Director of Music

Start date: January 1, 2027, or other date by mutual agreement. Part-time, exempt position averaging <20 hours per week, including Sunday worship and Thursday evening choir rehearsals.

About the role

The Director of Music shapes the worship life and faith formation of Knox Presbyterian Church through excellent and meaningful music. With the assistance of clergy, professional, and volunteer leadership, the Director of Music ensures that diverse and high-quality music offerings are available to the congregation and the wider community. The successful candidate will possess a vision for the future of the Knox music program, an understanding of music as a means of faith formation, and the advanced musical education and conducting experience required for the role.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Knox Choir (40 members, 8 professional soloists/section leaders) in rehearsals, worship services, and concerts.
• Provide feedback and guidance to the pastors and the Worship & Music Committee regarding the varied music offerings of the church.
• Develop and manage the annual Worship & Music budget in collaboration with the Worship & Music Committee and the Fresh Spirit Ensemble director.
• Oversee the care and curation of Knox’s musical instrument collection (organs, keyboards, handbells, and more).
• Manage the operations of the music program in collaboration with other Knox staff.
• Plan, prepare, coordinate, lead, and fundraise for the Knox Music Series, a long-running and successful series of free concerts, open to the public.
• Supervise and manage members of the church’s musical staff, including the organist, soloists/section leaders, assistant choir director/handbell director, and others.
• Actively recruit and retain members of the Knox Choir, both volunteer and paid, in collaboration with church staff and volunteers.
• Other duties as assigned by the Pastor/Head of Personnel.

Qualifications

• Advanced musical education and conducting experience.
• Vision for the future of the Knox music program.
• Understanding of music as a means of faith formation.
• Eagerness to work in a collaborative and friendly environment with Knox staff and musicians.

About Knox Presbyterian Church and the Knox Music Program

Knox Church (Presbyterian, USA) is a 1,000+-member church in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Cincinnati. The church is rooted in the Presbyterian tradition and possesses a strong belief in Jesus Christ. Knox’s mission, outreach, and social justice programs collaborate and partner with more than twenty local organizations. The church is characterized by a strong commitment to life-long learning and spiritual development and has robust education and music programs.

Music at Knox has a long history of excellence and is an integral part of worship. The music program includes the Knox Choir, the Fresh Spirit (contemporary) Ensemble, and Children, Youth, and Handbell choirs who participate throughout the year in worship and special programs. The Knox Choir consists of 40 volunteer members and eight professional soloists who lead worship from September-May. The choir possesses a large repertoire, ranging from a cappella miniatures to choral-orchestral works and commissions by leading composers.

Knox maintains a collection of high-quality musical instruments, including a renovated and expanded 50-rank Holtkamp pipe organ, a Steinway concert grand piano, a Flemish harpsichord, a five-octave set of Schulmerich handbells, and a Juget-Sinclair continuo organ. A major upgrade of audio-visual and technical equipment across the Knox facility was recently completed to enhance the online and in-church experience for the congregation. Knox’s extensive choral library contains more than eight hundred works, including several significant collections and anthologies.

As a service to the community, the church produces the Knox Music Series, offering major works for chorus and orchestra to the public free of charge. Music at Knox is supported by a generous endowment for special projects and the Earl Rivers Commissioning Fund, an endowment to advance Knox’s impressive legacy of commissions and premieres.

Pay

$35,000 – $45,000 annually.