Music Director

East Grinstead Choral Society

Vacancy Type: Music Director

Application deadline:  midnight on Sunday 9th February, 2025

Description of vacancy

Following the resignation of our MD, Laurence Williams, who has been appointed as Director of Music at St Paul’s Cathedral, London, Ontario, we wish to appoint a new Music Director from September 2025.

East Grinstead Choral Society is a large leading amateur choir in West Sussex; the choir currently employs three professional musicians – Laurence as MD and two musicians who share the role of Accompanist and Assistant Music Director. Laurence will leave at the end of March and our two AMDs will “fill the gap” during the Summer Term.

We envisage adhering to a professional structure of an MD and an AMD who will work closely together to develop the choir both in terms of technique and concert performance.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and energetic MD with a good sense of humour and a positive approach who will build on the considerable achievements the choir has made since resuming in-person rehearsals in September 2021. The successful candidate will have the skills to work comfortably with an amateur choir of mixed ability in order to maximise the joy of singing for both singers and audiences.

About East Grinstead Choral Society

East Grinstead Choral Society (EGCS) is a non-auditioned choir which celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2022; it has a membership of over 100 singers drawn from East Grinstead and neighbouring towns. The atmosphere in rehearsals is warm and friendly and professionals are always made to feel welcome and part of the choir community. We rehearse on Thursday evenings, broadly in line with school terms, from 7.30pm to 9.30pm in the beautiful parish church of St Swithun’s in the town centre and perform either at St Swithun’s or at our local arts centre, Chequer Mead. East Grinstead is easily accessible from London by direct train and lies approximately 10 miles south of the M25 at Godstone and 30 miles north of Brighton.

The Society appointed its current Music Director, Laurence Williams, in January 2021. Under Laurence’s guidance the choir has gone from strength to strength; both choir and audience numbers have grown steadily and we have acquired a reputation for staging concerts of a high standard.

Our three annual concerts (in November/December, March/April, June/July) draw on a wide range of music encompassing the classical, modern and operatic choral repertoire and always involve professional soloists and instrumentalists. Recent performances include Rutter's Gloria with brass ensemble, a concert performance of The Mikado, an extremely moving performance of Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle and a sell-out performance of Handel’s Messiah with baroque orchestra.

As a choir we are keen to develop our outreach within the community and members are often invited to participate in local events. So far this season these have included: performing La Traviata with Barefoot Opera and singing Christmas Carols at our local hospital.

We have a close connection with St Mary’s Primary School, East Grinstead and, in line with our desire to introduce music to as many people as possible, its children’s choir is invited to take part in our concerts whenever appropriate.

St Swithun’s boasts a beautiful and recently refurbished Bechstein grand piano for rehearsals and a 3 manual well- maintained pipe organ for concerts.

The church is heated and well-lit, and has a beautiful acoustic.

Job Specification

The role of the Music Director comprises:

• leading weekly rehearsals (ca. 34 per season), including sectionals where appropriate
• preparing the choir for concerts (normally three per season) and other engagements as required
• arranging cover for absences as necessary
• working to improve members’ singing technique and musical knowledge
• liaising closely with the AMD on all matters relating to rehearsals and performances
• working with the Chair and/or other Trustees to devise varied and stimulating concert programmes at least twelve months in advance*

• attending Trustee meetings when appropriate and liaising with Trustees as required
• providing guidance and advice on musical matters as appropriate
• selecting suitable score editions and advising about hire
• sourcing, subject to agreement of the Trustees and within an allocated budget, soloists and instrumentalists
• preparing a written report for the choir’s Annual General Meeting each September.

• advising Chair and Publicity Manager on the content for flyers and printed programmes
• in conjunction with the Trustees actively promoting the choir in the wider community

• participating in an annual review of the choir’s development and strategic planning
• working with the Trustees to extend the choir’s reach to a wider and more diverse range of singers with particular reference to working with children and young people
• being available to support singers in activities that promote the choir, such as taking part in local events, workshops, choir trips/tours

The appointment will be for an initial term of three years, subject to an agreed probationary period

* We have already planned our concert programme for the 2025/2026 season. However, there is flexibility of concert repertoire for our new MD and, at this stage, potential flexibility of concert dates.

Person Specification

Essential skills/qualities

• Experience as MD or equivalent, with excellent conducting skills
• Excellent keyboard skills (piano)
• Experience as rehearsal pianist
• Ability to read (open) score parts fluently
• Ability to motivate choir members/amateur singers
• Ability to teach fundamental vocal technique
• Familiarity with choral repertoire, both sacred and secular, in varying genres
• Vision and commitment
• Reliability & punctuality
• Tact and diplomacy
• Good communication skills
• Friendly demeanour
• Ability to stay calm under pressure
• Ability to maintain a sense of humour in all situations

Desirable skills/qualities

• Experience of working with orchestras or other ensembles
• Proficiency as an organist
• Ability to transpose down a semitone to baroque pitch (we stress this is desirable, but not essential)
• Ability to collaborate with other professionals and, in particular, the AMD

Remuneration

• Weekly rehearsals attract a fee of £170 – £180 (2024/2025 rates) based on relevant experience; this fee includes rehearsal/concert preparation and any necessary admin undertaken by the MD
• The fee for ticketed concerts, including a pre-concert rehearsal, is currently £630
• Remuneration is reviewed annually

Applications are invited for this post by midnight on Sunday 9th February and should take the form of a curriculum vitae, along with a covering letter which outlines your suitability for the post.  Please supply the names and email addresses of two referees with whom you have worked recently, one of whom should be a professional musician. We reserve the right to contact at least one of your referees prior to interview.

To apply for this post, please send your CV and covering letter to the Secretary, Judi De Lang by midnight on Sunday 9th February (judidelang.egcs@icloud.com) 

We envisage holding interviews and auditions on Tuesday 18th February and Thursday 20th February (late afternoon and evening). Please indicate in your letter if you are unavailable for either of these dates and we will do our best to accommodate you.

We will contact short-listed applicants by Wednesday 12th February at the latest to confirm arrangements for interview/audition.

Interviews will involve a 40 minute discussion with two Choir Trustees and Adrian Goss, Director of Music and Organist at St Swithun’s; Adrian has close links with the choir and will be acting in an advisory and impartial capacity. Following refreshments and an opportunity to meet all six Trustees informally, there will be a 50 minute audition with the choir. The audition will include the following elements:

• warm-up (10 minutes)
• rehearsing a work familiar to the choir (10 minutes) (prepared)
• rehearsing a work unfamiliar to the majority of the choir (15 minutes) (prepared)
• rehearsing a work unfamiliar to the majority of the choir from the piano (prepared, open-score) (10 minutes)
• accompanying a work familiar to the choir (5 minutes) (unprepared)

We anticipate that applicants will be notified of the outcome w/c 24th February

If you would like to meet us all and experience a “normal” rehearsal before submitting an application, have an informal discussion about the post, or if you have any further questions, please contact the Chair, Janet Cole, at the email address below.

We look forward to reading your application.

Janet Cole

janetcole.egcs@gmail.com

Chair, East Grinstead Choral Society

www.egcs.co.uk