Great video Brians! We don’t do any audition style to add people to the team. We tend to do a “shadowing period” and have the person come to practice for several months. This does several things: 1.Shows their commitment level 2.Shows you their musical skills in a musical setting with less pressure. 3.Helps them assimilate with the worship team and build a relationship.with other members. This will show you their true personality after a month or so, and how they will get along with other team members. 4.Allows them to learn the equipment used slowly (in-ears, personal monitors, and tracks are used at our church).
I like this! I bombed my audition because of the stress that I put on myself being thrown onto the stage with the band, people I have never met. I'm a gigging musician so I'm comfortable on stage but the audition was WAY different for me. I literally had a brain freeze. Very disappointing because I wanted it so bad.
@@Harmoniesdotcom Usually after 3 months of practices, getting to know the team, and learning the equipment, things usually work themselves out. They either fit in well, or they stop showing up for practice. If they still have the dedication, then the worship leader or a team member they connect with will have the hard talk with them and let them know they aren’t ready yet. If their heart is really in it, they’ll usually stick around to improve and get to play on stage Sunday.
I think it's important to know first of all the person's commitment and dedication to the Lord and also to find out how dedicated they are to practicing and improving on their talent. How passionate are they about what their doing? If you love playing the guitar, for example, you will always find ways to improve. I think it's important to find out how passionate they are before the audition. Ask questions and do some fact finding before the audition.
Clayton Coffman I am surprised your statement didn't receive more positive responses. Spiritual condition is the first criteria for me to consider. Many worship teams are so focussed on the performance they forget about what spirit is being exuded from the musician. Or they don't care.
I have seen these two reasons why churches have NOT done auditions: 1) the leader is scared to have to say NO to someone who is auditioning. 2) the worship team has so few people that the leader goes in desperation mode and just needs people with any skill level willing to play. I must say I am completely in favor of auditions and neither of these reasons are good they are just excuses. Thanks for all you do Brian, Fuller, Bradford and the whole Worship Tutorials crew for empowering worship leaders. Great job as always.
My church doesn't do auditions. It's basically a if you can play an instrument, you can play on the team. We don't even do a click track. I go to a smaller church.
Hawaiian Coasters 325 That's the way it is at my church. It's usually a disaster because they do most things opposite of what these guys suggest. It can work with basic planning and leadership though…
While I can certainly understand the situation small churches may find themselves in I would caution just letting anyone who says they can play an instrument on the stage. My question would be if the preacher had to be out of town one week and someone from the congregation said they had a bible and knew how to speak would you let them take the reigns of the pulpit?
I attend a small church and play acoustic guitar. There are several other people who are much better than me but WILL NOT play in the church. I am the ONLY one who will play. Our musically inclined resources are very limited and we must use everyone (within reason) who are willing to participate. Not perfect, but that is the environment of a small rural church. BTW, we have our second bass player who is excellent and on our second drummer who meets our need. The first was very good. With prayer, God provides for our worship needs and we do our best to bring glory to our Lord through worship. I enjoy your videos, but this is the first one that I have some disagreement with. Visit a small church - visit ours - and see how we struggle, how we succeed, how we worship.
Roy Sullivan I agree fully. We go to a small rural church. Basically, anyone who can both sing and or play an instrument, and who is also willing to set up the computer in the sound booth can be on the team. There are many people who would love to be on the team, but who are computer illiterate and so they aren't on. We have to use what we have, and this is the way we do it.
We have a very similar issue where we average less than 60 and most people are already serving somewhere else. This means that before I can even get on stage I have to train people to replace me in sound, lighting, streaming, and slides. I started with one volunteer and now have 4. So eventually we may have something other than a piano on stage. To be clear I am also trying to find people willing to play on stage instead of replacing me. I dont care who does it I just think it would help draw people into worship and a right attitude for the message to minister to them.
Thank you for making this video :) I remember about 4 years ago, I auditioned for our assistant worship pastor. I felt like I didn't do very well, but I got the position as a back up lead guitarist. Jumping to now, I've been put as main lead guitar player and I'm scheduled at least twice a month. What I'm getting at is, I know I wasn't good then, but my pastor gave me a chance and because of that I now am more confident than ever and love playing for the Lord. I'm grateful for the chance I was given through the audition I went to. And our audition style is having you come in to play with everyone else during practice for that Sunday. Anyway...long comment...just wanted to say thank you to you guys for creating Worship Tutorials. I started off guitar from learning from you guys. Thanks so much!
I agree with this to a point. The problem is that leading a church is about more than any one person. If that person leads the congregation well and makes the moment feel natural and authentic, then they belong on stage. If they're a distraction to both the band and the congregation, then they are detracting from the worship experience. There needs to be at least some standard of excellence. It doesn't mean you abandon the people who don't live up to that threshold. You can shepherd them and help them grow until they're ready for the stage. But to rate it as merely a competition is to miss the whole point of what you are doing on that stage.
@@76JStucki thats bs. The concept of a "worship leader" who is granted the power to decide who gets to play for Gods glory and who doesn't is not biblical at all and personally i find it to be utterly wrong. The bible says "let everything that has breath praise the lord". Churches have become wayyyy to hierarchical and focused on human glory and power these days. Just assemble as a congregation, let everyone play what they want and worship the lord. It's about your heart, not your musical skill.
My guitar instructor, how also plays in his church, said many churches he knows will just bring someone in and let them play but don't "plug them in" until the worship leader is comfortable.
Really hoping the follow-up videos are how you're helping the musicianship of the people who didn't make the cut. A big influence in my abilities to play guitar came from jamming with other members of the worship team.
Auditions are important. There’s a place for everyone to serve, but not everyone is called to be on a worship team. You must have some type of skill along with a willing heart.
what we do is if you walk is consistent, which implies we've known you a while, you can sing in key, have a decent voice or can play major/minor chords hold time ect
I can’t think of a reason NOT to have an audition of some sort. When I started at my current church, they would have someone sit in for a service or be recommended by someone on the team and it led to some awkward predicaments. You laid out some great options and what we do as a smaller church(150 adults at services), is have people just come to a few practices and tell them when they are comfortable, they can sit in for a song or two at the end of practice. This gets them in front of me(WD) and one of our two worship leaders. I’d really like to start recording them for the other WL and close the decision loop between the 3 of us. As someone else commented, we don’t have a ton of musicians(know any key players?) so we have to do the best with what we have.
Above all, you must know that you are doing it for God and not for yourself. To serve God also means that everything you do will do for Him. This is not a casting job because if one plays well but does not make it for God what is the point. test the people you place in such ministries. God is seeking humble people to serve Him I apologize if I have offended anyone in any way. God bless you♥️🙂!
Maybe the person auditioning via RUclips link doesn’t know how to record themselves or edit video or send video. I actually wanted to audition for a different church that I was new to but didn’t know how to make edit and send a video back. I’ve actually played my whole life and lead worship at another church but had no clue as to what steps to take to make edit and send them a video. Only reason I can think of. Btw I just want to let you guys know I really appreciate what you do for the kingdom of God. You guys are definitely a great help, inspiration and blessing for many.
I’ve been playing as a lead guitarist & assistant for about 7 years now and our church is about 1100 attenders. It seems you guys are judging people off everything but their walk with God first and foremost. Anyone can learn an instrument but not all are anointed and called by God to play worship. Once this is communicated then it’s time to see where they are musically. If a person is qualified, a time should be given to prayer to see if this is God’s will. Intimate worship where God is bringing healing to people is brought by anointing not skill...but a person should be skilled.
@@ThatIrishSongwriterYes, but it should not be the only prerequisite. If someone can play well but their heart is in the wrong place or they do not have a relationship with God, they should not be on a worship team. Their relationship with God is pivotal in how well they will do in leading worship so it HAS to be considered. I lead worship for my college ministry and the first half of questions gather basic information (contact info & instruments they play) while the second half are short answer spiritual questions. This lets me see how they view their relationship with God and what their motivations are for joining our team before I bring them in to see their talents.
@@elizabethrios5622 Absolutely, in no way did I mean to imply that their skill level (either vocally or on an instrument) should be the only prerequisite. The second sentence in the comment I replied to basically accuses WorshipTutorials of that, I was just responding. I think there's too much finger pointing around worship anyway. Accusing the believer is Satan's job, and while wisdom and decrement are essential, we shouldn't be doing his job for him. Musical proficiency is not vital for worshiping, but you also don't need to be on a stage to worship, and a lack of ability or application can be an unnecessary distraction.
We just get the musician to come to come to our normal band practice. If they play bass, they jam some bass with the other bassist keys, vocals etc. drums is the only one where they’d have to switch out. If we like them, they join the band if not, they don’t come back 😊
For a smaller church, how do you guys feel about a jam session style of audition? When people who want to try out just show up together, the worship leader puts out the jam set ahead of time so people can prepare and you just rotate people in and out throughout the evening?
OR...there is the invite as in hey why dont you bring your guitar down and sit in with us? but I was already singing in the chorus and playing in a small group band I started
I didn't really have to audition because I had gotten to know some of the guys in the team and they knew I could play so I just got right in and I am a member of the church for a couple years now. When I asked to join the worship team they just asked me to bring my guitar and I played some songs.
Do you have a form that you would use to evaluate a singer with? Tone quality, range, can sing harmony, and stage presence are a few that I can think of. Plus what kind of commitment do they have to sign up for to be included? Thank you guys so much for this page. There are so many churches where you have no paid staff or leaders that can learn from your videos. May God continue to bless your ministry.
So here’s the thing. I just got hired at a smaller church (about 120-150) and I’m the youth pastor. At my most recent church, I helped lead worship with the youth via acoustic or electric. However at the new church I’m at, a lot of the kids are talented and want to start a praise band. What would really be my first step in this process?
larriveeman I believe people should first of all be true Christians, not just Christians who say they are following Jesus, but aren't. Second if you think they are good enough, and are willing to practice and stuff and their heart is behind their Ministry they would be suitable to play in your church, I think!
Drop tuned guitars arnt bad if you know what you’re doing with them. When I use my drop A guitar on Sundays I usually will stay off that low A for 90% of the service & only use it for a big bridge or big chorus!
Sounds like auditions are all about natural talent. Not that isn’t important. HoweverMore important is their relationship with God. What is their prayer life like, how much time doThey spend in the word, how much time do they spend in private worship. The Holy Spirit needsThem to cooperate with him so that he can manifest himself. There have been men and woman of GodWho were limited in their musical abilities but had wonderful, mature relationships with God and theHoly Spirit would show up mightily.
Is it bad that I often use church service as the audition? Come "fill in" some Saturday night or something when our regular is gone. Then I'll let you know if we need you again.
Great video ! I should’ve done this awhile back, would’ve saved those tense/awkward moments with some not so good musicians on the team. Also what is your take on a persons walk with God? How do we evaluate that?
Hey Brian, couple of non video related questions: 1) Do you run Ableton love for click tracks? And if so, 2) could you do a tutorial video of how to navigate and build tracks with it? Thanks, love your channel content! Blessings
I'm a worship leader and I have not had auditions yet because I am using everyone interested in helping, regardless of talent level. We are still a tiny band. Do you think the audition would spark more people interested? One on one I am always asking people if they are interested in playing or singing.
Tim Johnson you are so right. Along with the gift of music they must have a good spiritual life and discipline above all. No matter the talent we are not there to show off. We are there to lead worship for the congregation to help them become closer to God.
Here's a reason where you don't need to audition someone: if you've worked with this person for a significant period of time and you've mentored them personally, spiritually and musically. You know they've got the heart, talent and musical ability.. It's just a matter of giving them the opportunity.
Is there any thought given to paid versus volunteer musicians? Do you guys pay your musicians? Does it change the dynamics of “mandatory” practices/meetings? Or would all of your concepts for auditions/fellowship/practice be the same for paid and unpaid musicians? The church I play at is all volunteer except for the worship leader, who is also the band leader. All praise team members are longtime church members. There is no formal audition process, but there is usually a lengthy integration process which allows the person to become accustomed to the different dynamics/expectations in the band and get comfortable playing in the group....or decide praise team isn’t for them. This also allows the worship leader to gauge the person’s abilities/commitment level, and when both parties are universally comfortable, put them in the rotation. Just curious how applying mandatory expectations would work in all volunteer setting. Sometimes we have all musicians at a practice, sometimes we don’t. Sometimes we have to scrap our mid-week practice if the worship leader is unexpectedly indisposed due to their day job. It’s pretty fluid and no one is really held accountable for no-shows, not confirming in Planning Center, etc. I guess the fear is hurting feelings and causing a rift that could result in further negative repercussions. Any opinions/thoughts are welcomed.
How would you guys handle this situation: We are a small church that is growing and we are hoping to take our standard of excellence to the next level. We have had a mix of different levels of musical ability serve in the past and it has lead to the level of excellence going up and down depending on who is playing on a given Sunday. This video on auditioning is great but how would you guys handle restructuring the current team to produce the new standard of excellence?
What if your church is very small. Like less then 40 people. The majority of the congregation is older like past 50. What if this church is in a rural area. I feel like I’m starting from ground zero. I don’t have a lot to pick from. I found a couple players then can play guitar on a basic level. A couple who thought they were ready but they were not. They are older. It’s a little late to tell them no. All of them haven’t played on a team. So their timing needs work. I’m making investments in people but I am nervous if it will work. Advice?
As a pastor and worship leader in a small church (75 - 80) and leading a team that plays most every week (except for vocalists). I have had to take people that would not make a larger church team and work with them and help them to get better. I love your videos, but New Hope is not quite reality to the rest of the church world. Thanks.
You mentioned that maybe an auditioning vocalist wouldn’t sound good in a key you gave them for a certain song, but maybe they would sound great in another song. Would you not let the vocalist choose the key of the song they were singing?
What do you do with that person that plays well, but have never been on stage with a band? Do you integrate them in somehow or just send them packing? I was at a church that expected everyone to be session players when God doesn't call for that. Would be great to hear of churches that encourage and mentor.
playing by yourself in your room is not the same skillset as being in a band. and good luck with the mentoring nobody is interested in being told how to do anything the worst " music" people i ever played with were the youth group who i thought i could mentor because thats how i learned. i was told we will do it our way so yeah there you go
What if your brother is the worship leader and you've already filled in with the church multiple times when the church you normally play with didn't need you that week and then decided to go to his church regularly and play in the band...don't believe an audition would be needed...thoughts anyone???
And helped start the church but didn't continue because of prior obligations and continued faithfully as the only guitarist (electric) for two years and when you want go back to play with the church you helped get off the ground they(bro) tell you that you need to audition and need months of training just to be put on a probationary period🤣🤣🤣 (my own brother) I've played for 12 years...YES this is a rant!
I started a Youth Band at my church and the problem I am having is no one is auditioning and both of the people that play drums don't take it seriously and a pianist does not practice enough. We have a small church less than 400 so we can't really just remove anyone because there is no one to replace them. 75% of our practices is me and someone else teaching the other musicians how to play the. Music and because of this we always have to push back when we actually lead worship. I don't know what to do because i really feel like this Youth Band could have alot of potential but only half of the band takes it seriously. Any suggestions? Thanks! Ps we don't have a click system and our wired mics cut out alot of times or makes a loud pop.
Thank you this is very informative and I really appreciate you taking the time out to write this. rant or not you are absolutely right in the end this is not just to get together to play a few songs its to bring glory to God!
@ Joshua Ponder - this situation sounds like a real headache. It's a pretty common one though! I'm in a small church too. If I were in that situation and you enjoy playing music - maybe just trim it down to you and someone else leading music worship - forget about the other hooligans that you are pulling along. When they get serious - let them approach you - quit chasing after them. Why beat yourself up? Do it yourself or with someone else who is fairly competent or at least someone you don't have to teach (too much) and do it that way. Bands can be great and fun - but often there's alot of stress that happens behind the scenes. And why should you carry the burden of this? The others apparently don't give a rat's patootie about practicing - so why include them?
@@rebekahmontesdeoca565 instead of using floor wedge monitors on the stage, each musician has their own set of headphones that fit inside the ear (like phone earbuds). It reduces stage noise from monitors and allows each musician to clearly hear themselves. Depending on the system used, you can have a custom sound mix for each person, hearing only what they need to hear individually. Once you get used to them, they can make a world of difference to how everything sounds and makes it easier for everyone to blend.
This is fairy controversial but worship is for God not people so even if they aren’t good in your eyes they may be good in Gods eyes, God says worship is for him and it’s not for us to judge…that being said, you don’t want someone up there that can’t sing or play an instrument so it’s kind of a difficult situation
Seems like you kind of answered your own question. I would say this: If someone says they want to play or sing, but they are incompetent, what does that say about their view of worship and their view of God? The issue is not about what God will accept but rather about what God is worth. "Worship" is a contraction of "worth-ship." It is a declaration of the worthiness of God. If you say you want to play to lead others in worship, but then you haven't put in the time or effort to play well, then you haven't considered the worth of God. God is worth your best. If your best is out of tune and out of time, then you either need to practice more, or God has not gifted you to do that and you should serve the church some other way.
??? Really do you think this is Godly.? Surely the person should be someone who is a person of your congregation someone who is Godly. this is not good. music Godly music should not have the same principles of the world but that of God
Charmane Hulley Just my opinion... 2 Chronicles 7:14 says that all the musicians were trained and skilled in music for the Lord. Psalm 33:3 says play skillfully and shout for joy. Do you have to have the heart? 100% yes!!! But if one's musicianship lacks, no matter the instrument, then that person will not effectively communicate that heart. Pastors are expected to have a certain level of education and knowledge as well as a heart for people. Even Music Ministers and Worship Leaders have to have a certain level of knowledge and experience. The point is...is that one must have the heart AND the skill, not just heart...or just skill. Bad or even subpar playing and/or singing distracts people from worshipping God. Vocalists don't have to be the second coming of Whitney Houston...guitarists don't have to be the second coming of Eddie Van Halen, etc. But they do have to have enough talent to not be a distraction when playing and/or singing. That is why auditions are necessary. Also, when you have a member who does not prepare on a weekly basis, it does come across as a slap in the face to those who do prepare diligently for the service(s). I have firsthand experience with someone like that. Not trying to start an argument or anything...just sharing another perspective.
Them: Send in a video of you singing and playing Me: Emails Videos Them: NO reply that they received the videos Them: NO reply "thanks, we got your videos and will be praying" Them: NO hey we will be in touch... Them: ONE MONTH LATER, absolutely no contact from them Me: DO I EVEN WANT TO BE A PART OF A TEAM THAT TREATS PEOPLE THIS WAY? ANY THOUGHTS ANYONE??
if im honest,i really not a fan of the video audition for this reason. It often ends up privileging those who can afford to hire or have a studio plus those who have the recording equipement/camreas etc. I think the reason that half the people dont ever send the video to you guys is not that theyre not interested in being part of the worship team but rather that they dont have the reasources as well as time to give you what you are asking for. If you look at some of the auditions that are on RUclips for various churches, you will see that the quality is slightly insane. I think that as a church, we should always be looking for ways to make sure that every aspect of church from attendance to service is as accesible as possible. another example would be churches that use strobes, its incredibly in sensitive to those who have epiliepsy. Church should be accessible. at my church we did the american audition vibe but these days we just get the person to come to our tuesday evening practice, usually they will play with someone who is playing the same instrument. if theyre good enough, they get to play in the following rotation. we also set the bar really low so that church becomes a placd for fostering and growing talent instead of a professinal space. God bless
Are you putting on a concert? Or ministering to a group of souls? You all are great musicly, but it seems like you are missing the point a bit. American idol? Really? I think I prefer a small congregation to a "show" ministry.
Great video Brians! We don’t do any audition style to add people to the team. We tend to do a “shadowing period” and have the person come to practice for several months. This does several things:
1.Shows their commitment level
2.Shows you their musical skills in a musical setting with less pressure.
3.Helps them assimilate with the worship team and build a relationship.with other members. This will show you their true personality after a month or so, and how they will get along with other team members.
4.Allows them to learn the equipment used slowly (in-ears, personal monitors, and tracks are used at our church).
I like this! I bombed my audition because of the stress that I put on myself being thrown onto the stage with the band, people I have never met. I'm a gigging musician so I'm comfortable on stage but the audition was WAY different for me. I literally had a brain freeze. Very disappointing because I wanted it so bad.
what if after you've introduced them to the team, and done all that they are not a good fit?
@@Harmoniesdotcom Usually after 3 months of practices, getting to know the team, and learning the equipment, things usually work themselves out. They either fit in well, or they stop showing up for practice. If they still have the dedication, then the worship leader or a team member they connect with will have the hard talk with them and let them know they aren’t ready yet. If their heart is really in it, they’ll usually stick around to improve and get to play on stage Sunday.
I think it's important to know first of all the person's commitment and dedication to the Lord and also to find out how dedicated they are to practicing and improving on their talent. How passionate are they about what their doing? If you love playing the guitar, for example, you will always find ways to improve. I think it's important to find out how passionate they are before the audition. Ask questions and do some fact finding before the audition.
Clayton Coffman I am surprised your statement didn't receive more positive responses. Spiritual condition is the first criteria for me to consider. Many worship teams are so focussed on the performance they forget about what spirit is being exuded from the musician. Or they don't care.
Denelda Giovinazzo You are absolutely right man, I think that's very Important and is to be the No1 Priority. Nice work!!
@@deneldagiovinazzo7989 The Great Commision. Make disciples of all. Even Zacchaeus, even the widow, and the prostitute, and you and me.
I have seen these two reasons why churches have NOT done auditions: 1) the leader is scared to have to say NO to someone who is auditioning. 2) the worship team has so few people that the leader goes in desperation mode and just needs people with any skill level willing to play.
I must say I am completely in favor of auditions and neither of these reasons are good they are just excuses. Thanks for all you do Brian, Fuller, Bradford and the whole Worship Tutorials crew for empowering worship leaders. Great job as always.
Rob Sawyer that is sorta how my church works
My church doesn't do auditions. It's basically a if you can play an instrument, you can play on the team. We don't even do a click track. I go to a smaller church.
Hawaiian Coasters 325 That's the way it is at my church. It's usually a disaster because they do most things opposite of what these guys suggest. It can work with basic planning and leadership though…
Same I’ve become frustrated with the worship team at my church
Like
While I can certainly understand the situation small churches may find themselves in I would caution just letting anyone who says they can play an instrument on the stage. My question would be if the preacher had to be out of town one week and someone from the congregation said they had a bible and knew how to speak would you let them take the reigns of the pulpit?
I’d take the guy sitting next to me over Joel Osteen.
I attend a small church and play acoustic guitar. There are several other people who are much better than me but WILL NOT play in the church. I am the ONLY one who will play. Our musically inclined resources are very limited and we must use everyone (within reason) who are willing to participate. Not perfect, but that is the environment of a small rural church. BTW, we have our second bass player who is excellent and on our second drummer who meets our need. The first was very good. With prayer, God provides for our worship needs and we do our best to bring glory to our Lord through worship. I enjoy your videos, but this is the first one that I have some disagreement with. Visit a small church - visit ours - and see how we struggle, how we succeed, how we worship.
Roy Sullivan I agree fully. We go to a small rural church. Basically, anyone who can both sing and or play an instrument, and who is also willing to set up the computer in the sound booth can be on the team. There are many people who would love to be on the team, but who are computer illiterate and so they aren't on. We have to use what we have, and this is the way we do it.
Thank you Jenny.
"greater is he who can't but does, than he who can but won't"
We have a very similar issue where we average less than 60 and most people are already serving somewhere else. This means that before I can even get on stage I have to train people to replace me in sound, lighting, streaming, and slides. I started with one volunteer and now have 4. So eventually we may have something other than a piano on stage.
To be clear I am also trying to find people willing to play on stage instead of replacing me. I dont care who does it I just think it would help draw people into worship and a right attitude for the message to minister to them.
Thank you for making this video :) I remember about 4 years ago, I auditioned for our assistant worship pastor. I felt like I didn't do very well, but I got the position as a back up lead guitarist. Jumping to now, I've been put as main lead guitar player and I'm scheduled at least twice a month. What I'm getting at is, I know I wasn't good then, but my pastor gave me a chance and because of that I now am more confident than ever and love playing for the Lord. I'm grateful for the chance I was given through the audition I went to. And our audition style is having you come in to play with everyone else during practice for that Sunday. Anyway...long comment...just wanted to say thank you to you guys for creating Worship Tutorials. I started off guitar from learning from you guys. Thanks so much!
I Pray That I Passed Tommorow My Revamp Audition For The Lord, Thank u for the tips Godbless!! ♥️
Got to say, I appreciate your emphasis on community.
Anyone who plays an instrument/can sing should be able to honor god with their gifts. Worship is not a competition.
I agree with this to a point. The problem is that leading a church is about more than any one person. If that person leads the congregation well and makes the moment feel natural and authentic, then they belong on stage. If they're a distraction to both the band and the congregation, then they are detracting from the worship experience. There needs to be at least some standard of excellence. It doesn't mean you abandon the people who don't live up to that threshold. You can shepherd them and help them grow until they're ready for the stage. But to rate it as merely a competition is to miss the whole point of what you are doing on that stage.
Not everyone who plays is gifted to do so. It has nothing to do with competition.
@@76JStucki thats bs. The concept of a "worship leader" who is granted the power to decide who gets to play for Gods glory and who doesn't is not biblical at all and personally i find it to be utterly wrong. The bible says "let everything that has breath praise the lord". Churches have become wayyyy to hierarchical and focused on human glory and power these days. Just assemble as a congregation, let everyone play what they want and worship the lord. It's about your heart, not your musical skill.
My guitar instructor, how also plays in his church, said many churches he knows will just bring someone in and let them play but don't "plug them in" until the worship leader is comfortable.
Very timely....thanks for sharing. We are having auditions at my church this Saturday
Really hoping the follow-up videos are how you're helping the musicianship of the people who didn't make the cut. A big influence in my abilities to play guitar came from jamming with other members of the worship team.
We don't do formal auditions, we actually sing/play a few times with the group in church and if they like you, you are put into the schedule.
Auditions are important. There’s a place for everyone to serve, but not everyone is called to be on a worship team. You must have some type of skill along with a willing heart.
what we do is if you walk is consistent, which implies we've known you a while, you can sing in key, have a decent voice or can play major/minor chords hold time ect
I can’t think of a reason NOT to have an audition of some sort. When I started at my current church, they would have someone sit in for a service or be recommended by someone on the team and it led to some awkward predicaments. You laid out some great options and what we do as a smaller church(150 adults at services), is have people just come to a few practices and tell them when they are comfortable, they can sit in for a song or two at the end of practice. This gets them in front of me(WD) and one of our two worship leaders. I’d really like to start recording them for the other WL and close the decision loop between the 3 of us. As someone else commented, we don’t have a ton of musicians(know any key players?) so we have to do the best with what we have.
Above all, you must know that you are doing it for God and not for yourself. To serve God also means that everything you do will do for Him. This is not a casting job because if one plays well but does not make it for God what is the point. test the people you place in such ministries. God is seeking humble people to serve Him
I apologize if I have offended anyone in any way. God bless you♥️🙂!
Hey Fuller and Brian this is really informative.
Maybe the person auditioning via RUclips link doesn’t know how to record themselves or edit video or send video. I actually wanted to audition for a different church that I was new to but didn’t know how to make edit and send a video back. I’ve actually played my whole life and lead worship at another church but had no clue as to what steps to take to make edit and send them a video. Only reason I can think of. Btw I just want to let you guys know I really appreciate what you do for the kingdom of God. You guys are definitely a great help, inspiration and blessing for many.
You should do a video on if musicians should be paid
I’ve been playing as a lead guitarist & assistant for about 7 years now and our church is about 1100 attenders. It seems you guys are judging people off everything but their walk with God first and foremost. Anyone can learn an instrument but not all are anointed and called by God to play worship. Once this is communicated then it’s time to see where they are musically. If a person is qualified, a time should be given to prayer to see if this is God’s will. Intimate worship where God is bringing healing to people is brought by anointing not skill...but a person should be skilled.
Great advise!!! And wise!!
Well, if a person should be skilled, is it wrong for them to use that as a prerequisite?
Christafari's leader said once that it's mucg easier to teach someone to play an instrument than it is to teach them to have a serious faith in Jesus.
@@ThatIrishSongwriterYes, but it should not be the only prerequisite. If someone can play well but their heart is in the wrong place or they do not have a relationship with God, they should not be on a worship team. Their relationship with God is pivotal in how well they will do in leading worship so it HAS to be considered. I lead worship for my college ministry and the first half of questions gather basic information (contact info & instruments they play) while the second half are short answer spiritual questions. This lets me see how they view their relationship with God and what their motivations are for joining our team before I bring them in to see their talents.
@@elizabethrios5622 Absolutely, in no way did I mean to imply that their skill level (either vocally or on an instrument) should be the only prerequisite. The second sentence in the comment I replied to basically accuses WorshipTutorials of that, I was just responding. I think there's too much finger pointing around worship anyway. Accusing the believer is Satan's job, and while wisdom and decrement are essential, we shouldn't be doing his job for him. Musical proficiency is not vital for worshiping, but you also don't need to be on a stage to worship, and a lack of ability or application can be an unnecessary distraction.
We just get the musician to come to come to our normal band practice. If they play bass, they jam some bass with the other bassist keys, vocals etc.
drums is the only one where they’d have to switch out. If we like them, they join the band if not, they don’t come back 😊
For a smaller church, how do you guys feel about a jam session style of audition? When people who want to try out just show up together, the worship leader puts out the jam set ahead of time so people can prepare and you just rotate people in and out throughout the evening?
OR...there is the invite as in hey why dont you bring your guitar down and sit in with us? but I was already singing in the chorus and playing in a small group band I started
Hello Brothers and Sisters, Let's worship to God 💙🙏
"Try to turn that down in the mix" Now that's funny! and....too true ;/
I didn't really have to audition because I had gotten to know some of the guys in the team and they knew I could play so I just got right in and I am a member of the church for a couple years now. When I asked to join the worship team they just asked me to bring my guitar and I played some songs.
I always wanted to sing a solo at hurch
What tuning was your Guitar in?
Do you have a form that you would use to evaluate a singer with? Tone quality, range, can sing harmony, and stage presence are a few that I can think of. Plus what kind of commitment do they have to sign up for to be included? Thank you guys so much for this page. There are so many churches where you have no paid staff or leaders that can learn from your videos. May God continue to bless your ministry.
real cool video
SLAYER!!! - they do sing a lot of "blood songs" :p
What is your intro music? Its sounds amazing
Once I did an audition but failed. I felt glad of it. It is better to try instead not to 😁
I tried an Audition didn’t make it so just got lessons on the piano to be able to try again
So here’s the thing. I just got hired at a smaller church (about 120-150) and I’m the youth pastor. At my most recent church, I helped lead worship with the youth via acoustic or electric. However at the new church I’m at, a lot of the kids are talented and want to start a praise band. What would really be my first step in this process?
When you have a singer tryout via a video submission, do you provide them a backing track or do you have them sing a cappella?
Good stuff on this one! Thanks
whats your standard, clapton good? or what?
larriveeman I believe people should first of all be true Christians, not just Christians who say they are following Jesus, but aren't. Second if you think they are good enough, and are willing to practice and stuff and their heart is behind their Ministry they would be suitable to play in your church, I think!
Can you guys possibly do a tutorial on "come to the river" by rhett walker band please. Love what you guys do! God bless.
What do you guys use as minimal standards to let someone go through the audition? Music theory, etc
Drop tuned guitars arnt bad if you know what you’re doing with them. When I use my drop A guitar on Sundays I usually will stay off that low A for 90% of the service & only use it for a big bridge or big chorus!
Sounds like auditions are all about natural talent. Not that isn’t important. HoweverMore important is their relationship with God. What is their prayer life like, how much time doThey spend in the word, how much time do they spend in private worship. The Holy Spirit needsThem to cooperate with him so that he can manifest himself. There have been men and woman of GodWho were limited in their musical abilities but had wonderful, mature relationships with God and theHoly Spirit would show up mightily.
Good topic.
Is it bad that I often use church service as the audition? Come "fill in" some Saturday night or something when our regular is gone. Then I'll let you know if we need you again.
🤣
How do you know if singing is your calling
Great video ! I should’ve done this awhile back, would’ve saved those tense/awkward moments with some not so good musicians on the team. Also what is your take on a persons walk with God? How do we evaluate that?
Hey Brian, couple of non video related questions: 1) Do you run Ableton love for click tracks? And if so, 2) could you do a tutorial video of how to navigate and build tracks with it?
Thanks, love your channel content!
Blessings
I'm a worship leader and I have not had auditions yet because I am using everyone interested in helping, regardless of talent level. We are still a tiny band. Do you think the audition would spark more people interested? One on one I am always asking people if they are interested in playing or singing.
How do you address their spiritual walk? Theology and if they are in the "right place" with their walk.
Tim Johnson you are so right. Along with the gift of music they must have a good spiritual life and discipline above all. No matter the talent we are not there to show off. We are there to lead worship for the congregation to help them become closer to God.
Here's a reason where you don't need to audition someone: if you've worked with this person for a significant period of time and you've mentored them personally, spiritually and musically. You know they've got the heart, talent and musical ability.. It's just a matter of giving them the opportunity.
Is there any thought given to paid versus volunteer musicians? Do you guys pay your musicians? Does it change the dynamics of “mandatory” practices/meetings? Or would all of your concepts for auditions/fellowship/practice be the same for paid and unpaid musicians?
The church I play at is all volunteer except for the worship leader, who is also the band leader. All praise team members are longtime church members. There is no formal audition process, but there is usually a lengthy integration process which allows the person to become accustomed to the different dynamics/expectations in the band and get comfortable playing in the group....or decide praise team isn’t for them. This also allows the worship leader to gauge the person’s abilities/commitment level, and when both parties are universally comfortable, put them in the rotation.
Just curious how applying mandatory expectations would work in all volunteer setting. Sometimes we have all musicians at a practice, sometimes we don’t. Sometimes we have to scrap our mid-week practice if the worship leader is unexpectedly indisposed due to their day job. It’s pretty fluid and no one is really held accountable for no-shows, not confirming in Planning Center, etc. I guess the fear is hurting feelings and causing a rift that could result in further negative repercussions.
Any opinions/thoughts are welcomed.
How do you evalutate musicians? What is the criteria for them passing or failing?
To be honest, just staying in rhythm and playing the right notes is enough. But adding embellishments is something that should be looked for too
Very important as we take someone on the team and then later regret and then find it hard to remove then 😰😰😰
My church is a smaller church but we don’t have auditions. Do you have some tips for this situation?
Next month am going for audditions wat to do say help me kindly
How would you guys handle this situation:
We are a small church that is growing and we are hoping to take our standard of excellence to the next level. We have had a mix of different levels of musical ability serve in the past and it has lead to the level of excellence going up and down depending on who is playing on a given Sunday. This video on auditioning is great but how would you guys handle restructuring the current team to produce the new standard of excellence?
What if you have nobody in a position and need someone asap
What if your church is very small. Like less then 40 people. The majority of the congregation is older like past 50. What if this church is in a rural area. I feel like I’m starting from ground zero. I don’t have a lot to pick from. I found a couple players then can play guitar on a basic level. A couple who thought they were ready but they were not. They are older. It’s a little late to tell them no. All of them haven’t played on a team. So their timing needs work. I’m making investments in people but I am nervous if it will work. Advice?
As a pastor and worship leader in a small church (75 - 80) and leading a team that plays most every week (except for vocalists). I have had to take people that would not make a larger church team and work with them and help them to get better. I love your videos, but New Hope is not quite reality to the rest of the church world. Thanks.
I don't know how to read music I get nervous
You mentioned that maybe an auditioning vocalist wouldn’t sound good in a key you gave them for a certain song, but maybe they would sound great in another song. Would you not let the vocalist choose the key of the song they were singing?
you choose the key thats best for the congregation...hopefully
What do you do with that person that plays well, but have never been on stage with a band? Do you integrate them in somehow or just send them packing? I was at a church that expected everyone to be session players when God doesn't call for that. Would be great to hear of churches that encourage and mentor.
playing by yourself in your room is not the same skillset as being in a band. and good luck with the mentoring nobody is interested in being told how to do anything the worst " music" people i ever played with were the youth group who i thought i could mentor because thats how i learned. i was told we will do it our way so yeah there you go
What if your brother is the worship leader and you've already filled in with the church multiple times when the church you normally play with didn't need you that week and then decided to go to his church regularly and play in the band...don't believe an audition would be needed...thoughts anyone???
And helped start the church but didn't continue because of prior obligations and continued faithfully as the only guitarist (electric) for two years and when you want go back to play with the church you helped get off the ground they(bro) tell you that you need to audition and need months of training just to be put on a probationary period🤣🤣🤣 (my own brother) I've played for 12 years...YES this is a rant!
👌👌
Our church doesnt even have auditions lol
I started a Youth Band at my church and the problem I am having is no one is auditioning and both of the people that play drums don't take it seriously and a pianist does not practice enough. We have a small church less than 400 so we can't really just remove anyone because there is no one to replace them. 75% of our practices is me and someone else teaching the other musicians how to play the. Music and because of this we always have to push back when we actually lead worship. I don't know what to do because i really feel like this Youth Band could have alot of potential but only half of the band takes it seriously. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Ps we don't have a click system and our wired mics cut out alot of times or makes a loud pop.
Thank you this is very informative and I really appreciate you taking the time out to write this. rant or not you are absolutely right in the end this is not just to get together to play a few songs its to bring glory to God!
@ Joshua Ponder - this situation sounds like a real headache. It's a pretty common one though! I'm in a small church too. If I were in that situation and you enjoy playing music - maybe just trim it down to you and someone else leading music worship - forget about the other hooligans that you are pulling along. When they get serious - let them approach you - quit chasing after them. Why beat yourself up? Do it yourself or with someone else who is fairly competent or at least someone you don't have to teach (too much) and do it that way. Bands can be great and fun - but often there's alot of stress that happens behind the scenes. And why should you carry the burden of this? The others apparently don't give a rat's patootie about practicing - so why include them?
Joshua Ponder I’m in the same boat. I have musically talented kids, but trying to get them to practice is a major headache
@@addisonrose2333 " if people are tithing" --- then there's that, right?
I've read "click tracks" in at least two comments, what is a click track?
its a click like a metronome in your in ear monitor that keeps everyone in time
@@richardlewis1243 what is an ear monitor? 😂🤣
@@rebekahmontesdeoca565 instead of using floor wedge monitors on the stage, each musician has their own set of headphones that fit inside the ear (like phone earbuds). It reduces stage noise from monitors and allows each musician to clearly hear themselves. Depending on the system used, you can have a custom sound mix for each person, hearing only what they need to hear individually. Once you get used to them, they can make a world of difference to how everything sounds and makes it easier for everyone to blend.
@@andreanicole2006 thanks
This is fairy controversial but worship is for God not people so even if they aren’t good in your eyes they may be good in Gods eyes, God says worship is for him and it’s not for us to judge…that being said, you don’t want someone up there that can’t sing or play an instrument so it’s kind of a difficult situation
Seems like you kind of answered your own question. I would say this: If someone says they want to play or sing, but they are incompetent, what does that say about their view of worship and their view of God? The issue is not about what God will accept but rather about what God is worth. "Worship" is a contraction of "worth-ship." It is a declaration of the worthiness of God. If you say you want to play to lead others in worship, but then you haven't put in the time or effort to play well, then you haven't considered the worth of God. God is worth your best. If your best is out of tune and out of time, then you either need to practice more, or God has not gifted you to do that and you should serve the church some other way.
7-string? You know he would fit, 'cuz he's a newb. 8-string ftw.
My worship pastor plays a 7-string guitar in my ex home church. The sound of it is still fit w/ the church. 8-string? Naaaahhh!
12:52 ... I LOVE IT! THAT'S IT! ~ jk
Sad; no mention of the leading of the Holy Spirit, prayer, the spiritual qualifications of the candidate. Just musical ability. So sad.
We talk about that in a lot of videos. This one specifically was about how to set up and hold auditions.
It was kind of sad to hear that there focus was on musicality rather then spiritual
??? Really do you think this is Godly.? Surely the person should be someone who is a person of your congregation someone who is Godly. this is not good. music Godly music should not have the same principles of the world but that of God
Charmane Hulley Just my opinion...
2 Chronicles 7:14 says that all the musicians were trained and skilled in music for the Lord. Psalm 33:3 says play skillfully and shout for joy. Do you have to have the heart? 100% yes!!! But if one's musicianship lacks, no matter the instrument, then that person will not effectively communicate that heart. Pastors are expected to have a certain level of education and knowledge as well as a heart for people. Even Music Ministers and Worship Leaders have to have a certain level of knowledge and experience. The point is...is that one must have the heart AND the skill, not just heart...or just skill. Bad or even subpar playing and/or singing distracts people from worshipping God. Vocalists don't have to be the second coming of Whitney Houston...guitarists don't have to be the second coming of Eddie Van Halen, etc. But they do have to have enough talent to not be a distraction when playing and/or singing. That is why auditions are necessary. Also, when you have a member who does not prepare on a weekly basis, it does come across as a slap in the face to those who do prepare diligently for the service(s). I have firsthand experience with someone like that. Not trying to start an argument or anything...just sharing another perspective.
@@rodwyr you're too right. Both are important!
Them: Send in a video of you singing and playing
Me: Emails Videos
Them: NO reply that they received the videos
Them: NO reply "thanks, we got your videos and will be praying"
Them: NO hey we will be in touch...
Them: ONE MONTH LATER, absolutely no contact from them
Me: DO I EVEN WANT TO BE A PART OF A TEAM THAT TREATS PEOPLE THIS WAY?
ANY THOUGHTS ANYONE??
First World Problem
if im honest,i really not a fan of the video audition for this reason. It often ends up privileging those who can afford to hire or have a studio plus those who have the recording equipement/camreas etc. I think the reason that half the people dont ever send the video to you guys is not that theyre not interested in being part of the worship team but rather that they dont have the reasources as well as time to give you what you are asking for. If you look at some of the auditions that are on RUclips for various churches, you will see that the quality is slightly insane.
I think that as a church, we should always be looking for ways to make sure that every aspect of church from attendance to service is as accesible as possible. another example would be churches that use strobes, its incredibly in sensitive to those who have epiliepsy. Church should be accessible.
at my church we did the american audition vibe but these days we just get the person to come to our tuesday evening practice, usually they will play with someone who is playing the same instrument. if theyre good enough, they get to play in the following rotation. we also set the bar really low so that church becomes a placd for fostering and growing talent instead of a professinal space.
God bless
That kind of music is nauseating.
A person can be to good at auditions, and the team leader gets jelous
Are you putting on a concert? Or ministering to a group of souls? You all are great musicly, but it seems like you are missing the point a bit. American idol? Really?
I think I prefer a small congregation to a "show" ministry.