Music Ensemble Librarian

UW-Madison College of Letters & Science; Madison (WI); On-site; USD 46,000 - 56,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous vacation

Retirement benefits

Competitive insurance

Job summary

Mead Witter School of Music at UW–Madison seeks a Music Ensemble Librarian to manage four ensemble libraries and oversee music acquisition, licensing, and cataloging for large performing ensembles in Madison, Wisconsin. The role includes supervising student staff and coordinating with conductors and production teams.

The position supports the orchestral, choral, wind, and jazz ensembles, maintaining cloud-based and physical records, and ensuring timely distribution of performance materials.

Qualifications

• Comprehensive knowledge of performance practices, musical terminology, foreign languages, music theory, orchestration, transposition, and repertoire.
• Familiarity with music publishing, licensing, and copyright laws.
• Music library research skills and understanding of standard reference resources.
• Extraordinary attention to detail and strong organizational skills, including the ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously and consistently meet deadlines.
• Ability to build a strong relationship with and work successfully with faculty, staff, and students in a highly demanding and fast-paced environment.
• Good customer service skills as well as verbal and written communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Prepares all required reports for music listening agencies.
• Serves as a staff and listener resource for music-related questions.
• Maintains budgets for the department and assists in ordering inventory as needed.
• Work with publishers, composers, and/or other libraries to acquire music necessary for ensemble performances.
• Oversees music department needs for daily broadcasts.
• Acquires commercial music recordings for broadcast.
• Maintains the music database, including overseeing music playlists in collaboration with music hosts.

Skills

Music theory

Musical terminology

Transposition

Orchestration

Repertoire knowledge

Foreign languages

Performance practices

Customer service

Education

Bachelor degree preferred

Job description

Current Employees: If you are currently employed at any of the Universities of Wisconsin, log in to Workday to apply through the internal application process.

Job Category

Academic Staff

Employment Type

Regular

Job Profile

Music Librarian NE

Job Summary

The Mead Witter School of Music seeks an Music Ensemble Librarian to manage the four ensemble libraries that serve the large performing ensembles. This position is responsible for the creation and implementation of various projects including: music acquisition, library oversight, which includes student supervision, system and organizational maintenance and other duties in support of the large performing ensembles.

• Manages music purchasing, rentals, and licensing for large ensembles
• Oversees and manages all aspects of the Orchestral, Choral, Wind and Jazz Ensembles libraries.
• Responsible for acquiring music through purchase or rental, ensuring licensing, rental, and copyright compliance; tracks and maintains record of rental pieces and returns them in a timely manner following performances.
• Ensures that all musical markings and bowings have been transferred to every part in advance of the need for distribution.
• Oversees regular maintenance of large ensemble library databases including the audition excerpt database; ensures that purchased music is entered into the cloud-based storage library for future use and reference
• Develops, implements, and maintains methods and organizational systems directed at the maintenance of electronic/physical records related to work operations according to established policies and procedures.
• Creates and maintains the infrastructure for production and program information for the production team and conductors to complete for large ensemble concerts.
• Student Staff Supervision
• Assist with the hiring, training, and activities of student staff hired to support office functions
• Manages a team of student staff hired as music librarians to secure, prepare, organize, distribute and collect all performance materials for all large ensembles.

Key Job Responsibilities

• Prepares all required reports for music listening agencies
• Serves as a staff and listener resource for music-related questions
• Maintains budgets for the department and assists in ordering inventory as needed
• Work with publishers, composers, and/or other libraries to acquire music necessary for ensemble performances.
• Oversees music department needs for daily broadcasts
• Acquires commercial music recordings for broadcast
• Maintains the music database, including overseeing music playlists in collaboration with music hosts

Department

College of Letters & Science, Mead Witter School of Music

The Mead Witter School of Music is a community of musicians, scholars, and teachers. Since its beginning in 1895, the School of Music has lived out a commitment to a student-centered musical education. Our faculty and staff provide models of academic and artistic leadership, and our students reap the benefits of a dynamic public university and the limitless intellectual and artistic opportunities provided in Madison, Wisconsin.

As one of the largest departments within the College of Letters & Science, we offer flexible programs with innovative and global approaches to music study. Our teaching, research and performances reflect UW–Madison’s progressive history of creating change through innovation and exploration.

Our public programming, diverse student ensembles, artists in residence and prestigious faculty ensembles demonstrate how we embrace the Wisconsin Idea, the university’s ethos of sharing what we do with the broadest audience possible.

Compensation

This is a 12 month, part time position at 58% FTE, which equates to about 23.20 hours per week. The expected starting salary for this position is $51,000 (12 months), with the potential for highly qualified candidates to earn more. Actual pay will be prorated to reflect a part time, 58% FTE schedule.

Employees in this position can expect to receive benefits such as generous vacation, holidays, and sick leave; competitive insurances and savings accounts; retirement benefits. Please review the summary of benefits for more information: https://www.wisconsin.edu/ohrwd/benefits/download/fasl.pdf

Required Qualifications

• Comprehensive knowledge of performance practices, musical terminology, foreign languages, music theory, orchestration, transposition, and repertoire.
• Familiarity with music publishing, licensing, and copyright laws.
• Music library research skills and understanding of standard reference resources.
• Extraordinary attention to detail and strong organizational skills, including the ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously and consistently meet deadlines.
• Ability to build a strong relationship with and work successfully with faculty, staff, and students in a highly demanding and fast-paced environment.
• Good customer service skills as well as verbal and written communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Previous experience with a professional orchestra preferred.
• Previous experience supervising students in an academic environment.

Education

Bachelor degree preferred

Institutional Statement on Diversity

Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background - people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, or status as a protected veteran and other bases as defined by federal regulations and UW System policies. We promote excellence by acknowledging skills and expertise from all backgrounds and encourage all qualified individuals to apply. For more information regarding applicant and employee rights and to view federal and state required postings, visit the Human Resources Workplace Poster website.

To request a disability or pregnancy-related accommodation for any step in the hiring process (e.g., application, interview, pre-employment testing, etc.), please contact the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR) in the division you are applying to. Please make your request as soon as possible to help the university respond most effectively to you.

Employment may require a criminal background check. It may also require your references to answer questions regarding misconduct, including sexual violence and sexual harassment.

The University of Wisconsin System will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. sec. 19.36(7).

The Annual Security and Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous 3 calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous 3 calendar years. UW-Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department.

Contact Information

Brittany Wolff

HR Generalist

[e-mail]

Relay Access (WTRS): 7-1-1. See RELAY_SERVICE for further information.

The application deadline is 11:59pm on 11/16/2026.