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Worship Musician for Hire?

I make some of my living by playing drums for a variety of denominational and non-denominational church worship services.  The services I play for range from "house concert" style acoustic music, to full-blown theatrical experiences that have more in common with live television or a rock concert than most people's traditional notions of a church worship service. 

In no way is this blog post trying to judge anyone or incite someone to anger.  I know that church budgets are tight, and often times we face an uphill battle trying to convince church leaders that yes, indeed we do need to pay that drummer, or guitar player, or bassist.  But I think that if we can come together to educate each other about the issues and difficulties we all face, we may be able to come to a consensus that ultimately allows for more excellence in our worship and greater professionalism (grace, courtesy, respect, and trust) all around.

I love that I get a chance to worship and participate in so many different congregations.  And I take my role as a drummer for worship very seriously and with great reverence.  I truly want to serve the congregation and help lead congregations closer to God through their worship. I have invested in my education, experience, equipment and come to each rehearsal and service prepared to serve and play to the best of my musical abilities.

However, I get disheartened at the lack of importance placed on paying for quality talent and skill.  Often times it seems that "good enough" is more important than true excellence.  I sometimes feel that churches expect me to play for free or at such a reduced rate that I wonder if I should someday ask for an offering plate to be passed for me, or if I should go about a letter campaign asking people to support my "itinerant drumming ministry."

Even as I post this, I wonder if I will feel the backlash from those who believe that church musicians should not be paid.  Still, I wanted to put together a list of resources that I've found via the internet, as a way to encourage all of us involved in church ministry.  Often times it's the things that are most difficult to discuss that must be discussed before growth can occur...so without further rambling, I've posted links and quotes related to this "elephant in the room" below:

From Creator Magazine circa 2007 "Music Ministry Equitable Payment Pick Two" by Vernon Sanders:

"...worship ministry is the only activity that involves every member of the church. One Pastor for Worship Ministries says, somewhat lightheartedly, "every dollar specifically earmarked for the worship ministry will bring back $10 in the offering plates."

While this person is speaking of program budgets, the point is well taken. Non-worship activities at churches tend to be "self-supporting" (that concert series comes to mind) or "subsidized" by the general budget (there may be a Sunday School that generates enough money through children’s offerings to pay for the Children’s Ministry Pastor, but I don’t know of one).

If the worship ministry is truly important to a particular church, paying a "living wage" to the employees of that ministry seems to be only the proper thing to do. Some (many I would guess) churches may need to "work up" to the current Guidelines, but all should acknowledge the worth of the ministry itself, and how it has changed."

There’s an old saying in the printing industry: quick, cheap, good—pick two. What have you or your church chosen?

A book from 2006 by Darrell Alexander, "Excellence in Worship: Should Church Musicians Get Paid?" gets some interesting comments like the following from "L White":

"I found this book to be very profound, and it hit on some very interesting points. After dating a musician and being aware of the preparation, time, and energy that goes into the music and choir selections as well as special programs, this is a full-time job in itself. It rates the same spiritual level as a pastor preparing his sermon to the people. It prepares people to receive a spiritual blessing if done properly. If you pay a pastor, who is said to be called into the ministry, why not pay the musician, who could also be called into the ministry, only in a different way!! I don't believe the pastor could do as an effective job without the musician."

Reader John Hunse writes to the Reformed Worship magazine (though he is referring to organists, I believe you could make the argument for other musicians as well): 

"The denomination should set a suggested remuneration schedule for musicians, just as we have for ministers. It is difficult for individual musicians at the local congregational level to present a case on their own behalf without being misunderstood and misinterpreted."

And makes the following case:

"The talent of the musicians should be viewed no differently than the talent of the building contractor, the carpenter, or the electrician. All require time and effort to develop and deploy. Yet no one would expect carpenters and electricians to "donate" materials and services week after week, year after year"

I found this salary guide from the National Association of Church Musicians that I thought could provide a look into a salary structure based on years of experience and other factors.  The chart is from 2004 and by adding a 3% increase per year (since 2004) I came up with a 2009 minimum wage (for someone with minimal to no training working for less than 11 hours a week) of around $225/ per week/service (including rehearsals).  For someone with my background (BM degree and over 5 years professional experience), the numbers work out to be a minimum wage somewhere around $325 or so, per week/service.  Download NACM Salary Guide 2004

I also found this article with the following salary guidelines posted below the story (please note these figures are at least 10 years old!):

Excerpt

Guidelines for Paying Church Musicians

ENTRY-LEVEL SALARY RECOMMENDATIONS ALL SUGGESTED SALARY RATES INCLUDE PREPARATION TIME These figures do not include fringe benefits
Educational Level	Suggested Hourly Rate	Weekly Salary Minimum Position 6 hrs/wk	Annual Salary Minimum Position 6 hrs/wk	Annual Salary Half-Time 20 hrs/wk	Annual Salary Full-Time 40 hrs/wk
Minimum B.M. or Equivalent Plus Certification	$6.87-$9.15 $9.15-$ 11.43*	$14-$55 $55-$69	$2,143-$2,855 $2,855-$3,566	$7,145-9,516 $9,516-11,887	$14,290-19,032 $19,032-23,774
M.M. or Equivalent Plus Certification	$11.43-$ 13.72*	$69-$82	$3,566-$4,281	$11,887-14,269	$23,774-28,538
Ph.D. or Equivalent Plus Certification	$13.72-$ 17.15*	$82-$103	$4,281-$5,351	$14,269-17,836	$28,538-35,672

*These figures should be adjusted regionally and reevaluated annually in accordance with the cost-of-living index.

Reprinted by permission from Guidelines for Committees Seeking to Employ Church Musicians in Presbyterian Churches recommended by The Presbyterian Association of Musicians.

Complete copies may be obtained from the national office of The Presbyterian Association of Musicians, 1000 E. Morehead Street, Charlotte, North Carolina 28204. A check for $1.50 each must accompany order.

Note:  If we are to adjust the figures for cost of living (3% per year), the minimum hourly wage gets up to around $9.00.  I think these figures are a bit low personally, but they provide a nice "counter-point" view to the salary guide put out by the NACM.

Often times I think that most music ministers aren't opposed to paying for professional musicians, it's just that the model for payment has changed (it's no longer just a pianist and organist that are paid) and it's hard to know what a fair and reasonable amount would be to offer.  And how do you adjust for the musicians experience (or lack there-of) and take into account his training and education?  Without answers to these questions, it's hard to go to the leaders and financial folks in the church and ask them to re-evaluate the budget for worship. 

May you find the links and information above helpful and may we all continue to work towards finding an equitable way to deal with church musicians in a financially responsible way.  I think if we are to ignore the subject of paying our church musicians, we risk alienating and burning out some of our most passionate and "invested" members.  

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New info:  February 28, 2009 I found this blog post over at the NorthPointe Music Blog, seems they were talking about this same subject back in December.  I like that they advocate using a percentage system, so that worship team members are paid a percentage of what the main worship leader is getting paid.  Nifty.

Radiohead with the USC Marching Band

Wow.  I wish I could've seen this in person.  You can tell this must have been the highlight of the night...I didn't watch the Grammy's this year (personally I think they are pretty irrelevant) but heard about this performance from a friend.  Awesome job all around. 

Thom Yorke looks like he's doing his best Mick Jagger impression and the drumline and horns with their stick twirls, drum rotations, and hand raising add a sense of fun to the whole occasion. 

David Campbell arranged the piece (he also arranged strings for a Sixpence record I played on), which I find interesting in so far that I imagined it would've been the USC percussion instructor or some other person with a drum line pedigree.  But then again, thinking of how the music business works, it was probably alot "safer" to go with a trusted Hollywood Arranger and composer with a little indie cred (he's Beck's father) than to go with a relative "no-name" college drum line instructor.  Here is what the USC Marching Band website had to say:

"Did you catch the hottest act at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards? Well, in case you missed it, Radiohead took the stage at the Staples Center on Sunday, February 8 with the Trojan Marching Band. That’s right, for their first-ever performance on “Music’s Biggest Night,” the edgy British rockers were backed up by 32 TMB members. Introduced by Gwyneth Paltrow, It was hailed by Entertainment Weekly as the “best Grammy performance ever” and received one of the biggest ovations of the night. Or as Thom Yorke said to the Trojans after their performance – with a wry bit of British humor – “I think that went over well.” "

And just in case you didn't know about The USC Marching Band's history with rock and roll ( they are the band on the classic Fleetwood Mac song, "Tusk"), here is a bit about them to catch you up to speed (also from their website):

"The Trojan Marching Band has earned the title "Hollywood’s Band" with its performances on both the small and silver screens. The TMB performed with OutKast at the 2004 Grammy Award's Show and on the Offspring's 2003 single "Hit That". The Trojan Marching Band’s movie credits include The Naked Gun, Two Minute Warning, The Last Boy Scout, The Little Rascals, Sgt. Bilko, and Forrest Gump. The Trojan Band has also appeared on some of the most watched shows on television, such as "Hollywood Squares," "The Best Damn Sports Show Period," "Joan River's Oscar Red Carpet," "America’s Funniest Home Videos," "The Wayne Brady Show," "MTV’s Rock and Jock," "In Living Color," "Donnie and Marie," "The Rosie O’Donnell Show," commercials for ABC and ESPN, the 2000 Academy Awards and the 2000 MDA Telethon hosted by Jerry Lewis, and EA Sports 2004 NCAA football video game. Every year the Trojan marching Band invites celebrity guests top perform in their half time shows. Recent guests include Dexter Holland from The Offspring, Mick Fleetwood, John Williams, Elmer Bernstein, KC and the Sunshine Band, George Clinton, and Pancho Sanchez. The Spirit of Troy also performs for various private and public functions throughout the year."

When I worked at Disney one summer (All American College Band - represent!),  one of the Tuba players was "Chuy" (I think his real name was Jesus Martinez - but I could just be making this up).  He was awesome...a great person and a wonderful guy to party with.  He once made us Chorizo and eggs for breakfast (or was it dinner?) and allowed me and a mutual friend to hang out with him over New Years on the night before the Rose Bowl Parade and game.  Because of him and my friend Laura (also from that same Disney band), I got to see the USC Marching Band rehearse in person, and experience a bit of their infectious mojo...being out in LA and experiencing the band in person and seeing how hard they worked at being professional (and worked at having fun) made me wish I had attended USC just to be in their college band! 

The only reason I bring up Chuy is that I swear the shot of the Tuba Player in the video is of Chuy and that somehow he finagled a way to play Tuba for this performance and then payed the show producer a few $$$ to feature a shot of him on TV...( I mean really, do you think that Tuba player is a college student?  I think he looks a bit older than that, and so that is why I'm putting my money on it being Chuy...)

And without further adieu:

Radiohead's Thom Yorke / Jonny Greenwood / USC Marching Band
by 3030fm

And here is some more info I found from the Daily Trojan (I knew that Tad Carpenter and Art Bartner had to be involved somehow):

Once the contractual arrangements were made, Bartner proved instrumental in arranging “15 Steps” for a marching band. “The key guy in all of this is David Campbell. He was hired by the Grammys to marry Radiohead with the Trojan marching band,” Bartner said. “He’s a very famous guy because he arranges with all of these contemporary rock groups. ... So myself and [drum instructor] Tad Carpenter went over to Campbell’s house and we sat down and we went through the Radiohead piece ‘15 Steps’ for about three hours.”

Upcoming gigs:

via summitchurch.cc

Tomorrow night and Saturday I'll be playing with Nathan Fancher for a College Retreat at NC State. On Sunday, I'll be Worship Drumming (or rather I'll be playing drums for worship services) at Summit Church (Brier Creek Campus) here in Durham. Sunday afternoon I'll be playing at Emmaus Way in Downtown Durham and next Tuesday, I'll be playing with my friend Khris Weeks at St. Philips for their Talent Show and Pancake Dinner. Khris and I have been playing together with our laptops, triggering loops and sounds for a sound collage type ensemble. It's given me a chance to figure out how to use Logic Studio in a live setting, and allowed me to get more familiar with that program and other programs as well (such as Plogue Bidule and Augustus Loop).

Posted via web from dalebakerdrummer's posterous

Sixpence None The Richer: Greatest Hits

via amazon.com

I played drums on all but 1 of these songs, and of all the photos the record company could have chosen for this album cover, they used the one that was taken after I left the band. Ah man. What a drag!

So in case you were wondering, that is not me in the middle of the picture. That person is Rob Mitchell. He is the drummer who took over drumming duties once I left the band. He plays on Sixpence's version of "Don't Dream it's Over."

Posted via web from dalebakerdrummer's posterous

6 Picks: Essential Radio Hits Ep by Sixpence None The Richer

via amazon.com

I played drums and percussion on all the songs on this ep except for the "Don't Dream it's Over" cover, which was recorded after I left the band.

Posted via web from dalebakerdrummer's posterous

DIY Drum Headphones

I found this video tonight after watching another video.  The intended purpose of the video was to teach you how to make your own noise canceling headphones.  After viewing it however, the end product reminded me of the drum headphones I've been using for well over a decade now.  They cut outside noise by around 24-29 db while allowing me to hear the click and whatever else I need to hear without damaging my ears.

Basically the video shows you how to take a cheap pair of headphones and take them apart so that you can install them in a pair of Shooting Range type headphones.  I may have to try this myself as my current headphones are showing the signs of aging.

Other uses for headphones like this are for recording acoustic gtr while listening to the click (alot of times when using conventional headphones, the click can be heard "bleeding" through the performers headphones.  Recording vocals or string instruments are other uses I can think of where headphones like this could be useful.

View the DIY Noise Canceling Headphones

And this is: (dramatic pause)

THE ODYSSEY! 

(Cue:  Cheesy adventure style music  - producers note:  "is there something in GarageBand or Logic Pro we can use or will this be a piece we have someone compose for us?")

I stumbled onto this video series on YouTube and am seriously becoming addicted to this guy's exploits.  His goal is to set foot in every country in the world ( or something to that effect) during this year. Oh wait, I just copied his official rules from his website:

• - I must physically step foot on dry land within the continuous border of every nation state of the UN within one year. There are 192 member states in the UN.
• - I may not fly
• - I may not drive
• - I must not use private transport on public roads
• - Taxis are permitted for short journeys
• - Shared taxis count as public transport
• - I may use private transport over water

Since January 1st, he's made it through South America and up into the Caribbean.  He's been fortunate to get some lucky breaks and thanks to the internet, he has people emailing him with travel tips and offers for transportation.  Vodafone gave him free cellphone service for a year!  And for those who have gone above and beyond, they get a special shout out on the website and in the credits of the video on which they appear.   Cool stuff.

But I must warn you...the music and intro for this thing is pretty cheesy.  If they don't do something about the intro, this thing is going to get parodied to death.  It's pretty dramatic and reminds me of watching Survivor:  (fill in the blank with some exotic locale you've never heard of).  Oh, and there is this sub-plot involving a toilet seat, but for some reason I don't think the seat made it past the first week.  I saw a quick picture of the toilet seat and some comment about it and then found this quote from WaterAid's chief executive Barbara Frost:

"We hope that through his travels from country to country with his trusty toilet seat that he not only sets a new world record but also helps to raise awareness of the 2.5 billion people that don’t have a safe place to go to the toilet."

I suggest you go back and watch all the episodes before  joining in with the current one.  That way, you'll get a better idea of the context and a little bit about the why's and how's of his journey.

There is a gigantic World Atlas where I work and I looked on the map today to see where this guy has been since the beginning of the year.  When he mentions that he is in Quito, I now know where that is.  And when he said he was in Suriname, yep...I know where that is now too!  So if anything my sense of geography will improve as I continue to watch this series. 

Why would someone do this (travel the world)?  Well, because you can!  That's why.  But probably more importantly, well yes....more importantly I should say is he's doing it to benefit the charity WaterAid.  And you can donate to this charity by checking out their JustGiving site.

"Graham says: "The Odyssey is the culmination of a life-long passion for travel and filmmaking.  It is an incredible challenge of endurance that will test me both mentally and physically to the limit. But more than that, I'm hoping to make the ultimate online travel adventure and I'm inviting the world along for the ride.  All I ask in return is that they give whatever they can to WaterAid."

Anyway, if you're like me and you've already watched The Office, 30 Rock and 24 on HULU this week then by all means head over to The Odyssey and watch how this guy is spending his year.

Check it out here:  http://www.theodysseyexpedition.com/  

And to you Graham Hughes:  best of luck to you and safe travels!  I'll be watching from home and following you on my atlas at work!  What a great experience you are getting to enjoy and suffer through.  Hang in there and may there be plentiful lecture offers, production work and $$ waiting for you on your return!

Theresa Andersson: yep.

I've been fascinated with Theresa Andersson lately.  Just search for her videos on You Tube or go to her MySpace site.  Type her name into Google and you'll find her website - which is just 3 links on a page.  The only thing you can really do is sign up for her mailing list and go to iTunes to buy her album, or visit her MySpace site.  I think it's a brilliant plan for a website.  Get the traffic and then send them along by forcing the visitor to make a decision.  Chances are that decision is going to end in the visitor becoming a fan and purchasing her music.  Which is what happened to me.

On YouTube, there are videos of her performing live, and a few videos of her talking shop - explaining how her extensive pedal board works, and talking you through how she changes chords in one of her songs.

When you see her perform (my wife and I watched her on Conan), she makes it seem so effortless and easy.  She's dancing around and putting on a show for goodness' sake...but to sit back and marvel at the practice it took her to get to that level of musicianship and skill.  Man...that's pretty amazing stuff.  She's firing on all cylinders and going for broke.  You gotta admire that, even if you don't like her music. 

I hope she comes through North Carolina one of these days...I'd like to experience her show live...I'm pretty impressed with what I've seen and heard so far.  Great stuff!

Here's a performance from a show she did in Nashville: