FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Transcription

1 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Hillsong Worship Music Stream Evaluations

2 Topics Preparing for your Evaluation Day Requirements for Evaluation Day Unable to make your Evaluation Day I have other arrangements on Evaluation Day Choosing a Focus in the Worship Stream Preparing for your Class Placement Evaluation I won t have my equipment available to me on Evaluation Day. Do you have any equipment that you can loan me for the evaluation? We will have a house band on the day with musical equipment. Should you not have your equipment with you, you can use the band s instruments and equipment (guitars, amps, effects pedals, keyboard, drums and drum sticks, etc.). Do I need In-ear monitors for Evaluation Day? Some of the facilities at cater for in-ear monitor technology (i.e. foldback through earphones/earbuds rather than through stage monitors). Because of this, we recommend that each student bring a set of earphones/earbuds to College. However, this is not required for Evaluation Day. For workshops, we recommend you use any kind of ipod earphones/earbuds. You can choose to invest in higher quality in-ears (if possible) to maximise your personal growth in your area of focus, however this is not required. Requirements for Evaluation Day As a rhythm guitarist, do I need to play any scales or improvise/solo over a chord progression? I m not very knowledgeable in that area. Will that affect my placement result? The purpose of the evaluation process is for us to see where your strengths and weaknesses are as a musician. Should you be in the position where you can t play what we require, simply let us know, and we will move you on to the next exercise in the evaluation process. Will I be required to read standard notation as part of the evaluation process? At Hillsong International Leadership College we focus on communication of the message of a song. For this to happen in a worship environment, we encourage our students to memorise the music that they play and to not allow chord charts and sheet music to distract them from leading their congregation in worship or worshipping God themselves. To that end, sight-reading is not an entry requirement of our College and will not be required in your evaluation. However, we will

3 locate your current music theory knowledge by having you complete a Music Theory assessment on Evaluation Day, so we can place you in the appropriate learning environment for your music theory subjects. During my evaluation can I refer to a chord chart/lyrics sheet so that I don t make any mistakes? We require that you perform without any assistance from chord charts or lyrics sheets. Part of the evaluation will be to see how well you can memorise and perform what you have learned. If, however, you are not at the place where you can do this successfully (or you don t have enough time to learn the songs we have asked you to play), you may use a chord chart/lyrics sheet in your evaluation. Please notify the trainer that is assessing you if this is the case. Do I need to sing/play the songs as they are in the original recording? We require that you, to the best of your ability, learn the parts as they are on the original song. In our course you will be taught how to learn music by ear and so part of the evaluation is to see where you are with your ability to hear music accurately. I play an orchestral instrument (i.e. violin, cello, trumpet, etc.). Does your course cater for this instrument, and can I perform on this instrument? Our courses cater towards a worship band model that is comprised of drums, bass guitar, electric/acoustic guitars, and keyboards. We use this model to teach our students the principles of working in a team and leading a congregation in worship. Although it is preferred that you play one of the aforementioned instruments, if you would like to learn these principles on an orchestral instrument, we can evaluate you on that instrument and utilise your instrument in our class environment. We have had many orchestral musicians study with us, and they have found that the course has helped them to gain the knowledge needed to successfully play in a worship team. I play the electric guitar. What do I need to take to the evaluation? Will there be an amp and effects pedals provided? All that you will need to bring to the evaluation is your own guitar. We will have a house band at the evaluation with their music equipment, and you will be able to plug into the house band s electric guitarist s equipment. This will save every guitarist having to set up his or her gear. While an amp and effects pedals will be provided for your evaluation, we strongly encourage you to have a pedalboard/effects unit or make plans to acquire one during your time at (this is not a requirement of the course). Am I required to play the Hillsong songs in their original keys, or can I request that the key be changed? We require that you play the song in the key of the recording we provide for you. During my evaluation will there be other people watching me? We will make your evaluation as private as is possible and only have the required people in the room. Vocal Evaluation: Vocalists will be evaluated with two other vocalists at the same time. You will be asked to sing one of the Hillsong songs from the provided list. The three vocalists will be asked to sing a chorus in unison as well as a harmony. There will also be 2-3 vocal

4 trainers in the room to run and observe the evaluation. Musician Evaluation: Individuals in the room at the time of evaluation consist of 2-3 band trainers, the house band and key students who are assisting with the evaluation process (i.e. production team members). Songwriting Evaluation: During the songwriting evaluation, each student will be assessed individually. The only people who are in the room will be our songwriting trainers and key students. I play the piano. In the Hillsong songs you have asked us to learn for the evaluation, I can only really hear synth parts. Do you need me to learn another song that has more piano parts in it? We will be able to get a well-rounded idea of your musical ability based off of other sections of the evaluation process. Choose the Hillsong song from the list provided that you think will showcase your ability best. Unable to make Evaluation Day If I am unable to make Evaluation Day, is there a way that I can be assessed separately on another date? Please inform us if this is the case, and we can make an appointment for you to be evaluated at a later time. For Hills Campus, Norm Lugtu, at norman.lugtu@hillsong.com For City Campus, Chelsea La Rosa, at chelsea.larosa@hillsong.com Please, to the best of your ability, have your evaluation before the semester starts. I have other arrangements on Evaluation Day I need to be somewhere else straight after my evaluation. How do I ensure that my evaluation is done as early as possible? All students will have an opportunity to sign up for their evaluation (it will take approximately minutes for you to be evaluated). When you arrive, you will be informed of when and where that signup process will take place. Please communicate any time constraints when signing up for your evaluation.

5 Choosing a Focus in the Worship Stream I play more than one instrument and sing. Do I have to choose one instrument to play, or can I be evaluated for each instrument I play? For you to get the most out of your experience with us, we require that you study one specific instrument (vocals, or electric guitar, or drums, etc.), specifically the instrument that is your greatest strength. There may be opportunities in classes for you to perform with something other than your chosen instrument, but your trainers will want to see that you are growing in your chosen instrument before that happens. How do I choose a stream focus if I sing, write songs, and play an instrument? We want to help you to grow in what God has planned for you. Our recommendation is that you build on your strengths, and you should therefore choose the focus that adds to your strengths. If I write songs, sing and play an instrument, do I have a choice as to what I will study in, or do the trainers decide that for me? The decision is ultimately up to you. However, if we find in your evaluation that you may struggle to prove competence in your assessments, we will inform you. We will then allow you to make a decision of what you will study based on the information we give you. I ve chosen songwriting as my focus. Why do I have to do a musician or vocal evaluation as well? In many contemporary church contexts, songwriters are often involved in the worship team as worship leaders, vocalists or musicians. Because of this, a portion of the songwriting course involves participation in workshops as a musician or vocalist in a worship context. Therefore, we will evaluate songwriters as a musician or a vocalist (which you will choose) to know how to best place you in workshops. What song should I prepare for my vocal evaluation? Please come prepared with a song you feel best demonstrates your strengths. We would prefer that you do not choose a worship song for this evaluation, but rather a piece of your choosing that will give us the best impression of your voice, vocal range and ability.