Director, Vocal Studies

Department

HUM Staff: Music SP Student Performance

About the Department

For over 90 years, the University of Chicago Department of Music has been a leader in the academic study as well as in the creation of serious music. With leading scholars in the relevant fields, the Department offers graduate degrees in Composition, Ethnomusicology, Music History, and Music Theory, as well as an undergraduate Bachelor of Arts degree in music. Beyond the classroom, the Music Department hosts a thriving co-curricular Performance Program that encompasses four choirs, two orchestras, a wind ensemble, two jazz ensembles, a percussion ensemble, as well as a South Asian, a Middle East, Early Music, and Afro-Cuban ensemble, plus specialized programs in chamber music, piano, and vocal studies. Open to all undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students at the University as well as faculty, staff, and community members, this wide-ranging Performance Program involves some 750+ musicians and offers an exceptional environment for artistic inspiration and musical growth. For students in the Music Department, it serves as a meaningful complement to their academic studies in music.

Job Summary

This position is designed with two goals: to help develop the technical and artistic skills of individual student singers, and to support the various choral ensembles within the Department of Music Performance Program. The Director of Vocal Studies is expected to provide individual and/or small group instruction, coachings, and workshops for student musicians accepted into the Vocal Studies program; prepare repertoire suggestions and supplemental activities to promote the development of each student’s musical skills and understanding; schedule additional workshops, master classes, and performance opportunities as appropriate; develop and offer a series of workshops on basic principles of proper singing, appropriate for singers in the University Chorus, Motet Choir, and Women’s Ensemble who have not had previous instruction in voice; be available to coach occasional rehearsals of those large choral ensembles, as requested; and arrange supplemental activities to promote a sense of camaraderie within the Vocal Studies program, and to encourage students’ further study and involvement in the musical arts.

This position is part-time, non-benefits eligible.

Responsibilities

• Plans and executes auditions, workshops, masterclasses, performances, and other relevant activities for students interested in developing their vocal skills.
• Clearly outlines expectations for participation in the Vocal Studies Program, with two available tracks: regular participation, characterized by casual involvement with no formal transcript recognition; and advanced participation, with a specific set of requirements that must be fulfilled in order to earn per-quarter transcript recognition for the student’s involvement in the program.
• Conducts auditions at the start of the academic year to evaluate the abilities of interested student musicians. Accepts an appropriate number of musicians into the formal program in Vocal Studies. The average number of musicians in recent years has been 15-20 students registered for transcript recognition, with close contact; and an additional 15-20 students as regular participants, with less frequent contact.
• Recommends or assigns repertoire appropriate to the current skills and artistic preferences of those individual students, with the concurrent goal of promoting their technical skills and expanding their musical horizons.
• Sets up a schedule for individual coaching sessions, available to all interested vocalists in the Program, and establishes clear procedures for students to sign up for such sessions.
• Provides group coaching sessions or studio classes on a regular basis throughout the academic year. Arrange for additional vocal coaches as needed, on an ad hoc basis, if student demand for coaching sessions exceeds the expected number of coaching hours in the director’s job profile.
• Arranges a variety of recital opportunities and showcase concerts for Vocal Studies student musicians, in conjunction with the regular offerings of the Department of Music Performance Program, such as Tea Time Concert Series, special showcase concerts, community engagement performances at Montgomery Place, etc.  Schedules individual students and/or small groups to perform on concert dates as reserved.
• Develops and offers a series of workshops on basic principles of proper singing, appropriate for singers in the University Chorus, Motet Choir, and Women’s Ensemble who have not had previous instruction in voice.  Works closely with the directors of the choral ensembles to create, schedule, and revise these group sessions, which should be offered approximately three times per quarter.
• Leads oc