Q. What (or who) is Church Music on Demand?

 

​A. Church Music on Demand is an online church music publishing company that was founded by Walter W. Schurr for the sole purpose of publishing his own music. Dr. Schurr is an established composer who has had music published by various traditional music publishers since 1978. But as most composers know, publishers often don’t publish your best music for various reasons, the most popular of which is “it doesn’t fit our needs for this year.” Online publishing provides a way to make this music available to a much wider audience at a lower cost than does traditional publishing.​

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Q. Why is your music not printed in the traditional octavo format?

 

​A. The simple answer to this is “because the customer cannot print in octavo format.” More and more frequently, publishers are offering their materials electronically—e-books, e-zines, e-print, e-choice, i-music. Even though it may not happen in our lifetime, we are convinced that the traditional “octavo” size of published choral music is about to become a thing of the past, in the way that 33-1/3 rpm records did, but with less nostalgic value. The “octavo” format was the result of a commercial size of paper that is no longer needed. Music sold electronically can be made available to you and your choir for less money than if you order traditional octavo music from a traditional publisher. Basically, you can double your music budget. Or better.

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Q. What’s the easiest way for my choir to use this new format?​

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A. For his choirs, Dr. Schurr purchased three-ring binders from an office supply store, one for each person. He puts a set of 10 tabbed dividers in each binder to separate the anthems. He prints them duplexed (2-sided) on 8½ x 11 paper, and punches the paper himself. Well, strictly speaking, his music librarian took care of that!  We recommend that you buy either pre-punched paper or a heavy duty paper punch that has large (9/32”) hole punchers. The pages will turn much easier with the large hole. When not in use, the anthems can be stored in hanging files in file cabinets. Music of this size stores better when it hangs in folders, and it is less expensive to do this than it is to buy those little black choral boxes for storage.

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Q:  Should I print single-sided or duplexed?

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 A:  The choral scores should be printed duplexed (two-sided) so that the choir turns pages as they normally would.  Instrumental parts may be printed on one side only, so they can be layed out on the music stands.  This way the instrumentalists won't have to turn pages.  And we have found that organ and piano parts are best printed single-sided on card stock, so that the pages can be spread out across the music rack. 

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Q. What about our existing octavo music?  Do we juggle two books or do we combine them?  Won’t my choir complain?  

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A. For a while, there was a new combination letter-size ring folio that also had elastic strings for holding octavos. But they don’t seem to be available anymore. Dr. Schurr’s choirs use two separate books—they are accustomed to juggling two books (not simultaneously, of course) during rehearsals. When you first introduce the concept of music in 3-ring binders, if you speak positively of the options you have gained, they will accept it. They may even look upon it as novel! It’s all about attitude. 

 

As for combining the books, it’s possible to punch holes in octavo music to make it fit in the loose-leaf binder, but quite often, you will find that you’ve punched out a note or two as well, or that the music may not open all the way. And putting both types of music in one book makes the the book almost too heavy to hold. It’s probably better to start with two books and when they need to be replaced, you can gradually update them with a combination folio. But if your choir sings a lot of music, two separate books may better serve your needs.

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Q. I have a small music budget.  How can I afford to make this transition?

 

​A. Here are a couple of ideas. First of all, remember that music purchased online is going to be cheaper. That will free up some of your budget to either add 3-ring binders or begin to replace your old folders, a few at a time. As we said earlier on this page, when you order music online, you’ve basically doubled your music budget. For example, if you purchased 30 copies of a traditionally published anthem for $2 each, you would spend at least $60. When you order music from Church Music on Demand, you get unlimited copies for one small price. Yes, you still have to print it. But most churches have a decent copier, and most directors have a decent printer. You can make those copies yourself for only the cost of the paper and a small bit of toner.

 

A second idea, and one that we’ve seen in action: Invite members of the congregation to “sponsor” the purchase of the new folios or binders. They can do this out of the goodness of their hearts or for a special purpose such as honoring a loved one or commemorating an anniversary. For a small, tax-deductible contribution, congregation members could quickly provide what you need, over and above your budget. And most of them will “sponsor” more than one folio. This process has been used to procure music, as well. At one church in Tucson, 12 new anthems were sponsored on one Sunday morning! Dedicatory information was printed in the bulletin on the Sunday that the choir sang that particular anthem. You just need two or three weeks of good, “catchy” publicity in the church bulletin, and the agreement of the pastor or worship committee.

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Q. Does Church Music on Demand publish music by other composers?

 

​A. Church Music on Demand publishes only compositions and arrangements by Walter W. Schurr.​

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Q:  Why do many of the anthems have instrumental parts, and do I have to use them?

 

 A:  We used to sell the instrumental parts separately, but it’s more cost-effective for you if we sell the “whole package,” even if you don’t use instruments. Each anthem will stand on its own using just the keyboard reduction found in the vocal score. If you do perform the anthem with instruments, you will want to be sure to use the part marked “organ” or “piano” rather than the reduction in the vocal score.

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Q:  How many copies can I print?

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A:  You may print as many copies as you need for your church. You will receive a letter (as a PDF) that licenses your church to print and maintain however many copies you need. You should keep a file with these licenses in the event there is ever a question about it.

              

Q:  Can you just mail me the copies I need?

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A:  No, simply because it is not cost-effective for us to do that.  When you buy the PDF, you may print however many copies you need, and in the future you may again print copies when you have more people in your choir, or if you need to replace any that may have gotten lost or damaged over the years.

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Q:  Who do we contact if there is a problem?

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A:  Please email us at churchmusicondemand@gmail.com and we will help you. Include your name and the name of your church, your phone number, the best time to call you, and your question. We will try to answer promptly by email, but if we need to call you, we can.​

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Q. So who is Dr. Schurr?

 

​A. He is a recently retired church musician who spent nearly seven decades as a choir director and organist, mostly in Presbyterian churches. Click here for his biographical sketch on our About page.

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Q. Is Dr. Schurr available for choral workshops?

 

​A. Yes, both as a clinician and as a vendor for Church Music on Demand. His specific areas of expertise include developing good choral sound, working with small choirs, accompanying congregational singing, and his specialty—writing and arranging for choir and instrumental combinations. He has also led workshops on crossing over styles (learning to play praise songs in addition to playing the organ), that he calls “Crossing the Bar.”