What are the responsibilities and job description for the Violin Shop position at Ifshin Violins?
Opportunity available
Do you love working with violins, violas, or cellos—not just playing them, but caring for them? Do you enjoy helping young musicians and their families? Are you energized by a busy, collaborative music environment?
If so, this may be the perfect position for you.
We are seeking a full-time Rental Department Associate who is both an enthusiastic string player and a reliable, hands-on worker. This role combines customer service with daily instrument maintenance, ensuring that every rental instrument leaves our shop looking, sounding, and feeling its best.
What You'll Do
In this position, you will:
- Perform daily instrument maintenance, including cleaning and polishing, basic varnish touch-ups, string changes, bridge and tuning adjustments, and other low-level repair and care tasks.
- Prepare instruments for rental, return, and exchange.
- Assist children, parents, and adult players in selecting appropriately sized instruments and understanding instrument care.
- Demonstrate instruments and answer questions from customers of all ages.
- Write contracts, process payments, and maintain customer records in our rental database.
- Support a busy retail workflow while collaborating with a friendly and experienced staff.
Our team takes pride in delivering excellent customer service, supporting one another, and providing instruments that meet a high standard of playability and appearance. The pace can be fast, especially during the school year, but the environment is supportive, musical, and rewarding.
What We're Looking For
The successful candidate will bring:
- Intermediate-level or higher skill on violin, viola, or cello. (You will be invited to play briefly for us.)
- Strong work ethic and comfort with hands-on tasks requiring patience, precision, and consistency.
- Experience working with children and their parents, and an ability to communicate clearly, kindly, and professionally.
- Previous in-person retail experience, preferably 2–3 years.
- Friendly, outgoing, and customer-focused personality.
- Ability to learn new skills quickly, especially involving instrument handling and maintenance.
- Excellent English communication skills.
- Strong computer skills, basic math ability, and good organizational habits.
- Attention to detail and the ability to manage multiple tasks at once.
- Availability to work Tuesday through Saturday.
Additional Details
This is a full-time, permanent position with competitive pay and benefits. Our shop is beautiful, spacious, and designed to support a positive work experience. Public transportation is convenient—we're just one block from the El Cerrito Plaza BART station.
If you meet the above requirements and are excited about the position, please submit your résumé (PDF preferred; Word or .txt accepted) to
No phone calls, please.
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: $ $27.00 per hour
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
Experience:
- violin, viola or cello playing: 3 years (Required)
Work Location: In person
Salary : $27