YOUTH WORSHIP TEAM
IT ’ S GO TIME ! | Vance & Michelle Shepherd
In last month ’ s article we talked about how to set up a great rehearsal space to maximize practice time and make it much more enjoyable . Practicing for a musical event can take many hours , and one of the main things that hinders a great performance is lack of practice time . But there ’ s another thing that can get in the way of a great performance …. and that is your actual stage set up .
I ’ m sure we can all relate to this : You arrive at the rehearsal or soundcheck for your event , set your gear up , and then realize you don ’ t have the power supply to your guitar effects unit ( did you leave it at the last gig ?). Or maybe you forgot the stand for your keyboard , or you left your line cables at home . I can ’ t even tell you how many times a drummer shows up to play a house kit without his drum sticks , or guitar players show up without their power supply to their guitar processors . There is nothing worse than showing up to a gig and realizing you don ’ t have the tools to do the job . Everybody forgets stuff ! This was happening so frequently with our student worship band , that I came up with a simple solution for our students ( and myself ), so they would always be prepared .
It ’ s a simple check list they can keep in their instrument bag to review before they leave to the gig , and also before they leave the stage at the end of their event . Here are some basic lists for each instrument :
BASIC KEYBOARD CHECK LIST 1 . ( 2 ) 1 / 4 inch cables ( preferably 10 ft . or longer ) 2 . Pencil & paper ( for notes taken during the rehearsal ) 3 . Your keyboard and keyboard power supply 4 . Your amp and amp power chord 5 . A 10-15 ft . black A / C multi outlet power cable ( many times there aren ’ t adequate power sources where you may be placed on stage ). 6 . A pair of good quality ear buds with a wide frequency range
7 . At least a 6-Ft Audio Cable Headphone Adapter : 1 / 4 ” Stereo Male Plug to 3.5mm ( 1 / 8 ”) Stereo Female Jack .
This is for a couple of reasons : it may be an inear gig with no live monitor wedges , or you may need to go over musical parts while the sound man is setting everyone else up , and if you have this , you can run your parts without disturbing anyone .
BASIC GUITAR / BASS CHECK LIST 1 . ( 2 ) 1 / 4 inch cables ( preferably 10 ft . or longer ) 2 . Pencil & paper 3 . Your guitar and guitar case 4 . Your guitar or bass processor ( or pedal board ) and power supply 5 . Tuner ( if it ’ s not built into your effects unit ) 6 . Your amp and amp power chord 7 . Guitar picks 8 . Ear buds w / headphone extension adapter
( see keyboard list for description ) 9 . A 10-15 ft . black A / C multi outlet power strip
BASIC DRUMMER CHECK LIST 1 . Pencil & paper 2 . 2 sets of drum sticks 3 . Ear buds with a headphone extension adapter ( see keyboard list )
4 . Metronome if not using Ableton clicks ( we recommend the Frozen Ape Tempo app for phone )
5 . Moon Gel ( to tone down ringing drums and achieve better tone )
It ’ s also extremely smart to label every item on your checklist with your name and phone # in case you do forget them at a gig . We also have our students write the name of the unit on the actual power supplies ( e . g . Digitech RP500 , Korg X5 , etc ). Doing this makes it less likely that you ’ ll plug the incorrect power supply into your unit and damage it .
When you come prepared with everything you need , it will eliminate stress , and you ’ ll be showing your team and the sound tech that you ’ re reliable and you take your craft seriously . This will also be a great example to everyone else on the team , and will create a great , professional culture .
Now … go crush your next event !!
May you be blessed as you continue to pour into or become the next generation of worship leaders and musicians !
Vance & Michelle Shepherd Founders of The Shepherd School of Music in Las Vegas , NV , where they work with youth to raise up the next generation of worship leaders and musicians . facebook . com / shepherdschoolofmusiclasvegas www . ShepherdStudiosLV . com