Resource for Vocal Harmonies: PraiseVocals.com

[valrussell]

Has anyone heard about PraiseVocals.com?

I'm checking it out right now and it seems to be a great worship resource.

It provides downloadable vocal harmony parts for all kinds of worship songs. What I like is that you can create worship sets for your worship team to listen to and practice on their own time.

Seems like it would save us rehearsal time.

Thoughts, anyone?

[pian0dude]

Hi there,

I have heard of it and utilized their trial membership to evaluate the services. It is a great resource indeeed! Before you make the decision to use it, there are a few things that struck me.

1. Your team needs to be willing to practice on their own time during the week, otherwise it's kind of wasting money.

2. If you are going to download the part, legally, each vocalist on your team would need a vocalist account. Meaning, you can't download a vocal part as yourself and then mail it out to your entire team. You need to use it within the guidelines of copyright laws and CCLI agreements.

3. For those on your team that prefer to read sheet music, the site links out to PraiseCharts for sheet music, but they confirmed for me that their vocal parts on their site do not necessarily and in most cases didn't match up to the PraiseCharts sheet music. They mentioned that in the future they may offer sheet music for their actual parts on this site.

Other than those top 3 items, it is an incredible way to help your team learn and hear the harmonies that would work well in a song.

[pian0dude]

http://www.theworshipcommunity.com/forums/other-resources/3361-praisevocals-com.html

[valrussell]

Thanks, pian0dude!

You're right about a praise team members needing to be willing to practice their own. It would definitely take commitment during the week, but what I think is so neat is that a vocalist could practice in the car, at the gym (using an iPOD) or wherever. My impression is that it would tighten up rehearsals and allow us to spend that time focusing on dynamics and nuance instead of harmonies.

I actually just asked the company's owner about downloading and distributing the music, because I was wondering whether or not we would have to purchase vocalist accounts in order for them to have the songs. He said worship leaders MAY download and distribute songs to their team members as long as the church has a CCLI license.

The details for that issue are here:

Use (http://praisevocals.com/Use.html)

(See: The Purpose of this Site)

[pian0dude]

Here is an excerpt directly from CCLI's agreement. I don't see any provision for distributing one downloaded copy to multiple people, etc.

==============================================
What You Can Do (What the License covers)

* Print songs, hymns and lyrics in bulletins, programs, liturgies and songsheets for use in congregational singing.
* Create your own customized songbooks or hymnals for use in congregational singing.
* Create overhead transparencies, slides, or use any other format whereby songs are visually projected (such as computer graphics and projection) for use in congregational singing.
* Arrange, print and copy your own vocal or instrumental arrangements of songs for congregational use, where no published version is available.
* Record your worship services by audio or video means, provided you only record "live&" music (instrumental and vocal). Accompaniment tracks cannot be reproduced. You may also charge up to $4.00 (U.S.) / $5.00 (CAN) each for audio tapes and CDs, and $12.00 (U.S.) / $15.00 (CAN) each for video tapes and DVDs.
========

I'm also pretty certain that the CCLI license prohibits downloading a song in iTunes or other related service once and then making copies of it for your team, which is kind of like what you'd be doing with this service. Someone more copyright savvy, please correct me if I'm wrong. This issue is definitely a hot button issue for us worship leaders. After going through lots of calls with CCLI directly as well as record labels themselves, it is also technically illegal for me to post an MP3 file in an online place for my team even if it was a recording of our team doing a song.

[valrussell]

I just emailed Patrick DeRemer, founder of PraiseVocals. I sent the excerpt of CCLI agreement you posted. Here's his response:

Hi Val,

The excerpt from the CCLI agreement ‘What You Can Do’ is only half of the story. Please read the following direct excerpt that immediately follows that section in the CCLI licensing agreement: (notice what I have in bold and especially in red)

What You Cannot Do (What the License does not cover)
Photocopy or duplicate octavos, cantatas, musicals, handbell music, keyboard arrangements, vocal scores, orchestrations or other instrumental works.
Translate songs from one language to another. This can only be done with the approval of the respective copyright owner.
Rent, sell, lend, or distribute copies made under the Church Copyright License to individuals or groups outside the church, or to other churches. However, you may distribute tapes to shut-ins, missionaries, or others outside the church.
Assign or transfer the Church Copyright License to any other church or group without CCLI's approval.

This means that you may distribute copies to your worship team and others INSIDE your church.

Further, in the case praisevocals.com (http://www.praisevocals.com) - we are the artist and the record company of the PraiseVocals Song Catalog and we are giving our customers the right to distribute copies of our recordings. This is known as a Master Use license. (the license to use our master recordings). PraiseVocals has acquired a Compulsory License from the music publishers so that our members may download the songs in our catalog. Praisevocals pays the song publishers and administrators accordingly.

Hope this helps.

Pat

[pian0dude]

This is considerably different and more informative than the answer I received several months ago when I asked the same question.

The part of the what you cannot do that was bolded, according to my understanding is referring to any photocopies or live recordings of your worship team (which CCLI permits) not being able to be distributed outside the church according to the terms metioned (renting, selling, etc.)

I guess if what Pat says is true, which I don't doubt it to be, than you can do what I said couldn't be done, however, I honestly asked this same question several months ago and was not given express permission as you were, so something must have changed in their agreements / arrangements with the labels.