Juggling the band:congregation ratio

The larger the church; the larger the band.

Which comes first?

Does your band expand to fit the congregation or does the congregation grow to match the band?

Furthermore, if the later is true, how large do you risk making a worship band before expected growth appears?

I’ve been in a number of congregations where the band, at times, has equalled  a quarter of those in attendance. In theory, any service with approximately twenty attendees, runs the risk of a significant proportion of band:congregation.

But, what if you have a mid-sized congregation wanting to grow?

Are you comfortable with having ten members of the band for fifty to eighty people? Between a regulation three singers, piano, drums, two guitars and bass, reaching double digits isn’t beyond comprehension.

I wonder, when do you expand, and when do you consider contracting?

With a band of 4-5, when do you expand?
With a band of 8-10, when do you reduce?

Primarily, the answers depend upon the options of musicians available and the musical quality a church leadership is desiring, not warm gobies on stage.

But, surely, a church must have a ratio when they feel that the balance between band and congregation has been thrown out of whack.