Music Teacher (Orchestra, General Music, Coordinator)

POSITION

MUSIC TEACHER (Orchestra Teaching Artist and Coordinator)

Full-time, exempt; approximately 40 hours per week, 12 months

Salary: $48,000 - $52,000, depending on experience and qualifications

Reports directly to the Program Director

Earliest start date: July 13, 2026

Deadline to apply: Friday, May 8th at 12pm CDT

ORGANIZATION

Austin Soundwaves is an arts education nonprofit expanding access to high-quality music education across Central Texas, with the vision of a world without barriers to learning music. Founded in 2011 as an El Sistema-inspired program, Austin Soundwaves now reaches more than 2,000 students each year through school partnerships and nine community programs providing music instruction, mentorship, and educator training. To date, the organization has served over 6,000 students and partnered with more than 50 schools across the region.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

Reporting to the Program Director, the MUSIC TEACHER (Orchestra Teaching Artist and Coordinator) is a skilled educator and administrator responsible for teaching, leading, and coordinating a variety of music programs at Austin Soundwaves. This includes but is not limited to teaching classroom beginning and intermediate string orchestra, teaching or coordinating general music classes for middle school students, teaching or supporting private lessons, Soundwaves Symphony, or other community programs, and helping to ensure the successful implementation and growth of our programming and events.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Designing and teaching beginning and intermediate classroom string orchestra at partner school Magnolia Montessori Middle School (Grades 6-8).
Teaching or coordinating general music at Magnolia Montessori.
Collaborating with the Austin Soundwaves team of program staff and teaching artists to provide high quality teaching at Magnolia Montessori.
Teaching or supporting community programs at Austin Soundwaves, including partner school private lessons and sectionals, community program lessons and sectionals, and similar.
Coordinate the music program at Magnolia Montessori, building relationships with students, families, teachers, and administrators, which includes attending staff meetings and creating a presence and visibility on campus.
Work closely with the Austin Soundwaves Program Director and Orchestra Director to coordinate Summer Music Camp in June to ensure the smooth delivery of all of our camp offerings.
Flexibility to support our other Austin Soundwaves programs as capacity and time allows throughout the year.
Participate in required staff meetings and events. Work collaboratively, proactively and in a professional, service-oriented manner with all stakeholders. Attend specialized training as appropriate.
Support the program team to ensure the smooth operation of various events throughout the year, including the Season Finale, Mariachi Para Todos community performances, Draylen Mason Fellows Program, Private Lesson Program recital, and workshops.

QUALIFICATIONS

Research shows that women and people from underrepresented groups often only apply to jobs if they meet 100% of the qualifications. As no one ever meets 100% of the qualifications, we encourage you to apply if you feel that much of the following matches your experience.

You have experience teaching string students in the classroom and/or in group settings.
You have experience conducting middle school orchestra in rehearsal, concerts, festivals, and similar.
Violin, viola, cello, and/or contrabass is your primary instrument or you can demonstrate proficiency (equivalent to Suzuki Book 5 or later) on one or more of these instruments.
You are flexible and adaptable in emerging and changing environments within a school or community.
Be able to change as situations require in a fast-paced teaching environment across a variety of settings that serve over 2,000 students across the Austin area.
You are not just about a checklist - you can dynamically evaluate a situation to modify as needed for the good of the students, families, and organization.
You have very strong interpersonal skills and can collaborate effectively with diverse stakeholders.
You have excellent verbal and written communication skills.
You effectively give/receive instructions to students and colleagues.
Familiarity with the El Sistema movement and a belief that music can serve as a vehicle for social change through access, equity, and high-quality music education.
Ability to think strategically and creatively with outstanding organizational skills.
High attention to detail and follow-up – you don’t default to assumption.
Self-starter with an exceptional work ethic.
Challenge and question assumptions and suggest improvements and better approaches.
You are an exceptional collaborator with colleagues and stakeholders.
Take direction when needed.
Step into ownership when it counts.
Willing and able to be candid and transparent with your managers and colleagues.
You are expected to give and receive feedback from and to anyone on the team.
Able to give clear and respectful critique and highlight challenges.
Celebrate successes by everyone on the team.
Act with good intent and trust in the team to do the same.
Able to take informed risks and not discouraged by possible failure.
Make tough decisions and act rather than agonizing or continuing to delay without reason.
Flexibility and adaptability in an emerging and changing environment.
Care deeply about the success of Austin Soundwaves and our mission.
Degree in music education
Emphasis on string education highly desired
1-2 years of experience in the classroom beyond student teaching.
Texas teacher certification.
Spanish fluency is a huge plus.
Previous experience working with arts nonprofits or El Sistema-inspired programs
Previous experience administrating or supporting programs or events.
Familiarity with an educational and/or nonprofit setting.
Experience working with families from diverse ethnic, economic, and cultural backgrounds.
Proficient in Google Suite (or similar), especially Docs, Sheets, and Slides.
Familiarity with nonprofit and/or educational settings, and a belief that music can serve as a vehicle for social change through access to high-quality music education

BENEFITS

We offer employer-paid health insurance; employee-paid dental and vision options are also available.

We offer a 403(b) retirement plan through Vanguard with a 3% employer match.

We offer a flexible, trust-based approach to time off that prioritizes both high performance and meaningful rest.

15 days (3 weeks) of paid vacation annually (does not accrue).
Approximately 28 days of scheduled organizational closures, including:
One week each for the Thanksgiving holiday and Spring Break (aligned with local schools).
Two weeks in late December through early January for Winter Break, with development staff coordinating coverage to support year-end giving as needed. (Aligned with local schools)
Most major federal holidays and observances.
For day-to-day appointments, errands, family events, etc., staff have flexibility to take time as needed, as long as responsibilities are met and communication is clear with your team and supervisor.
Stay/get healthy: take the time you need and ensure your team is set up to cover your responsibilities.
Employees must be based out of the Austin, Texas area.
Must be eligible to work full-time in the United States without sponsorship.
The standard work day is 8am - 5pm, Monday through Friday.
Some nights and weekends required for events, programs, etc.
Must have reliable transportation for travel within the city.

For more information on our work culture, please check out our Austin Soundwaves culture document, which outlines our values and how those show up in our work with our students and each other.

STATEMENT OF NON-DISCRIMINATION

Austin Soundwaves is committed to a policy of equal treatment and opportunity in every aspect of its relations with its applicants, staff members, and families, without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, marital status, military status, pregnancy, or parenthood. People of diverse backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply. If you require reasonable accommodation(s) to participate in the application or interview process, please contact us at [email protected]

HIRING PROCESS

Interviews via Zoom will be scheduled between May 4th - 22nd.
Select candidates will be invited for an in-person teaching demo and interview between May 18 - 29th.
Notification of intent to hire will be sent no later than June 1st
The position to start no earlier than July 13, 2026
As your schedule allows, we would love to contract you for work during our Summer Music Camp between June 15th and 26th. Please send us an email at for more information.

INTERVIEW PROCESS COMMITMENTS AND NORMS

As an organization committed to equitable and creative hiring practices, we:

Outline the entire hiring process in each job description
Acknowledge receipt of every application
Share interview questions ahead of time
Include students directly in every full-time hiring decision, including interviews
Review common implicit cognitive biases in advance of every interview process
Provide an honorarium to finalists

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

If interested, please send the following application materials to [email protected] with Orchestra Teaching Artist and Coordinator in the subject line by Friday, May 8th at 12pm central time.

1) 1-2 page resume attached as a PDF

2) Tell us a bit about yourself and why you would like to be our Orchestra Teaching Artist and Coordinator.

Option 1: PDF cover letter or
Option 2: 90-second max selfie video sent as an unlisted YouTube link (recorded on your mobile device, laptop, or using Zoom is recommended and encouraged)

3) Please provide 2-3 professional references. These references will only be contacted should you reach the in-person interview and teaching demo round.

4) Optional: professional website link or your LinkedIn profile.

Pay: $48,000.00 - $52,000.00 per year

Benefits:

Health insurance
Paid time off
Retirement plan

Work Location: In person