What does a Church Musician do?
While many people who think of church music may picture a choir singing from a balcony, the truth is that there are as many ways to incorporate music into worship as there are to practice Christianity. Some churches stay close to their religious musical traditions, employing organists to accompany sermons and lead the congregation or choir in hymns. Others construct eclectic church bands, which might play original compositions in contemporary or experimental genres for the church community.
At a Glance
Both organists and church band members can become worship leaders, which means an increased focus on organizing rehearsals, selecting music, and leading the congregation. Church musicians also frequently use their experience working with members of the congregation to enter the field of education, working for schools or creating community music programs.
Church musician positions are easy enough to find, as they're posted online with great frequency. The hard thing is finding one nearby whose worship tradition and musical style both suit the applicant, and which can pay a living wage.
Strong instrumental skills (organ, keyboard, hand bells, guitar, bass, drums, brass, woodwinds, and voice); knowledge of hymns and traditional Christian music; musical performance
Church musicians should be passionate about music and religion. Musically, the best church musicians intuitively understand how to support the pastor’s work and to improve the worship experience for others. The ideal church musician is also an involved member of the church community, whose excellent communication and education skills make others feel at ease and excited about music.
While church musicians are not necessarily expected to be actively religious, or to follow the same sect of Christianity as the church they play for, most are active members of the congregation and community who perform this role as a side gig. Generally, church musicians live near the churches for which they play, and combine this part-time position with other jobs (as a general business musician, for example) to pay the bills.
