Now Hiring: Director of Music
To our future Director of Music:
Grace and Peace to you.
Like all congregations, University Presbyterian Church seeks to love God and neighbor. This collection of 1,200 disciples hopes we do that in a way that is intentionally intergenerational and unabashedly welcoming. Our culture is a mix of deeply reformed/traditional and creatively playful. In our congregation’s DNA is an expectation of and deep appreciation for excellence, while prioritizing warmth, accessibility, and humility. We take the gospel’s call very seriously, and ourselves less so.
The congregation’s health is supported by an energetic staff who collaborate together with a high level of trust. The Director of Music is a crucial, fully integrated player. Members of this team are well-loved by the congregation and supported to dream and build in areas they are most passionate about. The importance of study and rest is also modeled in generous annual continuing education leave, paid time off, and a three-month sabbatical for every five years of tenure.
Sunday worship attendance is around 400 (between two services), and young families and children make up a large percentage. In addition to directing the Chancel Choir, the Director of Music also directs or oversees the children’s and youth music ministry.
The church building completes the north quadrant of the UNC quadrangle formed by Old West, South, and Old East Buildings on the original campus of the nation’s first state university. UNC undergraduates currently serve as our Choral Scholars (5 stipend section leaders), Organ Scholar/Music Resident (compensated with room and board in our church apartment), and a number of our Presbyterian Campus Ministry students are also involved in the music program. The connections to other universities in the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill “Triangle” also enliven our Concert Series. There are a wealth of opportunities to engage the larger community in making and sharing music.
Our Robert Sipe Organ, a versatile instrument of 51 ranks, was installed in 1983 and a Steinway B was acquired for the chancel in 2022. In preparation for UPC’s bicentennial in 2029, the Session is considering a capital campaign, inclusive of the creation of a chapel worship space and a sanctuary renovation under the consultation of an acoustician and liturgical designer. The renovation would include the installation of a new hard floor surface to improve the sanctuary’s lively acoustics.
Interested applicants are encouraged to submit a CV and one-paragraph responses to each of the three questions below to apply@upcch.org.
Peace,
Rev. Meg Peery McLaughlin
Co-Pastor
Questions
- What brings you joy as a musician in worship?
- What makes working relationships with pastors and colleagues the most fruitful, compelling, and affirming for you?
- What vocational “next step” do you imagine this position being for you?
Position Title: Director of Music
Reports to: UPC Head of Staff/Co-Pastor
Directly Supervises: Music Resident, Choral Scholars
Status: Full Time FLSA: Exempt
Salary Range: $77,000-$87,000; competitive benefits
Job Summary
Direct the music program of University Presbyterian Church, Chapel Hill. Foster a culture of worship through music that directs glory to God, encourages and equips the congregation to sing the faith, welcomes the gifts of God’s people, and deepens discipleship. Serve as both principal organist and choir director.
Essential Functions
- Foster congregational worship through organ playing, choral music, hymnody, supportive accompaniment and music education.
- Partner in leadership with pastoral staff through planning and coordinating hymn choices, choral, organ, and instrumental music in all worship services.
- Arrange for pastoral and musical leadership for memorials, weddings, and other special services.
- Plan, equip, rehearse, conduct, and build community within the Adult, Youth, and Children’s Choirs.
- Oversee maintenance of instruments, choral library, and tools for worship.
- Discern with congregation, colleagues, and choirs the significance, history, and hopes for music ministry.
- Practice financial stewardship and oversight of worship and music budget.
- Offer leadership at Montreat Worship and Music Conference, Vacation Bible School, and the Congregational Retreat.
Core Competencies
- A wide-ranging knowledge of congregational song and sacred choral literature.
- Strong choral conducting skills.
- Flexibility to transpose and improvise as appropriate.
- Steady – Calm and grounded. Leads with purpose in mind.
- Creative –Generative of ideas, agile with group work, and nimble at the bench. Thinks creatively about incorporating music from a wide range of genres, cultures, styles, and practices. Endeavors to diversify voices and gifts within the music ministry.
- Invitational – Goes beyond “open door” into intentional inclusion. Invites participation in musical leadership and conversation about the future.
- Pastoral – With a shepherd’s heart, tends to the spiritual life of our congregation, especially those who find a special connection to the church and their faith through music.