Organist/Accompanist Music Associate

Job Summary

Job Description

Organist / Accompanist – Music Associate

The Fredericksburg United Methodist Church is seeking an Organist/Pianist for musical support in our traditional worship services as well as assist in the leadership of the music ministries of the church. The worship support will involve performance using the 2 manual 25 rank Flentrop Orgelbouw pipe organ (tracker) as well as the Steinway Model D 9-foot piano. The accompanist will support the Chancel Choir during Sunday worship and rehearsals on Wednesday evenings. The Music Associate will direct, or assist in the direction of, other musical groups or projects per experience and as the need arises. They will also assist in the overall management of the music ministries of the church.

This position is 20 hours per week and the salary is $24k-$28k depending on experience and training.

Responsibilities: 
Accompanies congregational worship via organ or piano and supports the Chancel Choir in regular Sunday worship and other special performance settings such as Easter and Christmas. Serves as the associate music director in all areas of the music ministry giving leadership in current groups as well as creating new musical opportunities. Assists in the leadership of the Fredericksburg Music Academy and may teach privately through the Academy STUDIOS and help with the after-school programming.

Work schedule is based on 20 hours each week but may fluctuate. Most weeks' work schedule will be Sundays at least 3 hours (9:30-12:30), Wednesday evenings at least 3 hours (5:00-8:00), and the remaining 14 hours arranged per availability.  

Minimum Requirements: 
The position requires the following specialized skills and experience:

* Ability to accompany and coach soloists and musical groups
* Ability to quickly learn organ techniques and read Dutch labels
* Ability to sight read at the piano
* Understanding of orchestral techniques and styles

Additional Qualifications: 

* Undergraduate degree in piano OR demonstration of equivalent skills.
* At least 3 years accompanying experience, demonstrating a knowledge and breadth of styles and repertoire for church worship applications
* Reliability is a must!
* Ability to organize and prioritize work and work independently as needed
* Excellent interpersonal skills; good communication and excellent time management

Application Deadline: Position will remain open until filled.

To Apply: 

Please attach a resume and a cover letter of interest and send via email to: [email protected]

OR send via letter to:

Don Doss
1800 N. Llano St.
Fredericksburg, TX 78624

Additional Information: 

The Fredericksburg Methodist Church is home to one of four Flentrop Pipe Organs in the state of Texas, and the largest with 2 manuals and 25 ranks.  The Flentrop Orgelbouw was created in Zaandom Netherlands, then shipped and rebuilt in Fredericksburg in 1986.  Flentrop is considered to be one of the finest and highest quality of all ‘tracker’ organs.  The tracker organ has no electronic parts, only physical rods that manipulate the valves on each pipe, much like the organs that were available in Bach’s day.  The sound of the pipes during worship is incredible as it fills our sanctuary and surrounds the congregation! The organ is tuned and cared for by Michael Visser from Houston, Texas, annually or as the need arises.

The Flentrop website - https://www.flentrop.nl/orgelbouw/freder_texa_meth.html - with picture
Pipe Organ Database - https://www.pipeorgandatabase.org – organ #8786

The church is considered to be a musical centerpiece of Fredericksburg as it is the home of the Fredericksburg Music Club which brings nationally recognized musicians to perform a monthly concert for the Club’s series in the church’s sanctuary. Concerts are usually on the third Sunday of each month at 3:00. https://www.fredericksburgmusicclub.com

The Chancel Choir brings a serious musical worship experience for Easter and/or Christmas using our own instrumentalists and professionals to have orchestral accompaniment. Most recently we presented the Christmas portion of the Handel’s Messiah. https://fredumc.org/sermons/2021handelsmessiah/

A major effort of the Music Ministry is the Fredericksburg Music Academy, beginning 15 years ago as after-school music training for elementary children.  Children are picked up at the two schools and transported to the church where they get a snack and go to three classes in theory, voice (Choir) and instrumental participation (bells, recorder, etc.) Through the Covid year we began the STUDIOS which is private instruction on guitar, ukulele, violin, voice, piano, and flute. The Covid years shut down the after-school program, but STUDIOS prospered so we have as many taking private study as we had coming after school. The Music Assistant will be involved in the Academy through a variety of ways depending on training and experience.  STUDIOS happens at all hours through the week, Academy classes will be on Tuesdays after school while string classes will be on Thursdays.

The Music Academy is a satellite site for the Hill Country Youth Orchestra program based in Kerrville.  FMA hosts beginning string classes and HCYO provides on-site instruction for the next two sequential string classes as they advance up to High School performance level. This has been a part of the Music Academy program since 2014. https://www.hcyo.org