Music Director/Organist/Pianist

Christ’s Community Church (PCUSA)

337 Riverview Avenue, Drexel Hill, PA 19026

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Job Description

The Music Director/Organist/Pianist  position at Christ’s Community Church (CCC) is a part-time position. The position requires weekly playing in the 9:30 a.m. worship, including piano and organ accompaniment for hymns, praise songs, and choral/special music throughout the year. This collaborative role requires approximately 6-8 hours of in-person contact/playing hours, and about the same allotted in personal practice time, either on or offsite, for a total of 12-15 hours/week, with extra hours for special services/holidays that include Holy Week services, Christmas Eve, etc. This position reports directly to the Pastor.  

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About Christ’s Community Church CCC

CCC is a congregation of the Presbyterian Church (USA) located in the Drexel Hill, PA. We are a congregation seeking to intentionally live into our mission, “To Know Christ and make Him Known.”  Our Sunday worship is informal in style incorporating traditional and contemporary elements. The Worship Leader (volunteer) and Praise Team leads congregational singing. Our church is in a season of change as we seek a new pastor.  We are excited about the possibilities this brings as we move forward.

 

Responsibilities:

• Revitalize and expand the Praise Team and Choir vocally and instrumentally. Lead hymns/praise songs from the piano/organ. Cultivate an appreciation for Christian music
  with our youth.

• Planning & preparing preludes/postludes for weekly Sunday morning worship

• Accompanying Praise Team/choir rehearsals and Sunday choir anthems

• Working with occasional soloists for special music offerings

• Funeral and wedding services (first right of refusal)

• Weekly meeting with Worship Team at mutually convenient time. At present, the Worship Team currently meets on Zoom 11:00 a.m. on Wednesdays

• Required Skills/Education:

• 2+ years relevant experience in a church setting (Bachelor’s Degree or higher in an area of music or equivalent skills)

• Excellent piano skills and ability to play the organ required, formal classical organ training highly desired

• Ability to read and play from chord charts

• Improvisational skills on organ/piano and ability to play/develop introductions and reharmonizations to hymns highly desired

• Willingness, flexibility, and ability to play various styles of music, from classic hymnody to spirituals to modern praise songs is essential

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Desired Qualities:

• A collegial attitude/team player

• A strong desire/call to serve in a church setting

• Growth-minded, and able to foster that growth (not just in ensemble numbers,
  but spiritually as well)

• A basic understanding of Reformed/Presbyterian worship

 

Instruments: Worship Center Organ built by Tellers 100 years ago, rebuilt by Tellers in 1960 has three manuals.

Compensation: Salary range is $14,500-$17,500/yr., commensurate with skills and experience. Wedding and Funeral fees are paid directly to the Organist/Accompanist and are in addition to the position’s stated salary. This position offers 4 Sundays off per year. Interested candidates should submit a resume, cover letter, and a 3-5 minute video that highlights both the organ and keyboard skills of the Applicant to Loretta Hartnett, lph1612@verizon.net, 484-444 2052 and Deborah Engell, dengell732@gmail.com,   610-299-1713.

1.26.24

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Organist and Director of Music

Christ Episcopal Church
62 Delaware St., Woodbury, NJ 08096
https://christchurch.woodburynj.org 856.845.0190

 

Christ Episcopal Church is a welcoming, diverse and robust congregation in the metropolitan Philadelphia region. Our sacred liturgy and music seek to express and balance God's transcendence and intimate presence. The parish provides many opportunities to engage in mission-minded outreach for families and individuals in our local communities and beyond.

 

The choir includes four paid section leaders and eight volunteers. They sing one service every Sunday morning and some holy days and currently rehearse on Sunday morning. The Organist and Director of music position is part-time at 15 hours per week. Salary range is $28,000- $32,000, commensurate with experience and includes 4 weeks paid vacation.

 

The Director will oversee an extensive music library and the parish organ: a two manual M.P. Möller Double Artiste with 12 ranks, unified at different pitches, with additional chimes. 

 

Applicants should have a minimum of a bachelor's degree or the equivalent in experience. The candidate should demonstrate excellent choral conducting ability, excellent planning, organizational, interpersonal, and communications skills. And have the ability to prepare a choir effectively in rehearsals to bring out its best. They will work well with choir members of all ages and skill levels to provide them and the larger parish with an edifying experience- both musically and spiritually.

 

For a full job description, visit https://christchurch.woodburynj.org/parish-musician-search/

 

Interested applicants may send a cover letter, resume, three references and links to videos or recordings of their organ performance, hymn accompaniment, and choral conducting, as available.

1.15.24

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The Presbyterian Church of Dover, Delaware PC(USA)

Music Director/Organist

 

Part time position, approximately 20 hours/week with a competitive salary. The Presbyterian Church of Dover, a Matthew 25 church, seeks an experienced music director/organist who will plan, play, and direct the offering of music for the Sunday worship service and other additional services as required. This person will also conduct one choir in rehearsal on Thursday evenings.

 

Specific Responsibilities

• Select, on a monthly basis, all liturgically appropriate choral and organ music for weekly services and other services as required in conjunction with the Pastor and Worship Committee on a monthly basis, as well as attend the monthly Worship Committee meeting

• Direct, accompany, and rehearse one choir on Thursday evenings and in warm-ups prior to all services

• Arrange for purchase of all choral/vocal music and music supplies in accordance with church budget, and maintain the 1200+ titles in the choral music library

• Communicate with Office Manager all necessary music and copyright information for worship bulletins in a timely manner

• Ensure that the church is meeting all requirements of copyright law for printed music and for livestreaming services; perform all copyright reporting in a timely manner

• Prepare and submit the music department budget annually

• Supervise and arrange for maintenance of the organ and pianos in conjunction with the Worship Committee

• Arrange for a substitute music director and organist when not able to be present

• Organize the recruitment of soloists and instrumentalists as opportunities arise

• Supervise the Handbell Choir Director

 

Resources

• 3 manual Allen Protégé Organ

• Kawai grand piano in sanctuary

• Kawai studio upright piano in choir room

• Worship space with excellent acoustics for vocal music

 

Qualifications/Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in organ/music/voice/related field or AGO certification

• Play the organ and piano at a level of competence which allows the musician to quickly learn new music; is skilled at sightreading and conducts with competence, including conducting from the console

• Proficiency in accompanying choirs and soloists in a variety of musical styles ranging from traditional sacred music to more contemporary genres

• Strong knowledge of sacred music and hymnody

• Interact cooperatively with Pastor, choir members, musicians, and the Worship Committee in order to deliver excellent music to enhance worship, and interact with congregation to build rapport and relationships

• Competency in computer skills, including use of Microsoft Word and Excel, and ability to communicate using email

 

Compensation

• Salary commensurate with experience; paid bi-monthly

• Weddings and funerals are compensated by the families and/or funeral home

 

Application

Interested applicants should send a cover letter, resume, and include three references from persons with whom they have worked within a church setting. Contact information must be included. Please send information to Rev. Dr. Mark Parsons at revdrparsons@gmail.com with the subject line “Music Director/Organist Applicant.”
Applications will be taken until the position is filled.

11.14.23

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Director of Music/Organist (Permanent Position)

Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church,
Abington, PA

 

Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Abington, PA, is seeking applicants for the position of Director of Music/Organist. The Director of Music plans and coordinates the overall ministry of music at Holy Trinity, working closely with the Pastor. This includes playing the organ, directing choirs and ensembles, and leading and teaching liturgical music and hymns in the congregation. Salary will be in the range $37,000–$47,000, based on education and experience. Two weeks’ paid vacation, pension, and health care with employee contribution are included. Candidates must pass a background check and obtain the child abuse clearance mandated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

 

Submit resume, professional references, and contact information to Sherry Breslin, skp.brez1@gmail.com. A full job description is available at https://www.holytrinity.net/open-positions/director-of-music/.

 

Holy Trinity is a congregation of the North American Lutheran Church (thenalc.org). Our mission is to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, worshipping, making disciples, and serving in his name. Our worship is Biblical, liturgical, and traditional, grounded in the Holy Scriptures as reflected in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and drawing from other classic and contemporary Lutheran resources. Video recordings of our most recent services may be viewed at holytrinity.net. We have a 20-rank, 2-manual Reuter organ, installed in 1963. An additional 6-rank gallery division was added in 2016, the console was rebuilt with solid-state equipment in 2001, and the reservoirs were releathered in 2022. We also have a 5-octave set of Schulmerich handbells; a

3-octave set of handchimes; a Yamaha U3 upright piano in the sanctuary and four pianos elsewhere; a Yamaha P60 electronic piano; a set of 3 Orff timpani; and digital steeple bells installed by Elderhorst Bells.

10.15.23

 

Director of Music Ministries

First Presbyterian Church of Newark, Delaware 

First Presbyterian Church of Newark, Delaware, (FPCN) seeks a Director of Music Ministries to lead its worship through organ playing, choir directorship and collaboration with the praise team to enhance our worship of God and strengthen our outreach to the community. In its recent revisioning process, the congregation strongly reaffirmed the importance of music in worship and their desire to support a successful candidate.

 

As an example of its commitment to quality worship and engaging community performers, FPCN refurbished its 650-seat sanctuary in the summer of 2022. The benefits included a drastic acoustic improvement, building a tiered choir loft located underneath the organ chambers, an extended chancel with great flexibility and an extensive upgrade to the audio, video and streaming capabilities. These enhancements coupled with a prime location on a major road in Newark and extensive, free parking makes FPCN an ideal venue for expanded music performance for both worship and concerts.

 

The location of the church is within walking distance to University of Delaware (U of D). U of D’s choral program is well regarded on the East Coast and its present director previously served the congregation and has a warm relationship with the congregation. Coupled with the numerous ensembles in Newark and Wilmington, a successful candidate will seek to engage these ensembles into the church for concert or worship and promote them to the greater Newark community.

 

The Director will work collaboratively with the pastor to coordinate the musical resources of the congregation. Presently, the congregation is producing one blended worship service utilizing the adult choir, praise team and handbell choir. To encourage ongoing participation in all ensembles, the present effort is to share the available music slots equally between music styles while serving the Biblical text and sermon theme for each Sunday.

 

This position is half-time, and compensation includes a stipend to help with medical insurance and/or other benefits. Presently the handbell choir is directed by a member of the congregation. If the Director has the skill set to lead the handbell choir, the position hours would increase to three-quarter time, and compensation would be adjusted accordingly.

 

FPC’s organ is a Moeller which was renovated and expanded by Robert Gladden and Associates in the early 2000’s. It is a three-keyboard movable console that contains 24 ranks of 1437 pipes; 40 digital stops which equal an additional 30 ranks; Harp, Celeste, and Degan Tower Chimes (all digital); existing conventional chimes; and a MIDI system with play/record and transpose capabilities. Also in the sanctuary is a fine Yamaha 3 Concert Grand Piano. 

 

Worship services are broadcast live and accessible for later viewing on YouTube. A link to a representative service is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVxuSzK3fH8&t=2207s.

 

To learn more about FPCN, visit our website at firstpresnewark.org. The link to a detailed job description is Job Description: Director of Music Ministries. For inquiries or to submit an application, contact humanresources@firstpresnewark.org or call the office at 302-731-5644.

9.7.23

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