Make Your Worship Band Sound Better Before the Mix

A great sound system only makes the band louder, not better. If the parts coming from the stage don't fit together, there's only so much you can do at the console.

That's why I want to talk about band arrangements. Understanding what the players are doing gives you some language to work with your worship leader and get things sounding good before they reach the soundboard.

Your sound system needs good inputs

In my Amateur to Pro course, I describe the sound system like a bus. The speakers and amplifiers are the wheels and tires. The console is the engine. The sounds coming from the stage are the fuel.

If you put bad fuel into an engine, it's not going to run right. The same thing happens when the instruments, performances, or arrangement aren't working well together. The sound system can't make those problems disappear.

Some instruments need a microphone to capture their sound. Others have a pickup or microphone built in and connect with a cable. A pickup can help reduce background noise and the chance of feedback, but there can be a trade-off in sound quality. The instrument matters, and the person playing it makes a big difference, too.

Listen for four things in the performance

Timing

When everybody is locked into the pulse of the music, things sound better. That doesn't mean everybody plays the exact same rhythm. Their rhythms can complement one another while still landing together.

When the timing is loose and notes aren't hitting quite together, you can hear that in the mix. Turning a fader or changing an EQ doesn't change when those notes were played.

Tuning

Are the notes in the center of their pitches? Do they fit together? Guitars and violins need frequent tuning, but there's more to it than getting the open strings right.

A guitar needs to be set up so it stays in tune throughout its range. A violin's open strings can be in tune while the notes the player fingers are not. With vocals, the singer has to hit the center of the pitch. Pitch correction at the console can only go so far.

Dynamics

Dynamics are the relationship between the loud and quiet parts. Those changes need to fit the song and the rest of the band.

This is especially noticeable with drums. A drummer can hit very hard, but that isn't always the best choice. Sometimes playing lightly gives you room for a medium-volume section to sound really big once the kit is mic-ed up and amplified.

Tone

Tone includes how hard a note is played, how much articulation it has, and how the instrument fits into the arrangement. A less experienced player may need help understanding what works in that context.

As a sound tech or tech director, you can help by talking through the instrument's setup and the player's technique. Getting the sound right at the source makes the rest of your job easier.

Know what each part is doing

It helps to think about the role an instrument is playing in the song. The same instrument can take on different roles depending on how it's played.

Foundation

The bass and drums provide the foundation. When the kick and bass are locked together, they give the rest of the band a clear sense of timing, feel, and dynamics. Everybody knows where the downbeat is and how the song is moving.

Rhythm

Guitars and keyboards often play the rhythmic parts, whether that's quarter notes or smaller subdivisions. Listen to what the player is doing. A guitar can be a rhythm instrument in one section and play a different role in the next.

Pads

Pads sustain and fill space. They can sit farther back in the mix and add texture when other parts come down. That might be a string pad, long piano notes, or an electric guitar playing big whole-note strums.

Lead

Most of the time, the lead is the vocal and the harmonies going with it. During an instrumental section, a guitar, piano, or violin playing the melody can become the lead instead.

Fills

Fills happen in the gaps around the lead. A short instrumental phrase can fill a space between vocal lines. A drum fill can finish a section and lead into the next one.

When fills are overplayed, everything can get cluttered. You might have a technically right mix, but too many parts happening at once still won't fit together well.

Judge the tone in the arrangement

An instrument can sound pretty lousy by itself and fit really well in the full arrangement. It may have exactly what it needs to poke through in its own spot while leaving room for everything else.

If you want to hear examples, try the demo feature on multitracks.com and listen to individual instruments. Those are the stems that went into the recording. They won't necessarily have the dynamic range of a live performance, but you can hear how the tones work together.

You might be surprised by how an instrument sounds alone compared with how it sounds in the mix.

Fix what you can on stage

EQ and compression are useful tools. But when you can improve the sound with the instrument or the player, that's the best place to start.

Listen for the part that isn't fitting, then talk with your worship leader about it. Is the timing together? Does the tone fit? Are the fills leaving room for the lead? Having that conversation gives your team a way to work on the arrangement before you reach for another control.

Watch the full Band Arrangements video on YouTube for the complete explanation.

If you've been put in charge of sound and want to understand the whole system, my Amateur to Pro course walks through it from top to bottom. Learn more about Amateur to Pro here.