Put a Stop to Your Audio Problems.
Photo provided by fcl1971

It buzzes.  It distorts.  It howls.  Welcome to the down-side of audio production.  For all the wonderful ways you can manipulate sound, there are quite a few ways sound can be a royal pain.  The good news is it doesn’t have to ruin your day.  Audio problems can be prevented through proactive means, resolved through immediate changes, or resolved through a bit of detective work.  Today, you’ll find out about all three.

Audio problems occur for any number of reasons.  Just a few of these include:

• Poor microphone usage
• Poor monitor usage
• Poor microphone / monitor placement
• Equipment goes bad
• Equipment not properly configured
• Cables go bad
• Poor cabling setup
• Little imps that fill your channels with line noise (I haven’t seen one but I’m sure they exist!)

Reaching back into the archives, I’ve pulled out five helpful articles which will give you the knowledge for preventing the situations which cause many typical problems as well as how to deal with some of the tougher problems.

Defeat Those Audio Imps

Audio Distortion: Finding the Source and Clearing the Air

Track Down The Buzz In Your Sound System

Wireless Microphone Interference – Squelch It

How to Resolve a Simple Line Check Problem

Feedback Prevention: A Closer Look at Microphones and Monitors

The post Stopping Buzzes, Howls, and Other Audio Problems appeared first on Behind The Mixer.

Don’t be a copyright pirate.
Photo provided by biwook

I’ll admit that a long time ago…errrrr, I’d better not admit anything!  And thus begins our foray into the realm of copyright law, copyright infringement, and everything you need to know so your church stays out of trouble.  As a church, can you play any music you want?  Is it ok to show a video clip with “Eye of the Tiger” as the music bed?  Much of the copyright infringement that occurs is because many of us have believed three myths.  I’m not sure how these false beliefs came about but I can tell you one thing, if you’re reading this, well, go and sin no more.

The Three Big Copyright Myths in the Church

Myth #1: We are a church and therefore are exempt from copyright / performance licensing.

I’ve been there.  Or maybe I haven’t.  This is the trap in which most people fall.  Just because you are a religious organization that gets a tax break, it doesn’t mean you get a copyright break.  It doesn’t mean you can use other people’s copyrighted work in any way you see fit.  Oh, there are some things you can do, but there is a lot you can’t.

Truth:

Churches do not need a performance license to play / perform copyrighted music IN A WORSHIP SERVICE.  Note the importance of those last words.  Your church might play music in their coffee shop.  They might play it as part of their telephone’s “on hold” music.  Oh, and don’t forget about Vacation Bible School!  In such cases, you need to follow copyright protocol and pay for the licensing.  It’s only in the case of the worship service that you are free to use the music either by playing it or performing it.  There is one exception but let’s keep this simple for now.

Myth #2: Our CCLI license keeps us protected regarding performance licensing.

You wish.  The generic CCLI covers printing of songs, hymns, and lyrics for congregational singing.  It covers those creative Christmas songbooks your church hands out during the Christmas service…for congregational singing. The CCLI license also covers your lyric projection…for congregational singing.  See a trend?  But wait, there’s more! The CCLI license covers your bands creative music arrangement and recording of worship services onto recordable media like CD’s and DVD’s…in a LIMITED MANNER.

Truth:

Think of the CCLI license as a protective measure which covers certain ways in which you can use the music, NOT in how you can perform or broadcast the music.  The CCLI license is only a step in following proper copyright usage.

Myth #3: We can broadcast our church service under the religious service copyright exception.

Yes, there is a copyright exemption but it’s not a get-out-of-jail-free card.  You can broadcast your service, without paying for licensing / royalties AS LONG AS YOU AREN’T BROADCASTING MUSIC THAT WOULD OTHERWISE REQUIRE LICENSING.  Let’s put it this way, if you want the band to play “Where the Streets Have No Name,” by U2, then that’s alright AS LONG AS YOU DON’T AIR IT OUTSIDE THE BUILDING.  And the same goes for most any copyrighted music.

Truth:

Even though technology has brought us to a point where we can think of church services as “always online” or “on the radio every Sunday at 8am,” you must think of a church service as an event which occurs at a location where a congregation is present.  Any other broadcast or re-broadcast requires special performance licensing. This includes podcasts, radio, internet-streaming and any other form of broadcast / rebroadcast.

Important Notes on Church Music Usage

Before jumping into copyright licensing, let’s look at a simple summation of what’s been described so far:

• Churches do not need a performance license to play / perform copyrighted music in the context of a church service.
• A “generic” CCLI license is a protective measure which covers certain ways in which you can use the music, it’s not a performance license.
• Your church likely uses music outside of the service such as on-hold music, Vacation Bible School, dances, graduations, retreats, etc.
• Broadcasts and re-broadcasts require performance licensing.

All that being said, where do you begin?  First of all, access your licensing needs.  There are a variety of licensing packages available and you want to get exactly what you need.  Do you broadcast/podcast/stream or re-broadcast your services?  Do they include the worship portions?  Does the pastor ever use music in a sermon illustration?  Think man, think!  If music get’s played outside of the church service, you better have the licensing for it.

Using the Right License

There are several types of licensing packages you can purchase, on an annual basis.  Some are more comprehensive than others.  At the end, you’ll find one that is used on a case-by-case basis.  The below packages have been created by Christian Copyright Solutions and Christian Copyright Licensing International (CCLI). Each package varies in cost. I have listed the costs for a church of under 500 members for easy reference.

This is the end of the CCLI licenses.  They cover a lot but they are limited in the amount of material they cover.  This is when you need to consider a different package…

The Take Away

Believing the top three church copyright myths can get you into a lot of trouble.  You now know the truth and what you need to do.  If you think, “awww, no one will notice if we don’t get the license,” then I remind you that you are doing Kingdom work.  It’s not the place to cut corners or pretend you don’t need to follow the rules.

*Note this article is based on United States Copyright law.

**This article not available for syndication.

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