Interim Organist/Pianist (Westport, CT)

INTERIM ORGANIST/PIANIST (SAUGATUCK CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, WESTPORT, CT)

Saugatuck Church seeks an adaptable and engaged candidate for the role of Interim Organist/Pianist. This is an interim position to be filled while the Church searches for a permanent successor to its previous Music Director who recently resigned. The Interim Organist/Pianist would perform services beginning with morning worship on Sunday, September 12, 2021 and continuing until the permanent position is filled. The Interim Organist/Pianist would be eligible to apply for the permanent position but should not expect to become a preferred candidate as a result of serving in the interim position.

The successful candidate should be an experienced and confident church musician proficient in playing the Church’s Steinway grand piano and its newly installed (2019) Klais two-manual, Baroque style tracker pipe organ during services. The musician would provide the music for weekly 10 am worship, which may include a prelude, hymns, and a postlude, as well as services on Christmas Eve, Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday and Easter Sunday. The musician would also be expected to accompany vocal soloists who regularly sing at the Church, but this position would not require the musician to obtain the services of soloists.

The position does not include responsibility for rehearsing and conducting the Church’s choir, which has not been singing since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and is not expected to resume singing until the new permanent musician is hired.

The musician will report to and work with the Saugatuck Church pastor, Alison Buttrick Patton, at mutually agreeable times to plan worship together, choosing special music offerings, and identifying short songs for worship. This position is for an experienced organist/pianist, and there will not be another person on staff to provide mentorship and guidance related to organ and piano playing.

The musician will be expected to oversee and schedule the maintenance of the Church’s organ and piano. The musician will also be expected to be technically conversant in using hardware and software currently available to the church in connection with piano and organ playing.

The musician will be entitled to a right of first refusal for funeral/memorial services and weddings and rehearsal. Rates of payment for said services are established by Saugatuck Church.

Compensation for playing at church services will be at the rate of $200 per service played.

To apply, please send a resume and contact information for three references to Saugatuck Church Personnel Committee member John Canning: canningj@alumni.princeton.edu (link sends e-mail).

Applicants will be asked to interview with John and Rev. Alison Buttrick Patton in person (preferred) or over Zoom. The interview will include playing hymns and other appropriate organ and piano music.

Information on Saugatuck Congregational Church may be found at www.saugatuckchurch.org