Building Your Band

We’re joined by legendary Hillsong keyboardist and sound designer Peter James. Peter has been playing piano/keys for the last 25+ years, and has been heavily involved with Hillsong Church as a volunteer on the weekends, as well as being employed by Hillsong United and Hillsong International Leadership College as a lecturer for the past 13 […]

A Grammy-nominated, Dove Award-winning musician (formerly with Sonicflood and Paul Colman Trio), Grant Norsworthy is also the founder, owner, content developer and principal instructor for More Than Music Mentor, providing online and on-site training to equip church singers, instrumentalists and technicians for artistic excellence and authentic worship. In this captivating podcast episode, we talk about […]

Christian Nuckels joins us to talk about his unlikely journey into ministry and songwriting, the process of songwriting, how production is part of that (but can also get in the way), and how collaboration can mature a song and invest others in it. Christian show us a more generous way of creating- a way that […]

Dan Cuomo joins the show to share his thoughts, wisdom and experience playing rock drums, getting signed to a major label (40 Records) and touring Europe, and then deciding what’s next. Today you will find Dan playing modern worship drums in churches all over the DC/MD/VA area. I hold Dan up as an example of exactly […]

With Nikki Lerner as our guest, we immediately get to the heart of doing multicultural worship. Nikki helps us explore our motivations, ask better questions, and avoid common pitfalls. She gives us a way to think about multicultural worship that has nothing to do with meeting quotas. Instead, she asks us to be deliberate and base our […]

Jon joins the show discussing a range of genres based around Jazz to include Gospel and Neo Soul. Along the way, he shares samples from some projects he has done. We wrap up with his thoughts on the kinds of music that belongs in church, the role the church plays in moving music forward, as well as his thoughts on […]

William Brew joins us for an enlightening episode of drumming and discovery. Along the way we discuss his love of the CCM genre, what he really thinks of when he thinks of “space”, and how you get there overnight. If you aren’t allowed to have a drum kit in the house, Brew recommends Vater Double Sided Practice Pads. #noexcuses Reach […]

Friend of the show, David Loftis, talks to us about about the challenges of producing three very different worship services each week: one old school featuring a choir, one new school with a band, and one somewhere in between with multiple (SAT / SATB) voices. If that isn’t enough, Dave is has a heart for growing the next generation of […]

Trent Walker talks to us about stepping out in faith- leaving a perfectly good job as a church worship leader to take the show on the road with his wife, Siobhan, and their five kids. Obviously passionate about the mission of the Church, Trent challenges us in simple but direct ways with profound implications: to put away […]

As the frontman and lead songwriter of Break The Fall, Gavin walks us through the process of creating their latest EP “The Wanderers“. From the preproduction writing, to choosing a producer, to packing up a van and driving eight hours to Nashville to record, it’s fantastic to hear the intentionality behind their creation. Break The Fall: Website | […]

Steven Krisopher shares what was behind his most recent project, With Abandon, (edit: released December 15th, 2015). With sixty minutes of music in ten songs, he talks about how his desire for this project was to let the songs breathe. Primarily a pianist, Steven wrote this project on the acoustic guitar and did a textbook rock keyboard/piano treatment, after programming the drums […]

John B Stanley (Twitter, Reverb Nation, iTunes) challenges us to do better music in our services and gives us the behind-the-scenes story of his “Drum Spectacular”. Also check out his post on this in Modern Drummer. Along the way we discuss his influences, most especially Lee Ritenour (Wiki, iTunes, Amazon) with Omar Hakim (Wiki, iTunes), and Hans Zimmer (Wiki, iTunes, Amazon). Without further […]

In this podcast episode, Dave talks to us about how playing wind instruments informs the way he approaches singing and composition, and warns us about how solo instruments can conflict with vocals. He then gives us his formula for using these instruments in a band setting, describing not only where to play but where not to play. Along the […]

While recording and editing the first 18 episodes of the podcast, I began to notice some of the content commented on some of the other content. I began to think how awesome it might be to hear these ideas back-to-back, remixed into a super-episode, which would demonstrate both the importance of the ideas, as well as some of the different ways they’re approached. […]

Guitarist Jay Smith spends 45 minutes with us pretty much not talking about guitars at all. Instead we discuss worship, art, venue, and the role of music in the church. If you like discussions that go deep, you won’t want to miss this one. To connect with Jay in DC, visit our convergence.org “Eminent”; composed, […]

Laura shares the secrets and struggles of her journey as a Worship Leader and songwriter as a wife and mother of two young children. In particular, she addresses the maturity and people skills required to be successful in leadership. You’ll hear how she programs her musicians for three services with respect to their individual availability.  Finally, she talks about […]

Jayson talks to us about his passion for leading worship in a small church, the pitfalls and dangers of turning worship into a formula, and why the church needs more laments. For more of his thoughtful musings read “A Worship Leader Questions Modern Worship“, and visit jaysondbradley.com

Vocalist Terri Plant talks to us about cross-cultural singing in both English and Arabic, and how music has both moved into (been a gift) and out of (been a hindrance to) her life in service to God. Terri sings “En Tal El Layl” “If the night should prolong” Words: Wafaa Adel Music: Amgad Saad Zakri […]

Keyboardist John “Chordy” Teagle talks to us about growing up with a love for playing keys, the impact of learning theory in his playing, his wish for the direction of popular music, and some parting thoughts on genres. Chordy’s Influences: James Poiser (Website) Corey Henry (Amazon, iTunes) Snarky Puppy (Amazon, iTunes) Vince Guraldi (Amazon, iTunes) Johnny Costa […]

Brandon (keyboardist for Break The Fall) talks to us about his thoughts as a “Back Pew Baptist“, sitting in the rear of a church, helping with the tech program, watching, and thinking about why we’re doing a lot of the things we do in church. This podcast all started with a thoughtful tweet (and my followup […]

Eileen’s love for singing is the subtext throughout this episode during which she surveys the typical range of vocal responsibilities in a church – that of worship leader and backing vocalist – and contrasts both of those with the role of the soloist. Eileen goes on to provide all kinds of ideas for how to improve as […]

Zach talks to us about playing acoustic guitar in two different student worship teams: one going very well, one going not so well. It’s your typical insightful conversation with a 15 year old sophomore in high school; we can learn a lot by looking at things from the student’s perspective. This is a must-listen-to if […]

Worship Leader, Backing Vocalist, and Bassist, Brian Beasely talks with us being a highly involved lay-musician in a local church. Brian Beasely Music | Twitter | Facebook  

Aaro Keipi and I agree for about an hour on playing classical, worship, and funk keyboard, the preeminence of pads, improvising, composition, language, and communication. The difference between us being, Aaro is actually educated on the topic, as informed by his Masters’ Thesis. This is our first international podcast from Finland. Connect with Aaro: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, […]

Justin talks to us about growing up in Gospel Drumming, needing a “third eye” to keep tabs on what’s going on, the importance of transitions, the differences playing CCM, and ultimately how these genres influence one another. Justin on Twitter, Reverb Nation, Facebook, Website, with Chris Collat. Links: Hawkins Family, Love Alive Series (Amazon) Hezekiah Walker (Amazon) Chick Corea […]

Amanda Joy talks to us about singing background vs. lead vocals, and listening to everything to include the band to inform your singing. Amanda: Facebook, Twitter. Never in Denver: Facebook, iTunes, Also, this is our first ever podcast to offer “bonus material“.

Amanda and I kept talking after the show was over. We got into talking a little bit about generational worship which wasn’t on the schedule. So this is my first podcast with bonus material.

Guitarist* Dan Rebeiz talks to us about unifying the emotional content of the music we create in this sweeping interview. Contact Dan @ Daniel Jack Productions or Facebook or The Excentrics *Music, Lyrics, Instruments, Vocals, Programming, by DJR. Mixed and Mastered by Micah Wilshire.  Links: Sarah McLachlan‘s Music It Might Get Loud, with Jimmy Page, The Edge, Jack White  

Aron “Teo” Lee (Twitter | Facebook) talks to us about owning the support role of bass. Topics include: Roles and responsibilities of the bass player Being in the driver’s seat vs riding shotgun & navigating Commitment to the groove How a rhythm section liberates everything else (Negative) Space Communicating with a bass player as a producer Genesis by Matthew […]

Cellist Michael Thomas talks about the minimum technical skill required to play in a worship band, tells us the secret for how to get the best out of strings, and gives us the inside scoop on employing cello with a rock band. “You can become a musician that sounds good in half the time that it take […]

Drummer and Audio Installation Engineer Chris Green talks to us about production from a plethora of perspectives. Connect with Chris at 703 300 0300 or avchrisg at yahoo If you liked this episode, also check out Bassist Aron “Teo” Lee’s episode “All In”. Chris uses: K Custom Zildjian Cymbals | Hot Rods | Nylon Brushes Edit: if you liked this episode, […]

Sarah talks about her origins playing and singing in Venezuela, to leading a band at an intentional multicultural church in Harrisburg, PA. She’s one of the few worship leaders I know who stepped out from behind the comfort of an instrument to lead worship with just a mic in order to more closely connect with her […]

Worship Leader and instrumentalist Kishore Carey talks about building a band in a church plant, his approach to producing, his advice to new band members “Listen more than you play”, and his ultimate goal of “Honest Worship”. Twitter:  Chasing Agnus, Already Immortal Facebook: Chasing Agnus, Kishore Carey Websites: Chasing Agnus, CrossPointe Church Lyrics vs. Music post […]