Director, University Chamber Orchestra

Department

AHD Staff:
Music SP Student Performance

For nearly 90 years, the University of Chicago Department of Music has been a leader in the academic study as well as 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 involves 750+ musicians and 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 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.

The University Chamber Orchestra (UChO) is an integral component of the instrumental wing of the Performance Program, which includes the University Symphony Orchestra, University Chamber Orchestra, University Wind Ensemble, and UChicago Percussion Ensemble. The UChO Director provides artistic leadership, musical instruction, performance guidance, and occasional individual coaching for student, faculty/staff, and community musicians interested in developing their musical proficiency and deepening their musical understanding through ensemble performance.

Specific duties involved include: planning two or more well‑balanced concert programs appropriate to the technical and musical capabilities of the ensemble members for the autumn and spring quarters; training and rehearsing the UChO as well as the cast and chorus chosen by the Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company for the annual G&S production at the end of the winter quarter, which includes three public performances;

leading all weekly rehearsals and all public performances of the ensemble; providing instructional materials and specific assignments to the student musicians; assessing and documenting the progress of those instructed; giving technical and musical feedback to individual students and advising on supplemental opportunities and advanced studies. The UChO Director works with students to help them improve their musical skills and deepen their understanding of chamber orchestra repertoire and ensemble performance, nurturing their lifelong involvement in the musical arts.

• Screening and phone interviews completed by early July.
• In‑person interviews and conducting auditions with the student ensemble scheduled during the second half of July.

• Program well‑balanced and engaging concert programs for the University Chamber Orchestra, featuring repertoire suitable for the available instrumental forces and appropriate for the technical level of the musicians. Incorporate collaborations, joint performances, and special projects with other Music Department ensembles or community music groups into the UChO season, insofar as possible. Schedule guest artists or Concerto Competition winners to appear with the ensemble periodically, as budget and circumstances allow.
  
  Recommended concert length: 50‑60 minutes.
• Prepare sheet music and other resources in advance of the first ensemble rehearsal each quarter. Collect sheet music at the end of each concert cycle and return it to the appropriate library.
• Make parts assignments, section assignments, and seating charts appropriate to the current skills and future development of the ensemble members.
• Conduct weekly ensemble rehearsals on Monday evenings from 7:00‑9:30 pm, preparing for quarterly concert performances. Arrange additional sectional rehearsals, workshops, and individual coaching sessions as needed.
• Create and distribute supplemental instructional materials to members to build basic musical skills, broaden musical…