th of July and that day I changed the whole blog layout to this red & blue themed layout! It assure you, it was unintentional lol. I just happen to like how it looks.
Actually I planned to write a review but then I had a gig last Saturday!! Once again, it's a church thingy but the event was held at the other church. We got our old guitarist back, and he was behaving better that day and this was his first gig with us this year after what happened last time (=.=)..
Well normally if we play on this kind of gig, we'll have practice probably the day before, and then a couple of hours before the event itself. Most of the songs were common, so we didn't really need extensive practice. But this time it was different. We had a couple of practice before the event and even the songs were fixed way before the event. This was because we didn't know the WL (Worship Leader) and most of the singers are newbies so they were still unsure when to come in etc etc.
The Worship Leader was interesting. Sometimes he went overboard. It's pretty difficult to explain here. You see, he dragged the song for too long. And that wasn't because he was singing the song over and over again. On certain occasion where there is room for "improvisation", he went for it and then lingered. PLUS sometimes he went off key. Thank goodness he didn't do it as much during the event. We the musicians tried to tone down the music so that He'll eventually get the signal and then end his adlibs. But then most of the time he kept going on and on. Nobody was able to tell him off because this is kind of a sensitive issue but then everybody noticed it and was pretty much against it. The guys hated him lol. So the only way to sorta tell him off is by reducing the music. The lesson I've learned is that Worship Leaders should have self control as well. Even though the music and the atmosphere was 'high', you gotta know when to stop. You don't want people to be staring at you as if this is a show right? During practice, that happened a lot.
Second, Worship Leaders gotta be clear about the chronological order of events. If you can't remember, then write it down and carry it with you! This fella was pretty clueless, and he skipped a song, and a solo. Well maybe because he was nervous.
Third, please WLs. Don't preach too much. There will be a sermon afterward so you don't really need to.
From the musicians' side, I kinda followed what we practiced back then in SBC. In SBC we have song sheets with chords in it and the sequence of the song. I printed the same thing and boy did it come in handy :) I do think that it is a must for church musicians to have song sheets with 'em chords and sequences in it. We played neatly, and the basslines managed to be blended in nicely. It sounded more balanced :D
I was so stupid that I didn't do this since back then. If I did, then I wouldn't be as frustrated because everybody was playing their own thing and although the chord was right, it didn't blend in nicely. Not anymore B)
From the sound corner, we have difficulties at first because initially we were planning to use only amps until this guy came with the full PA. BUT his system is normally used for keyboard style playing not for bands. But then the uncle was pretty nice and the sound went pretty good. A huge plus is that I can hear myself AND the band (most important thing for me). Also, unlike during certain occasion, this time I was able to control the volume by myself. Now I know why. When the sound man told me to put it to the max, I did what he said and then I ended up unable to adjust accordingly. All I can go was go quiet. I can't go louder because I was maxed out!! This time, I adjust my volume to 12 o'clock, and then we all played the loudest song so that the sound man will adjust my volume accordingly. For other songs, I will still have the freedom to go quiet or louder. I do think that this can be applied to any instrument.
I noticed that at dog eating place, most of the rented sound system during the event are normally used for keyboard style music. So if they are faced with a band, normally the keyboard will go through the PA, and then the rest will be using amps. I prefer everybody to go through the PA though. I think it'll sound better that way.
Alright I think that's that.Have a nice afternoon! ;)