Director of Music Ministries

About Wicker Park Lutheran Church

Wicker Park Lutheran Church (WPLC) is a vibrant, highly liturgical Lutheran (ELCA) congregation located in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Our worship is centered in Word and Sacrament, shaped deeply by the seasons and festivals of the church year, and grounded in strong congregational song. Our primary instruments are a historic 1906 M. P. Möller two-manual, 25-rank pipe organ with pneumatic action, Deagan Liberty Chimes, and Zimbelstern along with a Baldwin concert grand piano.

Music at WPLC is centered primarily in hymnody, organ, piano, choir, cantors, and small vocal ensembles, with regular use of global and ecumenical songs. Advent and Lent invite reflective and restrained musical leadership, while Christmas, Easter, and major festivals invite expansive joy and celebration. WPLC music ministry supports a high-liturgical worship community and does not use a praise-band model of worship. Traditional church music as well as new music that grows from those traditions are favorites of the worshipping community.

Music is a central part of WPLC’s worshiping identity and community life, helping connect Scripture, liturgy, congregational participation, and the seasons of the church year. We value musical excellence alongside broad participation and seek to create welcoming opportunities for singers and instrumentalists of varied musical experience.

WPLC is a Reconciling in Christ and Immigrant Welcoming congregation. We are committed to LGBTQIA inclusion, racial equity, immigrant welcome, disability inclusion, and the full participation of people of varied identities, backgrounds, and abilities. Applicants from non-Lutheran backgrounds are encouraged to apply!

Position Summary

The Director of Music Ministries supports WPLC’s highly liturgical worship and expansive mission by providing excellent organ and piano leadership, directing and accompanying seasonal choirs and vocal ensembles, leading confident congregational song, collaborating in liturgical planning, and helping singers, cantors, instrumentalists, and other volunteers participate successfully and grow musically. The Director combines strong musicianship with clear preparation, supportive leadership, and an ability to work with volunteers of varied musical experience.

This is a primarily Sunday-centered position with limited required weekday presence. The Director of Music exercises substantial professional discretion in selecting service music within WPLC’s liturgical framework and works collaboratively with the pastor, staff, and volunteer musicians. The Director of Music reports to the pastor.

Schedule and Workload

This salaried, part-time position does not track hours, and the time required will vary by the musician and liturgical season. Regular Sunday worship begins at 10:00 a.m. The Director of Music ordinarily arrives by 9:00 a.m. to prepare and rehearse with the cantor, singers, or other musicians. Sunday responsibilities generally conclude around noon unless a choir rehearsal is held after worship (which generally begins at 1 p.m. and lasts 60-90 mins). Choir rehearsals have not generally been held year long, but only in preparation for Lessons & Carols/Epiphany Sunday and Holy Week services.

Time for planning, preparation, and administrative responsibilities may be completed remotely. Because WPLC relies significantly on volunteer cantors, singers, and instrumentalists, advance planning, timely communication, and providing preparation materials are important parts of the position’s weekly workload. The Director of Music meets with the pastor weekly for approximately 30–60 minutes, by Zoom or in person, for worship planning, collaboration, supervision, and support. Staff meetings are held approximately every six weeks, with in-person participation preferred; meetings alternate between Sundays and weekdays as practical.

While this is a salaried position, to help best communicate the workload, we anticipate that it will average to approximately 10–12 hours per week across the year, though the distribution of those hours will vary considerably by liturgical season and by the individual musician’s preparation and work style. This generally includes about 3-4 hours onsite on Sundays and approximately 7-8 hours that is self-directed. Workload varies significantly by liturgical season, with additional preparation, rehearsal, and service time during Advent, Christmas, Lent, Holy Week, Easter, and other major festivals. An ordinary week would be approximately 7-11 hours, summer weeks are roughly 6-10 hours, Advent and Lent are about 9-15 hours with added rehearsals, and Holy Week is approximately 23-29 hours.

Worship Leadership

The Director of Music will:

• Lead congregational song through skilled organ and piano, and, when appropriate, vocal leadership.
• Play for weekly Sunday worship and required seasonal, festival, and special services (see below).
• Select preludes, postludes, offertories, Communion music, and other service music appropriate to the Scripture readings, liturgical season, and congregation’s worship life.
• Collaborate with the pastor in selecting hymns (generally three each Sunday), liturgical settings, musical styles, tempos, and leadership appropriate to each service.
• Exercise professional discretion in selecting non-prescribed service music within the congregation’s established liturgical framework.
• Introduce and teach new hymns, liturgical settings, global song, and other congregational music using methods appropriate to the assembly.
• Adapt calmly and professionally to occasional changes in worship plans, musician availability, and pastoral needs.
• Serve as cantor when appropriate or when another cantor is unavailable.

Regular additional services ordinarily include:

• Two Christmas Eve services at 4:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.
• Ash Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
• Two Thursday evening Lenten services at 7:30 p.m.
• Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil at 7:30 p.m.
• A single, early-December Saturday evening Lessons & Carols service
• Potentially two Easter Sunday services (currently a single 10 a.m. service)
• Christmas Day only when December 25 falls on a Sunday
• Occasional significant congregational events on Sundays, such as the Annual Meeting, a dedication, groundbreaking, or ribbon cutting

Cantors, Choir, Instrumentalists, and Other Musicians

For most Sunday services, the Director of Music recruits, schedules, rehearses, accompanies, and supports a congregation-based, volunteer cantor. When additional singers are available, the Director may form an ad hoc small vocal ensemble that rehearses before worship. Offertory and Communion music ordinarily involve sung leadership by a cantor, small group, or the congregation but may be instrumental.

Instrumentalists from within the congregation are utilized during Holy Week (Palm/Passion Sunday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday) and on feast days generally including Feast of St. Francis, Feast of Mary Magdalene, and Feast of Mary, Mother of Our Lord. Major festivals tend to incorporate volunteer and paid supply musicians generally including Epiphany Sunday, Easter Sunday, Pentecost, Easter Vigil, and Reformation Sunday. Paid musicians and select volunteers available are used for Christmas Eve services.

The Director of Music also:

• Recruits, rehearses, directs, and accompanies WPLC’s seasonal choir.
• Provides music, schedules, rehearsal expectations, and other preparation materials sufficiently in advance to allow volunteer musicians to prepare successfully.
• Works with the pastor and staff to maintain clear, welcoming, and regularly communicated pathways for members to participate as singers, cantors, and instrumentalists.
• Combines high musical standards with efficient preparation, clear expectations, patience, constructive feedback, encouragement, and pastoral sensitivity.
• Selects repertoire that is liturgically appropriate, musically substantive, suited to the participating musicians, and achievable within the available rehearsal time.
• Coordinates and supports volunteer and professional instrumentalists and singers.
• Encourages and develops the musical gifts of congregational members with varied levels of experience.
• Recruits, hires, and supervises supplemental musicians professionally and courteously.

Choir rehearsals are held on Sundays, generally either 8:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. or after worship 12:30 p.m. - 2 p.m. The choir’s principal rehearsal periods have been:

• Advent/ Lessons & Carols/ Epiphany music: Beginning in mid-October, with rehearsals on most Sundays in November, one rehearsal in early December, and a final rehearsal on the day of the service.
• Holy Week and Easter music: Approximately five Sunday rehearsals during Lent in preparation for Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday.

The choir also sings for Pentecost, Reformation Sunday, and occasional other services, generally with no more than two or three rehearsals for each occasion.

Developing Participation

The Director of Music will work with the pastor and staff to recruit singers, cantors, and instrumentalists and to strengthen participation in the congregation’s music ministry.

WPLC is particularly interested in developing thoughtful and sustainable opportunities for children to participate in worship as capacity, interest, and volunteer support allow. Most children currently involved in congregational life are age 11 or younger. Participation might include seasonal projects, intergenerational ensembles, hand chimes, percussion, congregational song, or other age-appropriate musical leadership. The position does not currently include responsibility for a standing children’s choir or handbell choir.

Planning and Administration

The Director of Music will:

• Meet weekly with the pastor for worship planning and one-to-one supervision and support for 30-60 minutes on Zoom or in person.
• Submit all musical selections and related information to the pastor and administrative staff by 8:00 a.m. Tuesday for the following Sunday.
• Maintain dependable communication with staff, cantors, choir members, and other musicians.
• Attend staff meetings approximately every six weeks, in-person is preferred.
• Provide the Congregation Council with a brief monthly email report, generally one or two paragraphs summarizing recent activities, significant needs, and upcoming plans.
• Manage the approved budgets for music purchases, supplemental musicians, continuing education, and related needs.
• Oversee WPLC’s physical and digital music library.
• Maintain and organize choir cassocks and surplices, including identifying cleaning, repair, or replacement needs.
• Oversee appropriate tuning and recommend any substantial repairs for the organ, pianos, and other musical instruments.
• Select music that is available through WPLC’s existing licenses or otherwise legally available for print, recorded, projected, and livestreamed worship - generally through licenses for Augsburg Fortress Liturgies, CCLI, and One License. Administrative staff are responsible for routine copyright reporting.
• Use email, shared documents, online scheduling, digital music resources, and other routine technology needed for worship planning and musician coordination.
• Build collaborative relationships with members, visitors, singers, and musicians in support of the congregation’s music ministry.

Weddings and Funerals

The Director of Music has the first opportunity, subject to availability, to provide music for weddings and funerals held at WPLC. These services are outside the salaried responsibilities of the position, and compensation is paid directly by the couple or family at rates established by the Director of Music in consultation with the Pastor.

Wedding responsibilities generally include consultation with the couple, music planning, attendance at the rehearsal, and musical leadership at the wedding. Wedding fees have historically been approximately $300.

For funerals and memorial services, the pastor generally works with the family to select congregational hymns, while the Director of Music selects or recommends additional service music. Families are ordinarily given a suggested honorarium range of $100–$250.

The Director of Music may establish additional fees when substantial rehearsal, coordination, or accompaniment of outside musicians is required.

Musical Resources

WPLC’s sanctuary contains:

• A historic 1906 M. P. Möller two-manual, 25-rank pipe organ with pneumatic action, Deagan Liberty Chimes, and Zimbelstern
• A Baldwin concert grand piano in the sanctuary
• A second Young Chang 5’ grand piano in the Social Hall
• Malmark Hand chimes - four octaves
• A limited selection of Malmark handbells
• Sanctus bells
• Djembe and assorted percussion instruments
• Fender guitar
• Choir cassocks and cottas

WPLC does not currently maintain a handbell choir, but the handbells, hand chimes, percussion, and other instruments may be incorporated into worship, seasonal music, children’s participation, or occasional ensembles as appropriate.

The Director of Music will have reasonable access to the sanctuary and instruments for position-related preparation, subject to the congregation’s building schedule and security procedures.

Required Qualifications

• Demonstrated high-level proficiency on both organ and piano
• Demonstrated ability to lead confident, engaging congregational singing
• Experience directing and accompanying choirs or vocal ensembles
• Ability to rehearse cantors, soloists, and volunteer musicians efficiently and supportively
• Familiarity with high-liturgical Christian worship, hymnody, and the church year, or demonstrated ability and interest in developing that knowledge.
• Ability to use provided resources to select music appropriate to Scripture, liturgical season, and congregational context
• Ability to lead hymn-centered worship with sensitivity to text, tempo, registration, style, and congregational participation
• Ability to work independently while collaborating closely with the pastor and staff
• Strong organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills
• Ability to work respectfully with musicians of varied ages, backgrounds, abilities, and experience
• Ability to combine musical excellence with patience, humility, encouragement, and pastoral sensitivity
• Support for WPLC’s inclusive ministry and congregational values
• Ability to pass a background check

Preferred Qualifications

• Degree or advanced study in organ, church music, sacred music, piano, conducting, or a related discipline
• AGO certification or comparable demonstrated professional development in organ and church music
• Experience in Lutheran (ELCA) worship
• Familiarity with Evangelical Lutheran Worship, Sundays and Seasons, and related resources
• Strong singing ability and experience serving as a cantor
• Experience with a historic pipe organ
• Experience recruiting and developing a volunteer choir
• Experience coordinating professional instrumentalists and guest musicians
• Familiarity with global and ecumenical congregational song
• Familiarity with music-notation software or digital music resources

Compensation and Professional Support

Annual salary: $25,000 - $30,000 commensurate with experience, education, and demonstrated qualifications. The benefits also includes:

• Four planned paid Sundays away during each full calendar year
• Separate paid sick and safe leave following Chicago’s ordinance
• WPLC-funded substitute-musician costs for approved absences
• Optional employee-paid participation in pre-tax medical, dental, vision, and retirement benefit plans
• Up to $500 annually for continuing education and professional development, including AGO or ALCM membership, workshops, conferences, lessons, coaching, and relevant resources
• Ability to use WPLC’s spaces, pianos, and organ for private lessons
• Separate compensation paid directly by couples and families for weddings and funerals
• An introductory review after approximately 90 days with an annual performance and compensation review thereafter

The position also includes:

• An annual budget of approximately $3,600 for supplemental musicians at major liturgical services
• An annual music-purchase budget of approximately $300
• An annual instrument-maintenance budget of approximately $2,020

For planned paid Sundays away, the Director of Music is responsible for identifying a qualified substitute, subject to approval by the pastor. WPLC pays the approved substitute separately. For illness, emergency, or another unforeseeable absence, WPLC assumes responsibility for arranging substitute coverage.

Planned paid leave is not ordinarily available for Epiphany Sunday, Ash Wednesday, Palm/Passion Sunday through Easter Sunday, Pentecost Sunday, Reformation Sunday, Lessons & Carols and its final rehearsal, Christmas Eve, or Christmas Day when worship is scheduled. These restrictions do not apply to lawful sick, safe, or other protected leave.

Application Process

To apply, submit your application and materials through Indeed. This will include:

• A résumé or curriculum vitae
• Brief responses describing their interest in the position and relevant worship-music experience
• Links to representative recordings of both organ and piano playing, if available; a recording demonstrating congregational hymn leadership is strongly preferred

Applicants may be invited to a brief Zoom conversation with a member of the search team. Finalists will be invited to WPLC for an approximately 90-minute interview and practical audition plus a 15-minute rehearsal with a provided cantor.

The practical audition is expected to include:

• One prepared organ selection and one prepared piano selection, each chosen by the candidate. During one selection, the candidate will be asked to respond to a simulated liturgical delay by extending the music naturally until receiving a cue to conclude.
• Leading several verses of a congregational hymn provided in advance.
• A brief sight-reading exercise using representative service music, played on either organ or piano at the candidate’s choice.
• Approximately 15 minutes to independently prepare and rehearse a psalm with a WPLC cantor, followed by leading the psalm.
• A structured conversation with the search team regarding worship and liturgy, collaboration, volunteer leadership, organization and communication, and the development of WPLC’s music ministry.

Candidates invited to audition may arrange up to two hours of advance access to the instruments and worship space.

The anticipated start date is mid-October to November 2026.

Pay: $25,000.00 - $30,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Paid time off
• Professional development assistance

Application Question(s):

• What interests you about the Director of Music Ministries position at Wicker Park Lutheran Church (Chicago, IL)?
• Briefly describe your relevant worship-music experience, including experience with organ and piano, congregational song, choirs or vocal ensembles, and volunteer musicians. (150–350 words.)
• Please provide links to some representative organ and piano recordings, if available. At least one congregational hymn recording is especially helpful.

Work Location: In person

Salary : $25,000 - $30,000