Executive Director

Company Overview

GENOVESE VANDERHOOF & ASSOCIATES

A Cultural Management Consulting Firm

 

JOB OPPORTUNITY

TORONTO MENDELSSOHN CHOIR

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

 

The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir invites applications and referrals for the position of Executive Director. 

 

Toronto Mendelssohn Choir 

 

The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir (TMChoir) has been a champion of choral music in Canada since 1894.  As Canada’s leading symphonic choir, and a pioneering force in the development of our country’s rich choral landscape, the TMChoir, like the country, has withstood world wars, economic crises, and lately a pandemic. It has amplified celebratory moments in Canadian history and in times of sorrow, it has provided comfort through song.  

 

This remarkable and resilient organization emerged from the pandemic with a new three-year artistic plan that re-imagines the TMChoir’s history with an enlivened concert series, touring, new partnerships, and recording.  It has created a community engagement program highlighted by an annual composer-in-residence appointment, commissioning new works to ensure the Canadian choral repertoire grows and reflects the many communities that in the 21st century proudly call Canada home. 

 

Remarkably, the TMChoir has worked under the leadership of just eight artistic directors in its 125-plus year history. Internationally recognized conductor, scholar, and pedagogue Jean-Sébastien Vallée was appointed as the TMChoir’s eighth Artistic Director in June of 2021.  

 

With Jean-Sébastien’s exemplary leadership and vision, the TMChoir has fashioned a plan that bursts with possibility, a future growth balanced between tradition and innovation. The TMChoir is evolving to include diverse, contemporary works in its repertoire and to re-imagine performances in new, surprising, experiential ways. The TMChoir’s Board, its singers, and its staff are committed wholeheartedly to this plan’s success.  

 

In addition to his work in Toronto, Jean-Sébastien is Associate Professor of Music, Director of Choral Studies, and Coordinator of the Ensembles & Conducting Area at McGill University’s Schulich School of Music.  He has conducted ensembles throughout North America, Europe, and Asia, and has prepared choruses for such leading orchestras as Chicago, Toronto, and Montreal.  He is an advocate for contemporary music, making one of his priorities the commissioning and premiering works by emerging composers and programming rarely performed repertoire. 

 

The TMChoir ensemble includes a core of 24 professional singers (the TMSingers) and expands as the full TMChoir of 150+ auditioned and experienced volunteer choristers.  And because the TMChoir is “beyond a choir,” its dedication to new choral experience extends to creating meaningful and impactful educational and community programs, as well as forging new relationships and partnerships with friends and neighbors in the Canadian choral landscape. 

 

The TMChoir is featured in every season of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra as its partnered large-scale symphonic choir.  This current season will feature a run of 5 performances of Handel's Messiah during the holiday season, as well as three performances of Mahler’s Symphony No. 3.  In addition, the TMChoir will tour with the Orchestre symphonique de Québec and the National Arts Centre Orchestra, performing together in Quebec City, Ottawa, and Toronto.

 

The 2023/24 season will also includes Verdi’s Requiem, an annual holiday celebration, two performances of the TMSingers, Carmina Burana at Roy Thomson Hall, and a variety of community events and activities. (See info@tmchoir.org for more information.)  

 

The TMChoir is committed to excellence in performance; to using the capacity of choral music to ignite change; to building a welcoming, inclusive ensemble; and to create innovative collaborations with organizations that also see the arts as a means to building a more equitable world.

 

The TMChoir has a deeply committed and hard-working artistic and administrative staff and volunteer board of directors.  The annual budget is approximately $1 million. 

 

Job Description

The Position of Executive Director:

The Executive Director and the Artistic Director each report directly to the Board of Directors and work in close partnership with one another, in service of the organization’s shared artistic vision. The Executive Director provides leadership to ensure that the TMChoir’s mission is achieved and that the organization’s strategic, educational, and financial goals are met.  

The Executive Director (ED) will lead a team of individuals dedicated to the success of the TMChoir. The ED will oversee both the human and financial resources of the choir and is responsible and accountable for all aspects of the choir’s administration and operations, including fund-raising, marketing, public relations, financial management, and chorister well-being.  

 

Responsibilities: 

In tandem with the Artistic Director, the Executive Director develops and implements season programming, guest concert appearances, and other events. This individual fosters strong, positive relationships with TMChoir volunteer and professional choristers, and with the organization’s artistic partners, including the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.  

The Executive Director is the chief fund-raiser for the TMChoir, developing and executing a comprehensive strategy for generating public and private sector revenue. The ED creates and implement strategies for cultivating, securing, and stewarding private sector supports, including individual donors, foundations, and corporations, as well as writing grant applications.  

The Executive Director manages the financial operations of the organization, developing the annual budget, monitoring the financial status, and controlling costs.  The Executive Director creates, monitors, and presents monthly cash flow projections and monthly financial reports to the Board, overseeing the work of the bookkeeper (including the filing of municipal, provincial, and federal reports as needed).       

The Executive Director recruits, hires, and provides leadership to the administrative staff needed to achieve the TMChoir’s strategic objectives. The ED also assists the Artistic Director in creating, hiring, and evaluating the organization’s artistic positions.

The Executive Director partners with the Board of Directors and its Executive, paying a key role in achieving the organization’s strategic plan. This individual will actively promote the TMChoir and its brand, managing the overall plan for internal and external communications and developing content for storytelling on various channels. 

 

Qualifications:

The ideal candidate will have seven to ten years of senior management experience in the performing arts sector, a passion for choral music, and exceptional written, oral, and presentation skills.  A bachelor’s degree is required; a graduate degree in arts administration or not-for-profit management is preferred.  

 

In addition we seek:

Demonstrated experience in planning and implementing fund-raising efforts with the ability to cultivate, solicit, and steward major individual gifts, corporate sponsors, and foundation/government grants;

Ability to lead, inspire, and motivate staff and volunteers in an environment that fosters creativity, a commitment to excellence, teamwork, and mutual respect;

Experience in creating and managing budgets, financial projections, and cash flow reports;

Ability to think strategically while balancing a full portfolio of project tasks and experience in collaborating with a wide network of partnerships;

Competency with computer technologies; able to evaluate the TMChoir’s existing systems and suggest necessary upgrades and improvement.