Welcome dear reader to another entry in Cubicle Life

A departure this week. Have you ever been in a service at HTB and wondered how it all seems to run smoothly and without problems. Well there are a group of people, amongst others who work tirelessly behind the scenes to make HTB happen.

At the back of church there is a large wooden box where people sit twiddling buttons and looking generally relaxed and contented - these people are members of the Tech Team - a small but appreciated group of mainly volunteers responsible for the sound and vision at each service at HTB. So what do these people do?

Well being a member of this small group I think that I may be qualified to enlighten you, dear reader on this topic....

Morning services
 
The tech team arrive at around 8.45 looking a little tired but nonetheless ready for action. There are two roles - sound and vision. The sound person is responsible for setting up all the microphones and other sound equipment on the stage. Having set everything up the Worship leader then has a brief sound check - at this point the sound guy will check that everything is sounding OK and that each member of the band can hear OK and can hear those members of the band that they require. Having set the levels to the required level the soundcheck is completed. During the service the sound guy is responsible for ensuring that the sound stays below a certain level and that the band sounds as good as it can be. This may involve minor/subtle tweaks to how each instrument sounds or how much each band member can hear of the rest of the band. They also make sure that the speaker(s) can be heard and that any video or sound clips such as HTB news can also be heard. At the end of the 11.30am service the sound guy is responsible for packing away any microphones used during the morning services and making a start (if need be) to assisting in setting up the stage for the evening services.
 
The vision person is responsible for switching on the projector so that song words, video clips and camera pictures can be seen by people sitting in the church. They are also reponsible for switching on the TV monitors that are dotted around the church. Once this has been done they need to then get the list of songs that the worship leader plans on using during the service. These are then used to create a schedule in the software HTB uses to show song words and notices. Sometimes this involves adding a new song to the list (entering it into the song database - it is a help if you can type reasonably quickly) or making adjustments to an existing song according to the worship leaders wishes, or creating new notices that are needed. During the sound check the vision mixer runs through the songs so that they know how the worship leader plans on singing them. Once the sound check has finished the vision mixer also has to cue up any video/DVd clips that may need to be used. They will also need to ensure that any other words such as The Confession or The Lords Prayer is in the schedule as these may be used especially during the time of prayer. During the service the vision mixer is responsible for ensuring that the right song and the right verse is being shown during times of worship. This can mean having to search for a song if the worship leader uses a song that is not in the original song list. At this point it can feel like the pressure is on but it is better to take that extra second to find the right song rather than show an incorrect song. The vision mixer is also respobsible for showing any DVD/Video clips that are required during the service. This may be HTB news or a clip that the speaker wants to use during their talk. Once the 11.30 service is over the projector and the monitors are switched off and then the vision mixer can either assist the sound guy in setting up for the PM services or they can go home.

Evening services

The tech team arrive at around 2pm ready for action. Again the stage is set up and the projector and monitors are switched on. As with the AM services there is a sound check but a far longer rehershal. During the services the roles played by the sound guy and the vision mixer are the same as for the morning services. Again once the evening services are over the microphones are packed away and the stage setup for the following day and the projector and the monitors are switched off.

So why do I do this? Well I really feel that this is what God wants me to do - to help other worshipers so that they can worship the Lord without any distractions.....I also really enjoy it. There is something amazing about seeing a church full of people with their arms raised to heaven praising and worshiping God.

Hopefully this has given you a flavour of what goes on behind the scene. If this has made you think "I could do that" than fill out a get connected card and the tech team at HTB will be in contact.