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Most larger productions run two computers running backing tracks in tandem.
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The Radial SW8 is an eight-input direct box for use with computers playing backing tracks. It has an auto-switcher that accepts two sets of inputs. If the SW8 senses looses an input signal, it switches to the secondary set of inputs with virtually no signal loss.
The responsibility for audio, video and lighting always falls squarely on someone like you or me; one of the techs. Backing tracks are a whole different beast. Introducing tracks to your workflow can tie together a multitude of other disciplines into the process. First of all, the musician has to be involved in content and creation. Secondly, the audio engineer needs to know what content is being played back and he/she must be involved in how the tracks are split and best mixed. Also, timecode and MIDI information can in the tracks can be used to cue video and lighting changes. Virtual instruments can also be programmed for changes to keyboard patches and drum samples.
The possibilities are endless, and it takes true collaboration with your entire team to achieve your goal. Using tracks requires a combination of hardware and software. The topic of this article includes those technologies and some possibilities workflow to get things done for Sunday morning.
In an effort to give you a more in depth look at the technologies and application of backing tracks, I had a conversation with my friend Christian Paschall . Christian is drummer, audio engineer and producer. I first met Christian three years ago when he was playing drums for Crowder. Crowder had an exhaustive tracks setup that played backing tracks and made program changes for three different instruments on stage. The tracks computer also sent tempo to the bass player for side chaining capabilities and sent MIDI notes to the lighting console to cue certain effects. It was a fairly elaborate setup.
Paschall says it's best to start is simple. "If it was a smaller church, without many players, I'd suggest using the Multitracks.com's Playback iPad app,” he says. “It allows you to download common Sunday morning songs and gives you the flexibility of having all the instrumentation to use." This is an important point because the Playback app includes the instrumental parts that you don't necessarily have in the band every weekend. If you don't have a bass player a particular Sunday, then you can unmute that track. It also allows you to change arrangements; double a chorus, skip a verse, etc, so worship is not locked down to a single arrangement.
If you are ready for the next step up then you need to get a dedicated computer, audio interface, and a DAW (digital audio workstation). Paschall's choice of DAW is Ableton. "It's the software everyone is using to run their shows: pop, country or rock. It provides the most professional approach," he adds. Ableton also allows you to use multiple audio outputs, control virtual instrument changes as well as lighting and video cues.
In my opinion, it's best for the church to purchase a dedicated computer for running tracks. I've been mixing FOH for many years and I've often heard the “ding” of an email coming into the drummer's personal computer that was being used to playback tracks. Fortunately you don't have to buy a high-end computer for this process. "If you are not using the track computer to run any virtual instruments, you don't need a lot of processing power. I'm a Mac guy and if you are just playing back tracks, the cheapest Macbook Air will run Ableton just fine and won't break the bank," Paschall says.
The next piece of hardware that you'll need is an audio interface. You can start with just the headphone output of your computer, but you'll be limited to a mono track and click. A common practice is to group the tracks into "stems." There might be a stem for keys/pads, percussion/loop stem, strings, guitars, BGV (background vocals), and so on. Each set of stems would require two outputs on an audio interface. Any audio interface can work, you are just limited by how many outputs you need and what price you want to spend. "I use the MOTU Ultralight which is pretty common. At about $550, it has eight outputs. It is a half-rack space unit, so some guys use two of these side by side for more outputs," Paschall continues.
The next piece of equipment that you'll need is a direct box to get all of your track outputs to the soundboard. You can achieve this by using traditional direct boxes, but having eight (or more) direct boxes on the stage can become a bit messy. Several companies have eight-channel direct boxes that are rack mountable. These clean things up and provide easy trouble shooting when issues arise. A popular touring model is the Radial SW8. It has an auto switcher that accepts two inputs and one set of outputs. "Most larger shows are running two track computers in tandem. If one computer goes down, the SW8 notices the broken audio path and switches over to the backup tracks. There is virtually no signal loss, the audience can't even tell when it switches," according to Paschall.
Another helpful piece of equipment is a small USB/MIDI pad-based controller. By assigning each song to a dedicated pad, the operator is able to quickly start and stop songs on the fly. The Korg NanoPad2 has 16 assignable pads. Paschall points out that devices like this are also necessary when using a backup computer. He says, "Once you have two computers you need an external devices that sends the information telling both computers to start. iConnectivity is a company that makes solutions for this type of situation by accepting USB and MIDI signals and outputting information via MIDI." Another company worth mentioning is MIDI Solutions. They offer MIDI merging boxes and foot controller based devices. These companies offer all types of solutions but they are all relative based on your setup. Paschall points out "At some point, talking about the technology becomes based solely on what you want to accomplish. Anything is possible, it's just finding the right combination of things to make it work".
A recent Crowder tour used a rather elaborate set up. "David [Crowder] had a MIDI drum pad and a Moog that we used as a MIDI controller,” Paschall says. “Hank, our utility player had a piano MIDI controller as well. Because our set list has some tight changes we had our virtual instrument sounds programmed to change with each song. This way the guys didn't have to fumble around looking for the right piano or keyboard patch in-between songs." It was a totally customized custom approach. MIDI from the piano was sent to a iConnectivity box that combined Crowder's two controllers. One of the MIDI outputs was sent back to cue the tracks computer.
In even more elaborate situations, signals from the track computer can communicate changes to the lighting and video presentation. On the Crowder tour, this system required collaboration between Paschall and the LD (lighting director). "[On some of the Crowder songs,] we wanted to trigger a lighting cue every time the kick drum hit. So I created MIDI notes in Ableton that matched my kick drum pattern in the song. We sent MIDI out of the computer and into the MLA-XLR by JL Cooper. This is a MIDI line driver that converts MIDI to XLR and allows for long cable runs. Normally, MIDI signals have to be amplified for long cable runs. The JL Cooper unit eliminates this problem. We sent this signal down the snake and into the lighting director's desk which was able to accept the MIDI information, and the LD programed his design accordingly."
If a church is just beginning to work with tracks, it's important to assign a single person --- usually the worship leader or music director --- to be responsible for acquiring the tracks and setting up the session before Sunday. "Because the person in that role is already picking songs, making charts, and directing the band, this is the best person to be responsible for organizing the tracks. Even if they are not very technical they will be better by learning the basics and it's a good skill set to learn for the future," Paschall advises.
While it may be the worship leader's responsibility to organize the tracks and get the session setup, they won't be able to be the one in charge of playing the tracks (especially if they are the one singing). This role traditional falls on the drummer or keyboard player. Paschall says, "I think drummer and keyboards are the typical operators because they are stationary. They can have a setup next to them and its not distracting." A detailed understanding of the track setup is not necessary for whoever is the operator. At the very least the person needs to know how to play, stop, and start the tracks. If you want more flexibly with your arrangements then the keyboard player may be a better fit. "With Ableton you can assign each section of your song to a cue. So if you want to double a chorus, a simple key press and your chorus will repeat while keeping everything locked to your tempo. In that way, the worship [set] isn't confined." says Paschal.
The options are nearly endless, but it's safe to say that adding tracks to worship doesn't constrain the experience. On the contrary, it offers an exhaustive set of creative options that were not previously available. Navigating this world can be a bit challenging because once you get out of the first tier of options the sky is the limit. The only thing holding you back is your imagination and your budget.
