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People who want to donate new instruments should abide by everything in the above section; however, they should not have exclusive rights to choose the instrument. The same processes for purchasing an instrument that are outlined in the previous section on "Instrumental and Equipment Purchases" should apply to this situation. Many times someone will want to donate a new instrument to the church; however, they are not willing to spend enough money to acquire the instrument the church really needs, or they are simply not aware of the church's needs. If the church accepts the instrument, they are stuck with it! For instance, I know of a church that built a new worship space. A family in the church wanted to donate a grand piano; however, they were not willing to give enough money for a high-quality instrument. Since the couple wanted the church to have a grand piano, the church bought an inexpensive model. The piano does not hold tune well and is frustrating to all who play it; however, with the gold plaque on the side, it will be many years before the instrument can be traded in for a quality instrument. In retrospect, the church should have insisted on a better quality instrument and paid the difference.

1 Information for this section was informed by Jimmy McCaleb, Church Music RFD: Practical Helps for Smaller Churches, 5th printing, (Jackson, MS: Mississippi Baptist Convention, 1995), 108.

Music Ministry Facilities

Few music ministers will ever have the option of designing new music ministry facilities. Most will renovate or utilize existing space. Many existing spaces can be reconfigured and renovated and become more serviceable. New paint, acoustical treatment, new chairs, and even moving existing walls, can often turn a negative space into a space that serves the music ministry well. While this chapter will primarily discuss the construction of new space, the suggestions are adaptable to renovating existing space.

The choir room is both educational space (teaching occurs here) and performance space (it should somewhat simulate the worship space). When the acoustics of the choir room are more live than the worship space, the choir will invariably be unable to fill the worship room with sound and will always be dissatisfied with their presentation in worship.

When Building New Space1

The Choir Rehearsal Room

Risers – When designing choir rehearsal space, the decision to use or not use risers is an important one. A choir room with risers makes it easier for the choir to see the director and allows the director to hear the choir more effectively. However, fixed risers limit the room's usefulness for other purposes. When a room doesn't have permanent risers, two options are possible: (1) elevate the director so that he/she can see and be seen by everyone, or (2) use temporary platforms that can be moved if needed. The latter may be preferable to building permanent risers because it allows for expansion, reconfiguration, and additional flexibility. If risers are used, the first riser should be eight inches high, and each successive level should be raised at least four inches. The risers should be a minimum of thirty-six inches deep with thirty-eight to forty inches preferred. Risers should have a forty-five percent curvature.

1 Much of the information in this section is informed by Bill Green, "Music Suites," in The Music Ministry Resource Manual for Creative Church Musicians, ed. Jere V. Adams, (Nashville: Convention Press, 1990) section 8-1, 1-6.

Size – To facilitate combined rehearsals, the choir room should be able to accommodate the largest two choirs in the music ministry. You should allow approximately fifteen to twenty square feet per person; however, the cubic space of a room is actually more important for acoustic qualities.

Ceiling – The ceiling should be a minimum of 14-16 feet high with 18-20 feet preferred. Ceilings should be no higher than 22-24 feet. If the room is taller than this height, reflections will arrive late and can hinder the development of the ensemble's sound.2 The ceiling should not be flat. If the architectural plans do not allow for a diffuse ceiling structure, it can be altered after construction with commercially available products. Ideally, it will have multiple angles to allow for the sound to be reflected in different directions.3

Floor – Concrete is an ideal floor for a choir room because it doesn't absorb low frequencies. If the floor is covered with carpet, it should be a short nap, tight weave, synthetic, glued-down carpet.

Shape – Avoid parallel walls if possible. According to Adams, any shape other than square or rectangular is preferred.4 Walls that are parallel can produce a flutter echo (sounds repeatedly bounce back and forth) that becomes confusing to the choir and conductor.

Conductor's Wall – Since there is no wall behind the conductor in the worship space, the wall behind the conductor in the choir room can provide false security for the choir. The wall behind the conductor will allow the sound to travel back to the choir, which will not be the case in the worship space; therefore, the wall behind the conductor must be covered with absorptive material so that the choir does not become overly confident. One possible solution is to put the choir robes behind the conductor. Music storage is another way to diffuse and absorb sound.

Heating, Cooling, and Ventilation – The room should be well ventilated and comfortable. To avoid sound from the heating and cooling systems, the units should not be located within the room. The room should have a separate heating and cooling unit so that other parts of the building do not have to be heated or cooled when the music suite is in use. Adequate fresh air intake is a must.

2 R. Bob Adams, "Rehearsal Room Acoustics: Performance Space vs. Teaching Space," The Church Musician, vol. 46, no. 2, (January/February/March, 1995), 21.

3 Ibid., 21.

4 Ibid., 21.

Sound Equipment – The choir rehearsal space should have good play back possibilities for audio and video presentations, a screen, and adequate sound reinforcement for microphones. In addition, it should have recording options. Soundproofing is also necessary if the room will be used for recording.

Lighting – The room should be well lit for reading and should create a positive environment. Somewhere between fifty and seventy-five foot-candles are recommended. Fluorescent lights are not recommended because they hum.

Social Activities – Choir rooms are always a hub of social activity, so a kitchenette is helpful for facilitating social activities that involve food.

Entrances and Hallways – Entrances and hallways adjacent to the choir room should be wide so they can accommodate both instruments and the many people who need to move quickly to and from the choir room.

Location – For easy access, the choir rehearsal space should be located on the same level as the worship space.

Other – The room should have a marker board that is large and visible, preferably with a music staff.

Offices

If possible, offices should be located near the music ministry rehearsal space. Although there are advantages in locating together the offices of the entire church staff, there are also advantages in locating offices near the areas where each staff member will do much of his/her work. Offices should be neither too large nor too small but adequate for the work that will happen within them. An office area should contain a reception area that does not have sight lines into individual offices. A separate work area for a copy machine and other office supplies is also recommended.

Robing Rooms

A separate robing space for men and women, each with its own restroom, is recommended. The robing room should also contain a space for folders and storage of personal belongings. The robing room should be carpeted, have large doors to accommodate quick passage, a mirror, and a water fountain. It should be located adjacent to the rehearsal space.

Handbell Rehearsal Space

Handbell rehearsal space should have a less live acoustical environment than choral space and should accommodate the same table configuration used in the worship space. There should be adequate storage space for equipment, and the room should have large doors. If possible, this space should be used exclusively for handbells since taking down and putting up equipment is difficult and time consuming.

Practice Rooms

The music ministry space needs practice rooms. They should be large enough to accommodate a piano and a small group of singers. They also should be soundproofed to allow privacy and to keep practice from disturbing other activities.

Music Library

The music library space should be large enough for the current library and should be able to accommodate growth of one hundred percent or more. Shelves should be in lines with adequate space to walk and work between them. Since shelves may be tall, pay particular attention to lighting so that there are not dark spots in some aisles. The library should have a workspace for cataloging music.

Children's Music Resource Room

The children's music resource room should be located close to where the children's choirs rehearse. It should be an actual room (not a closet) and should be large enough to accommodate several people at once. Since all children's choir workers usually need access to the resource room at the same time, it should have wide doors to accommodate passing with equipment. There should be adequate space for storage of instruments, CD players, posters, craft materials, music, and associated materials. Abundant shelves and oversized storage is recommended. It should have countertops for workspace and a filing cabinet(s).

Storage

A music ministry space should have adequate storage areas for instruments, outdoor sound equipment, props for dramatic productions, robes for different choirs, as well as extra storage space for growth. Often, storage areas are neglected in designing music ministry space, and every closet in the church is packed with music ministry materials. Storage areas should have large doors, access to the outside, and locks.

Worship Facilities

During a normal career, most music ministers will not have the opportunity to design new worship facilities. Although much of this section will deal with new facilities, this information can easily be applied to renovations as well.

Realizing that different worship traditions have facility needs that are individual to their liturgy, this section will not deal with space issues that are specific to those traditions (i.e., such as baptismal spaces or communion spaces), but will instead focus on those aspects of worship facilities that relate directly to music.

Determine the Purpose

When building a worship space or renovating an existing space, one must first ask questions regarding the purpose of the room. If the worship will be led by a pipe organ, the acoustical properties and space needs are different from a church whose worship is led by guitars, electronic keyboards, and percussion. If the room will have a theatre environment with dead acoustics, this will require very different needs from one where congregational singing will be prominent. Does the church view word and liturgy as equals, or is one more prominent than the other? What will be the role of congregational song? What role will the choir play? What role will music play in the overall liturgy? Should the space allow for flexible seating and set-up? What other uses will the space have? These questions must be answered before the architect begins the design phase.

Exert Your Influence

From the inception of the process, the minister of music must take an active role. Once the architect's plans are complete, it is expensive to change plans and many committees will not allow changes. In a building process, you must be proactive and prepared to give reasons for your preferences. Don't assume that others will recognize your knowledge and consider you an expert. Be prepared to provide documented research to support your ideas.

Acoustical Decisions Should Be Made Early

The shape of the room will partly determine the acoustical environment. Most authorities suggest a rectangular-shaped room. Even if you opt for a fan-shaped space, a rectangular room can be designed on the horizontal axis.

The room should be designed to be acoustically live. A room that is too dead cannot easily be made more live; however, a very live room can easily be deadened if needed. A room that is very reverberant will encourage hearty congregational singing, but may present a challenge to the understanding of the spoken word. With a room designed specifically for the spoken word, the singing will never be full-bodied, for a good sound system can enhance the spoken word, but no sound system can remedy poor congregational singing. If congregational worship is our priority (and it should be), then the room should be designed for maximum congregational participation.

In addition to the rectangular shape of the room, it should have high ceilings and hard surfaces. Side walls should not be straight or without variation; they should have occasional angles, columns, and other configurations to help diffuse the sound. The floors should not be covered with carpet (except for the aisles), which may be covered with short pile, closely woven, glued-down carpet. The platform space, the choir loft, and the area under the pews should all have hard surfaces. These surfaces may be stone, tile, marble, wood, or parquet — surfaces that are aesthetically pleasing and reverberant. Some acoustical authorities suggest padding the seats of pews, though others recommend no pads. According to certain authorities, padded pews can provide for a more uniform acoustical environment even if the room is partially empty. If the room is full and people are sitting, the pew coverings are covered anyway. Many churches compromise by padding only the seat.

When sounds bounce off the back wall, they often interfere with intelligibility and can provide difficulties in sound reinforcement. Often the back wall of the worship space will need to have some acoustical treatment in order to avoid sounds that bounce back too quickly. This acoustical treatment may be a hard material, which is curved or angled, that causes the sound to be reflected in different directions. If this is not successful, then it may need to be combined with a more sound absorptive material.

Location of the Choir Space

The location of the choir space is variable, and no one seems to have a definitive opinion even within a particular worship tradition. Historically, some congregations have placed the choir in a divided chancel. Others have placed the choir and organ in the rear, put the choir front and center behind the pulpit, or have experimented with having the choir sit among the congregation and come forward for specific choral presentations. However, most believe that the congregation's participation is increased when they can see those leading them; therefore, according to current opinion, some configuration in the front of the room is preferred.

Choir Space

The first choir riser should be at least eight inches from the floor. Each succeeding riser should be at least four inches higher. In order to more easily accommodate people of varying heights, more distance between choir steps is desired. However, according to building codes, the chair back must be twenty-four inches above the riser behind it or a rail must be installed. Often tall back chairs are the result. Choir seating should be in chairs (not pews), and the chairs should have a side pocket for music. Choir chairs should be lightweight and stackable for easy storage.

Instrumental Space

Location and space for the organ should be decided before the architect begins his/her work. If a pipe organ is to be installed, space must be appropriated. It is wise to plan space for a pipe organ even if an electronic instrument will be purchased. This allows for the church to add a pipe organ at a later time. The organ should be placed close to the choir, and if the service is led by an organist/choirmaster, the organ console should be as central as possible. In most free churches, the organ console is on the right side of the congregation and the piano is on the left, which allows the lid to open toward the congregation. Ideally, the organ should be designed so that the console can be moved to the center of the platform for concerts and to other areas when it is not needed.

Decisions regarding a piano should be made early as well. If a piano will be used, a large grand is preferred and space must be provided. Many churches have the tradition of surrounding the organ console and the piano with railings. While this does nothing to harm the organ acoustically, it does keep the sound of the piano from reaching the congregation since about forty percent of the sound comes from the bottom. Other than tradition, there are no logical reasons for surrounding the piano with railings.

Space for handbells and other instrumental groups should also be included. When worship rooms are not planned to include these groups, their use in worship can disrupt normal traffic flow, obstruct communion and processionals, and can block fire exits.

In summary, a considerable amount of space should be allowed for instruments. Much space should be left flexible for drama, dance, and other worship forms. All platform items should be moveable. Choir railings should never be permanent.

Ventilation Systems

The worship space should be free from heating and air conditioning noise. Air conditioning units should not be placed adjacent to the worship space, and these spaces should be sound proofed from the worship space. Sympathetic sounds that travel through ductwork should be avoided. According to the Handbook of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers, this sympathetic noise is defined by a standard reference called Noise Criteria (NC). According to Ewart A. Wetherill, "Defining this single-number rating as a contract requirement (e.g., the background noise level with systems operating normally shall not exceed NC 25-30) not only establishes the design goal, it also provides a performance specification against which the completed installation can be checked for compliance."1 There will be some cost involved with this; however, it will be well worth the extra expenditure. Air velocity should be low enough to avoid hissing sounds, and all vents must be firmly mounted to avoid rattles.