The Feb. 2004 issue of FOH had an article that featured Trinity on the Hill United Methodist Church in Augusta, GA. The church had just hired a new Minister of Music and installed a sound system that was state-of-the-art (in 2004). That sound system functioned flawlessly for six years, but it's being retired and replaced as part of a major renovation called the Nehemiah Project.
Trinity, with a 2,500-member congregation, is in the midst of a one-year, $6 million renovation of its 50 year old sanctuary. The seating capacity will stay at 800, but the stage and choir loft will be larger. The upgrades include $2 million in the latest audio, video, lighting and television broadcast equipment.
The only parts of the sound system installed in 2004 that are going into the new sanctuary are wireless microphones, a CD player and two loudspeakers. All the rest is state-of-the-art equipment (2010).
As lead volunteer sound guy since 1982, I got a front-row seat to some of the technical challenges that Trinity on the Hill's staff and volunteer technical crew faced with this project, which required moving worship services from the original sanctuary to a temporary facility – the church gym – and quickly learning and teaching others about the capabilities of the new gear, all with the goal of more effectively conveying the church's message.
It's Only Temporary
In early 2010, we converted our gym into a temporary worship center. We built a stage, transferred speakers, amplifiers, wireless microphones and a CD player from the sanctuary, and installed $1 million of the new lighting, audio, media and television broadcast equipment. We didn't skip a beat. One week we worshipped in the sanctuary and the next in the gym. We aired recordings of previous services while the broadcast control room was gutted and rebuilt. We were on-the-air live with digital video and audio about two months later. We are ready to send high definition video when our local carriers are ready to receive it. Photos C-F show the gym and broadcast control room.
The move to the gym presented many technical challenges. Here were a few:
- Design details – including electrical power distribution and stage connections for microphones and monitor speakers – were left to the installation crews comprised of volunteers and contractors to solve in the field.
- Training on the new sound console was done on a just-in-time basis. One console and three digital stage boxes were delivered about one week prior to installation. This permitted the lead sound tech (me) to become familiar enough with it to teach a half-day class before the first service. The contractor provided assistance of a professional sound engineer during the first service.
- Training on broadcast equipment followed a similar path. Volunteer operators were trained and a service was recorded and critiqued prior to going back on the air live.
- Recruiting and training media producers and operators was done just-in-time and is now becoming an organized volunteer ministry.
Challenges Going Forward
The next big challenge will be the move back to the sanctuary that will occur before Easter Sunday. Planning meetings began in January 2011. This move will present a bigger challenge than moving to the gym. Equipment will be moved from the gym and another $1 million of equipment will be installed, de-bugged and learned.
Another challenge is ongoing stewardship of the technological marvels the congregation has placed in our charge. These fantastic devices are intended to help us communicate the church's message in new and exciting ways. They are far more capable than devices we leave behind – and far more complicated. Two examples are indicative of this challenge:
- An upgrade to the firmware in the sound consoles and digital snake system required downloads from two vendors, a laptop computer and a USB storage device. We also needed vendor instructions to make the best use of the system.
- Additional lighting instruments were needed for the Christmas musical. And a professional theatrical lighting designer was also needed.
Trinity utilizes a mixture of staff and volunteers to lead the technical ministries. They are currently grouped as follows and operate independently:
- Television – Part-time director with volunteer video operators
- Audio – Volunteer lead with volunteer FOH and control room operators
- Media – Volunteer lead with volunteer producers and operators
- Lighting – None
I believe the solution to the challenge of stewardship will be integration of the technical ministries under the leadership of one person. For our size church, this will probably be a part-time technical director. I have initiated discussions among the leadership on this topic.
It's an exciting time to a part of the vibrant congregation at Trinity on the Hill. Members and people in the community have congratulated us on the quality of the broadcast. And the Christmas musical fully utilized the new equipment to convey the message in an exciting way. Stay tuned for another update from Augusta in 2016!
