St. Paul Catholic Church in Damascus, MD (Archdiocese of Washington, DC) is seeking a pianist to play at various Masses. The church unfortunately does not have an organ, but musical accompaniment at sacred liturgies is provided on a Steinway grand piano. A schedule is created bimonthly of pianists for Sunday Masses and Holy Days. The weekend schedule includes a Saturday Vigil Mass (5:00 PM), a Sunday morning Mass with choir (8:30 PM) and two other Sunday Masses (11:00 AM and 5:00 PM) typically covered by contemporary groups.

The role of the pianist sought would be to accompany Masses with a cantor or choir. Musical repertoire for the assembly is taken from OCP resources, with a focus primarily on traditional sacred music at the Masses for which pianists would support. While the resources are humble and the ministry largely relies on volunteers, the highest quality of music is still sought. In the past year, the choir has started to develop a chant repertoire and some Latin.

There are two to three other pianist/accompanists already providing services to the parish for the music ministry schedule. This call is to seek an additional one or two pianists in the area to round out the schedule. While not required, it is additionally helpful if the pianist can provide vocal leadership from the keyboard in the event a cantor is unavailable. Because of the flexibility of the schedule that is developed with multiple musicians, several of the pianists/accompanists regularly play at other parishes as well. Interested pianists may have availability for only the 5 PM Saturday Mass or 8:30 AM Sunday Mass or flexibility for either. Other Mass times requiring a pianist are rarer but do sometimes present as needs (i.e. throughout the summer, special Holy Days).

This is a flexible position for one who is not interested in taking on a regular church position or perhaps already has another church position and would be available to take on additional Masses a few times a month. This may also be a good opportunity for a college/university music student or skilled piano student. Compensation is $100-$125 per Mass depending on skill level and extent of musical involvement for the liturgy. Rehearsals are only a run-through 20-30 minutes before Mass with cantor or choir. There is a separate choir director; the accompanist would support only at Mass and does not attend the weeknight choir rehearsal.

For more information or to arrange an audition, please contact Larry Caines, at music@stpauldamascus.org.