Lights! Camera! Action! A new ministry at St Paul's

(Stock photo)

Lights, Camera, Action—an update on the sound system, and a call for volunteers!

In 2016, St. Paul's Cathedral received a generous anonymous gift for the purpose of upgrading the Cathedral sound system, adding six remote controlled cameras for recording and live-streaming our services and concerts, and installing a 10 ft. LED video screen on the wall of the Great Hall.

The sound system upgrade will allow us to enhance our ministry within the Cathedral: microphones will work as they should—without static, and we've included a state-of-the-art hearing-assistance system with 10 new receivers to share with our parishioners and guests. The system will also include an iPad-operated remote control, allowing an audio volunteer to monitor the sound levels within the Cathedral and ensure the volume remains consistent at a comfortable level.

Expanding on our existing video ministry, we've also been gifted with six pan-tilt-zoom cameras located within the Cathedral to further enhance the way we share our liturgy with our home-bound parishioners and neighbors. As of now, our goal has been to record the video of the sermons only, and that will continue to be one way we share our message. But with the additional cameras and studio quality video switch, we'll be able to create professional quality programming to include the entire service, as an immersive worship experience. Studio quality microphones have also been installed above the choir, the main nave and font to ensure we accurately capture all aspects of our liturgies.

Working closely with our donor, the professional design team of PDI, our SPC team, including Martin Green, Brooks Mason, Penny Bridges, Bob Oslie and Kathleen Burgess and Lisa Churchill, we have created a flexible and robust system that will meet the needs of the Cathedral for years to come.

With the new equipment and opportunity, we also have a new need for volunteers to help in this exciting minstry. We will start with the 10:30 a.m. service, so we will need volunteers at that service to run the wireless control system, monitoring volume levels for 4 - 5 microphones at time. This position does not need any advance technical skills, but more important is the ability to be proactive in monitoring the sound within the cathedral and making subtle changes as needed. If you're not sure this is for you, but you have an interest, please contact me today and I'd love to talk with your further about it.

The second position we have is for an video technician to operate the video switch. This is a more advanced position and will require more advanced skills and an ability to create video transitions that will be recorded and streamed live to our home-bound parishioners and neighboring community.

This is a new ministry at St. Paul's Cathedral, and we anticipate it will take time to fully grow into the opportunities both in technical skills, how we create the programming, and then share with the community. This system is a great gift to our Cathedral, and we hope to gather a team of many volunteers. If you'd like to be involved, I encourage you to talk with me to learn more how you can participate. No matter your skill level, the desire to be part of the team and learn is paramount, and we'd love to have you.

Praise be to God for this opportunity and may we be faithful in learning how to fully utilize this new technology for his Glory!


Respectfully submitted,

Todd Hurrell
Parishioner and Team Leader
toddhurrell@yahoo.com

Lights, Music, Camera … Our Sound and Video Ministry is Changing

(Stock photo)

Dean Penny writes,

We have long used technology in the cathedral to amplify speech, record services, aid the hearing-impaired and make our sermons available online. St. Paul’s recently received an extraordinarily generous gift from a donor who wishes to remain anonymous, with the stipulation that it be used to enhance our sound, recording, and broadcasting capabilities.

Parishioner Todd Hurrell and facilities manager Bob Oslie are working with our music and liturgy staff and Pacific Design & Integration, Inc. to design and install a system that will use the latest technology to provide excellent sound quality for both speech and music, to film events in the cathedral from various angles, to live-stream services, and to allow large-screen television viewing in the Great Hall.

This will be a giant step forward in our technological support. The new sound technology, using “Tectonic Plate” speakers, cuts through an echoing acoustic such as we have at St. Paul’s to provide clear speech. Together with the latest design in hearing-aid support, this should make a great difference to the ability of the congregation to hear and understand the spoken word in our services. The installation of a panel of flat screens in the Great Hall, discreetly covered by a curtain when not in use, will allow us to screen movies and webinars in a more professional way. The ability to record our wonderful choirs and organ, along with the recording and livestreaming of our services, will permit us to reach more people both in and beyond San Diego.

Todd is gathering a small group of volunteers who will be trained in the use of the new equipment. If you have an interest in participating in this important ministry of pastoral care and evangelism, please contact Todd at ToddHurrell@yahoo.com for more information. We hope to have the new system installed and operational soon after Thanksgiving.