TDPS is hiring a Dance Musician

The dance musician will have experience as an accompanist for dance in a array of styles.

The University of Maryland School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies (TDPS) is searching for a dance musician with the knowledge and skills specific to dance accompanying including: an array of musical repertoire; improvisation; arrangement of music as needed for dance phrasing; ability to shift tempo, quality, and character of music choices with alacrity. To begin August 2020. Candidates for this position are prepared to play for all levels of contemporary modern dance and ballet, and potentially play for global dance forms in a modern dance-based dance program. Essential to the position is the ability to collaborate with and accompany dance instructors in the dance class setting. Candidates understand how to help students learn embodied practice in an academic context. The candidate will play for classes in the graduate and undergraduate levels for the MFA in dance, BA in dance, and general education students.

The successful candidate will have experience as a dance musician and have digital editing skills. Candidates who have experience working with a diverse range of dance artists and who can contribute to the climate of inclusivity are encouraged to identify their experiences in these areas.

Dance musicians are encouraged to be actively involved in the intellectual and artistic life of the School, the College of Arts and Humanities, and the University community.

This search is contingent upon funding. Women, under-represented minorities, and international artists are strongly encouraged to apply.

This is a 50% FTE (20 hours per week) position to accompany up to 20 hours of classes per week. 

Minimum qualifications:

• Knowledge and skills specific to dance accompanying including an array of musical repertoire, improvisation, arrangement of music as needed for dance phrasing, ability to shift tempo, quality, and character of music choices quickly
• Ability to collaborate effectively with dance instructors in the dance class setting is essential
• Digital editing skills
• Experience as a dance musician

Preferred:

• Percussive forms preferred
• Teaching experience
• Preferred 1 year + experience as a dance musician

Will play for classes 15 to 20 hours per week (this includes prep and breakdown). 

Diversity statement:

The University of Maryland, College Park, an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action; all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, age, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, creed, marital status, political affiliation, personal appearance, or on the basis of rights secured by the First Amendment, in all aspects of employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.

Best consideration date: March 24, 2020 or until filled

Additional information:
The School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies is part of the College of Arts and Humanities and has approximately 200 undergraduate and 70 graduate students enrolled in its programs. The School offers: separate BA programs in Dance and in Theatre, an MA in Theatre and Performance Studies, separate MFA programs in Dance and in Design, and a nationally ranked PhD in Theatre and Performance Studies in which students study both fields equally. New initiatives include a ten-year funded program of International Collaboration and Research (IPCCR) that includes School and campus wide collaborations and a seed granting program for international collaborations; classes that combine design, dance, performance and scholarship in devising work that requires cross-disciplinary collaboration, shared language, and expanded boundaries; a dramaturgy program linked to the area’s professional theatres, and yearly symposia. Members of our faculty work with a wide variety of University centers including the Latin American Studies Center; the David C. Driskell Center for the Study of the Visual Arts and Culture of African Americans and the African Diaspora; the Center for the History of the New America; the Center for Research on Latino Educational Success; the Center for East Asian Studies; the Roshan Center for Persian Studies; the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities; and the Consortium on Race, Gender, and Ethnicity.

The University of Maryland is located along the Baltimore/Washington corridor in College Park, Maryland, a short drive or Metro ride to DC and its cultural riches. We are in the north-west section of Prince George’s County, one of the most diverse counties in the country. The School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies is housed in the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, a state-of-the-art complex with six performance venues, rehearsal rooms, production shops, World Outreach classrooms, the School of Music, and the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library. Located just minutes from the Nation’s Capital, the University is linked by mass transit to the fastest growing theatre and performance market in the country. The region is home to more than 80 professional performance venues, including Dance Place, Dance Exchange, the Kennedy Center, Arena Stage, GALA Hispanic Theatre, the Kennedy Center, the Shakespeare Theatre Company, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Folger Theatre, Studio Theatre, Ford’s Theatre, Signature Theatre, and Synetic Theatre. World-class research facilities of institutions such as the Library of Congress, the National Archives, the Folger Shakespeare Library, the Smithsonian Institutions, and Dumbarton Oaks are all within a very short commute.

Campus/college information:
Founded in 1856, University of Maryland, College Park is the state’s flagship institution. Our 1,250-acre College Park campus is just minutes away from Washington, D.C., and the nexus of the nation’s legislative, executive, and judicial centers of power. This unique proximity to business and technology leaders, federal departments and agencies, and a myriad of research entities, embassies, think tanks, cultural centers, and non-profit organizations is simply unparalleled. Synergistic opportunities for our faculty and students abound and are virtually limitless in the nation’s capital and surrounding areas. The University is committed to attracting and retaining outstanding and diverse faculty and staff that will enhance our stature of preeminence in our three missions of teaching, scholarship, and full engagement in our community, the state of Maryland, and in the world.

Search Chair coordinator: Ms. Crystal Gaston
Search Chair: Adriane Fang
Search Committee members: Alvin Mayes, Patrik Widrig, Isiah Johnson
Quorum policy: 3 out of 4

Required documents:

1. Cover Letter
2. Curriculum Vitae
3. Video sample of work
4. List of References (no emails sent from system)

Send documents to: cgaston@umd.edu or to:

Dance Musician Committee
Attn: Professor Adriane Fang
The School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies
2810 Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center
8270 Alumni Drive
College Park, MD 20742