NEW COLLEGE, OXFORD APRIL 2014
POST OF ASSISTANT ORGANIST
FURTHER PARTICULARS
The College intends to appoint a full-time Assistant Organist with effect from 1 September 2014, following the appointment of Steven Grahl as Director of Music at Peterborough Cathedral.
The principal duties of the Assistant will be to accompany the Chapel Choir, assist with the training of the choristers, and deputize for the Organist when he is absent. There will be some administrative duties. The successful applicant will have time and opportunity to develop his or her personal musical career alongside the post. The Assistant will be required to keep school terms (these being longer than the University Terms during which the Choir sings its daily offices). He/she will also be expected to be available for the periods when the Choir tours and/or records.
The annual salary will be £25,000-£30,000 commensurate with experience (equivalent to points within the university scale 5). The Assistant Organist has an office next to the chapel (with computer facilities) which doubles as a chorister teaching room; modest accommodation may be available (away from the main college site), at a small rent.
New College is one of Oxford’s choral foundations. The Choir plays an important part in the College’s religious, educational and cultural life, enjoying an international reputation for its enterprise and choral excellence. The Organist combines the direction of the Choir with the roles of Fellow and Tutor in Music in New College and University Lecturer in the Faculty of Music. On 1 September 2014 Robert Quinney will succeed Professor Edward Higginbottom as Organist. The College is seeking a musician who can contribute at the appropriate level of expertise and distinction. The Choir website (
The Choir comprises 30 voices: 16 trebles and 14 adults (4 altos, 4 tenors and 6 basses). The adult singers are a mixture of layclerk and academical clerk (choral scholar) voices.
Choral services are held on six evenings a week during University Term, amounting to approximately 24 weeks through the year. There is no Sunday morning commitment. The chorister terms run from early September to mid December, early January to late March, and late April to early July. Choir tours have generally occurred in December (preceding Christmas), during the Easter vacation, and for up to two weeks in the summer. Recording sessions normally take place outside term. The Choir is not required to sing at Christmas and Easter. There are two or three College singing duties standing alongside the regular services (St Thomas’ dinner in December; Gaude in late June). The choristers are educated at New College School, an independent preparatory school for boys, member of IAPS and CSA. The School takes only day pupils. These, including the choristers, are recruited locally. The School has an established reputation for its academic achievements (over half the leavers regularly obtain scholarships and other awards to their senior school), and for its music. The School buildings are situated very close to the College.
The organ of the Chapel was built by Grant, Degens and Bradbeer in 1969. It was a pioneering instrument in its time, demonstrating the virtues of mechanical action, open- foot voicing and Werkprinzip layout. It remains a first-class instrument, versatile enough to accompany the music of Howells, and also convincing in 18th-century idioms. A major restoration of the organ, by Goetze and Gwynne, is currently in train, and will be completed by October 2014. The chapel runs a termly series of organ recitals on a Sunday afternoon, in which the Assistant Organist plays an important role.
The Assistant Organist will have as a primary task the accompaniment of the Choir in services and other contexts. This will require a sound technique, requisite experience and an effective musical rapport. The Choir’s repertory is eclectic and includes items with demanding organ accompaniments (such as Duruflé’s Requiem and transpositions for 18th-c music). The Assistant will be expected to offer organ voluntaries showing resourcefulness, a wide range of repertory, and playing of a high order. He/she will also work with the organ scholar(s), offering musical and technical training, and generally assuming responsibility for the development of their skills. The Chapel organ is available for practice during large parts of the day, both in and out of term.
The training of the choristers and probationer choristers is a central part of the Organist’s task. The Assistant will be expected to make a significant contribution to their musical and vocal development, alongside a team comprising also the School Director of Music and his staff, and the College’s singing teacher. The Assistant will also be available to participate in the general management and supervision of the choristers when they are in College. Ideally, he/she will have had some experience of working with children, and as a requirement will be a person suited to this task. A knowledge of vocal technique will be an advantage. The Assistant Organist takes free singing lessons with the Choir’s singing teacher (paid for by the College).
From time to time the Organist will be absent, and require the Assistant to stand in for him, directing the Choir, and taking full responsibility for the choristers whilst on College premises and during the accompanied walk back to the School. Similar responsibilities may be required on tour, and will require liaison with the Headmaster of the School, and compliance with relevant risk assessments and Health and Safety policy.
As regards administrative duties, these will be to oversee the tuning and maintenance regime for the organ, in consultation with the Organist. There may be other duties of an administrative nature, such as liaising with the Chapel Office on the production of music lists, service papers, and the like, and keeping a general supervisory eye over the smooth running of the Choir music library. The Choir runs a sixth-form singing scheme, which is managed by the Assistant Organist and the Chapel Office. He/she also plays a key advisory role in the development of the Choir’s webcast and is able to take advantage of the recording system for professional use.
The Assistant Organist will report to the College Organist. The overall provision of music in the Chapel is overseen by the Precentor.
Candidates for the post should also note the following:
Working hours - Standardized working hours are not envisaged. The Assistant must always be available when the Choir is on duty, at all rehearsals and services, concerts and tours, and recordings. Permission may be given for occasional absences. The weekly contact hours with the Choir during University term may be reckoned to be circa 18, diminishing during the school term, when chorister practices continue but services cease. The Assistant will also spend additional hours preparing music (voluntaries and accompaniments), and assisting with administration. For the purposes of the job, this is reckoned to be circa 10 hours a week during term. When the Choir is in effect on vacation, the Assistant will also be on vacation (with a formal holiday allowance of six weeks, plus any deferred bank holidays), with the proviso that he/she will continue to monitor administrative tasks allocated, and ensure adequate preparation for the Choir’s return from vacation. Free staff lunch is provided whilst on duty.
Pension – On starting employment, the post-holder will automatically be enrolled into the Universities Superannuation Scheme (employers’ contribution presently circa 16% of salary) and employees’ contribution (depending on qualifying criteria) either 6.5% or 7.5%).
Equal Opportunities - The College is an Equal Opportunities Employer.
DBS Clearance – the successful applicant will require DBS clearance at enhanced level.
The closing date for applications (covering letter, CV, and the names of two referees) is 16 May 2014; interviews and assessments will be held on Wednesday 4 June. Please respond to the Chapel Administrator, New College, Oxford, OX1 3BN, or by email to [email protected].