When you enter Centennial Chapel on a Wednesday or Thursday morning, there are many ambient sounds and sights. Among those sounds is the beat of the snare drum, the clashing of the high hats, and the boom of the kick drum. Tyler Chapin is responsible for those sounds, whether he’s in the drum cage, or behind the mixing board.
Chapin is a sophomore majoring in Multimedia Communication with a concentration in Live Event Media Management at Olivet Nazarene University. Going to a school whose motto is “Education with a Christian Purpose,” Chapin sets out to fulfill that calling with his unique skillsets and talents. He serves as the drummer for The Narrow, a ministry team that travels in the summer and plays in chapel during the school year.
“That’s one of my favorite forms of ministry,” Chapin says. “It’s cool to think about how I’m able to use this ability that God gave me to praise him and help lead others to him.” Chapin’s musical talent doesn’t stop at the drum kit. He helps lead worship through his behind the scenes work as an audio technician. Even when he is running the console in the front of the chapel, Chapin is still connecting with the music and working to ensure that his practices go towards glorifying God.
“I still feel a real strong pull and connection with the music that’s being played, and it’s another area where I feel I can worship and minister,” he says. Chapin began these two talents through his faith. When he was only four years old, he loved the Newsboys and Toby Mac and would imitate the rhythms with his own drumsticks. One day his dad noticed the talent that he had in music. He began taking private lessons at a young age before joining his middle school band. He continued in band all the way through his freshman year here at ONU where he now partakes in the aforementioned ministries.
Chapin also began running audio before attending Olivet. At his home church in Michigan, he learned mixing and carried that ability throughout his musical career. As a musician and a sound engineer, Chapin benefits from both experiences.
Elliot Storey, another member of Olivet’s ministry teams and sound technician, feels similarly about what Chapin previously expressed. He mentions how as somebody who works hard to take on both roles, he admires seeing Chapin succeed on both sides of the ministry.
“Being a musician definitely helps,” Chapin says. “I have that ear where I know what could be better here or what I could have improved on. Music has definitely helped with knowing what would best help the mix.” One of Chapin’s favorite parts of his Olivet journey so far has been the 2025 summer which he spent traveling to Nazarene camps with his ministry team. Chapin expresses how connected the group became and how well they were able to come together to worship the Lord.
“Last February was when we found out who the bands were, and we just clicked right off the bat. We did get togethers throughout the school year and once summer hit, we were already super close and that bond is carrying through this school year,” he says. Both the role of drummer and audio technician remain prominent in the discipleship that Tyler Chapin exhibits towards the communities he touches.
