Table 1Transition record

choirmaster/choirmistresstomusic director

A choirmaster/choirmistress already meets 34% of what the music director role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.

From choirmaster/choirmistress

34%

Overlap1

To music director

9 Skills carried over

12 Required, not held

69.8 Difficulty2

Career overlap Distant match

34%

Learning distance Substantial retraining

69.8/ 100

adjacentmoderatesubstantialcareer change

1 Share of the music director role’s weighted skill requirement already met by the choirmaster/choirmistress profile. Required skills count in full, supplementary skills at 0.35. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs. 2 Combines what is missing with how specialised it is, so a gap of general skills scores easier than the same number of narrow ones.

Why

Why this move works

A music director role treats 9 of its required skills as things a choirmaster/choirmistress already does. These are the ones it depends on most.

develop musical ideas
manage musical staff
musical genres
musical theory
plan musical performances
position musicians

What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 9 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A music director role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a choirmaster/choirmistress background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area

already held position musicians management skills
already held strive for excellence in musical performance communication, collaboration and creativity
already held manage musical staff management skills
already held develop musical ideas communication, collaboration and creativity
already held plan musical performances management skills
already held supervise music groups management skills

All 9 carried skills, including the 9 the music director role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you would need to learn

The 27 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered below in the order worth working in: the areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the supplementary ones.

Skill to acquire Tier

01 communication, collaboration and creativity 8 required, 9 supplementary

required, not held attend music recording sessions required
required, not held coordinate music with scenes required
required, not held evaluate musical ideas required
required, not held orchestrate music required
required, not held organise compositions required
required, not held rewrite musical scores required
required, not held transcribe ideas into musical notation required
required, not held work out orchestral sketches required

optional, not held compose music optional
optional, not held connect music fragments optional
optional, not held create musical forms optional
optional, not held improvise music optional
optional, not held participate in music studio recordings optional
optional, not held promote music optional
optional, not held record music optional
optional, not held write musical scores optional
optional, not held conduct musical ensembles optional

02 management skills 3 required, 1 supplementary

required, not held coordinate music components of the work required
required, not held guide analysis of a recorded performance required
required, not held organise musical events required

optional, not held demand excellence from performers optional

03 arts and humanities 1 required, 3 supplementary

required, not held musical instruments required

optional, not held film music techniques optional
optional, not held film production process optional
optional, not held musical notation optional

04 information skills 1 supplementary

optional, not held study music optional

05 working with machinery and specialised equipment 1 supplementary

optional, not held set up basic recording optional

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a music director role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 9 skills that carry over

Skill Type

already held develop musical ideas skill
already held manage musical staff skill
already held musical genres knowledge
already held musical theory knowledge
already held plan musical performances skill
already held position musicians skill
already held read musical score skill
already held strive for excellence in musical performance skill
already held supervise music groups skill

15 supplementary skills, helpful but not required

Skill to acquire Tier

optional, not held compose music optional
optional, not held connect music fragments optional
optional, not held create musical forms optional
optional, not held demand excellence from performers optional
optional, not held film music techniques optional
optional, not held film production process optional
optional, not held improvise music optional
optional, not held participate in music studio recordings optional
optional, not held promote music optional
optional, not held record music optional
optional, not held set up basic recording optional
optional, not held study music optional
optional, not held write musical scores optional
optional, not held conduct musical ensembles optional
optional, not held musical notation optional

20 held skills the music director role does not ask for

Skill Type

not needed by the target role art-historical values knowledge
not needed by the target role business management principles knowledge
not needed by the target role collaborate with choreographers skill
not needed by the target role collaborate with music librarians skill
not needed by the target role communicate performance aspects skill
not needed by the target role conduct guest soloists skill
not needed by the target role coordinate performance tours skill
not needed by the target role cultural projects knowledge
not needed by the target role develop cultural activities skill
not needed by the target role engage composers skill
not needed by the target role manage fundraising activities skill
not needed by the target role music literature knowledge
not needed by the target role organise cultural events skill
not needed by the target role participate as a performer in the creative process skill
not needed by the target role select musical performers skill
not needed by the target role select vocalists skill
not needed by the target role study musical scores skill
not needed by the target role subject of music coaching knowledge
not needed by the target role work with composers skill
not needed by the target role work with soloists skill

4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to acquire Tier

required, not held musical instruments required
optional, not held film music techniques optional
optional, not held film production process optional
optional, not held musical notation optional

Index

Other moves recorded from choirmaster/choirmistress

Full index of moves from choirmaster/choirmistress

Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.