What does a band director do?
Band Directors help their musicians prepare for their showcase events. They lead orchestras or other musical groups during musical performances or recording sessions.
Band director responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real band director resumes:
- Resolve misconducts and social issues which lead to greater leadership skills and perfect orchestrate performances.
- Work with others to manage DJs and volunteers, as well as plan on campus events.
- Lead and direct the Orff instrument ensemble
- Help students audition for college and all-state.
- Plan and post content for Facebook page.
- Develop curriculum for and teach speech and drama classes.
- Place accept CDs in alphabetical order on the racks.
- Exhibit strong leadership and group skills as a lead singer.
- Develop concert programs, which include a wide array of multicultural repertoire.
- Work with students in sectional rehearsals teaching music to brass and woodwind sections.
- Edit music with ProTools and remove explicit content in accordance with FCC regulations.
- Monitor on-air conduct, origination and distribution of the proper formats of CDs for airplay.
- Provide the highest quality musical entertainment to HAL guests in accordance with company programming and standards.
- Follow all FCC rules, EAS requirements, state and federal laws, and company policies.
- Design weekly worship bulletins; create guides for leaders; generate weekly projection (PowerPoint).
Band director skills and personality traits
We calculated that 15% of Band Directors are proficient in Classroom Management, Band Program, and Concert Band. They’re also known for soft skills such as Discipline, Interpersonal skills, and Leadership.
We break down the percentage of Band Directors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Classroom Management, 15%
Supervised music rehearsals and initiated classroom management skills for the overall improvement of the program.
- Band Program, 10%
Increased student enrollment into band program through active recruitment and ongoing encouragement.
- Concert Band, 7%
Concert ChoirShow ChoirConcert BandAncient CivilizationUS Government
- Music Theory, 6%
Implemented music theory training sequence, directed all rehearsals and concerts and directed purchase of equipment and music.
- PEP Band, 6%
Directed and taught all levels of band, general music, pep band, jazz band and small ensembles.
- Football Games, 5%
Attend Friday night high school football games to ensure the safety of students as well as the success of the performance.
Common skills that a band director uses to do their job include "classroom management," "band program," and "concert band." You can find details on the most important band director responsibilities below.
Discipline. The most essential soft skill for a band director to carry out their responsibilities is discipline. This skill is important for the role because "talent is not enough for most music directors and composers to find employment in this field." Additionally, a band director resume shows how their duties depend on discipline: "teach music theory, develop ear training, and inspire disciplined practice of instrument. "
Interpersonal skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling band director duties is interpersonal skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "music directors and composers need to work with agents, musicians, and recording studio personnel." According to a band director resume, here's how band directors can utilize interpersonal skills in their job responsibilities: "demonstrate strong rehearsal strategies, classroom management skills, and interpersonal skills. "
Leadership. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of band directors is leadership. This skill is critical to many everyday band director duties, as "music directors and composers must guide musicians and singers by preparing musical arrangements and helping them achieve the best possible sound." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "provide instructional and administration leadership for the after-school jazz band program. "
Musical talent. A big part of what band directors do relies on "musical talent." You can see how essential it is to band director responsibilities because "to become a music director or composer, one must have musical talent." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical band director tasks: "introduced formal 18-20 piece jazz band structure to acjhs, along with supporting musical repertoire, technique and music theory exercises. "
Promotional skills. A commonly-found skill in band director job descriptions, "promotional skills" is essential to what band directors do. Band director responsibilities rely on this skill because "music directors and composers need to promote their performances through local communities, word of mouth, and social media platforms." You can also see how band director duties rely on promotional skills in this resume example: "designed a promotional video directed at recruiting potential students into the band program. "
The three companies that hire the most band directors are:
- Music & Arts202 band directors jobs
- Phoenix Christian Preparatory School
12 band directors jobs
- Broward County Public Schools2 band directors jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable band director resume templates
Build a professional band director resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your band director resume.
Compare different band directors
Band director vs. Music composer
A Minister of Music coordinates, rehearses, and directs all choirs of a church, as appropriate. They assist the pastor in planning the congregational services of the church.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a band director are more likely to require skills like "classroom management," "band program," "concert band," and "pep band." On the other hand, a job as a music composer requires skills like "audio engineering," "video games," "r," and "sound design." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Music composers earn the highest salaries when working in the media industry, with an average yearly salary of $54,744. On the other hand, band directors are paid more in the education industry with an average salary of $42,507.The education levels that music composers earn slightly differ from band directors. In particular, music composers are 3.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a band director. Additionally, they're 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Band director vs. Chaperon
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that band director responsibilities requires skills like "classroom management," "band program," "concert band," and "music theory." But a chaperon might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "cpr," "developmental disabilities," "incident reports," and "esl."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Chaperons tend to reach lower levels of education than band directors. In fact, they're 7.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Band director vs. Minister of music
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, band directors are more likely to have skills like "classroom management," "band program," "concert band," and "music theory." But a minister of music is more likely to have skills like "easter," "church services," "baptist," and "select music."
Ministers of music earn the highest salary when working in the manufacturing industry, where they receive an average salary of $50,075. Comparatively, band directors have the highest earning potential in the education industry, with an average salary of $42,507.Most ministers of music achieve a similar degree level compared to band directors. For example, they're 1.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Band director vs. Director of instrumental music
Types of band director
Updated January 8, 2025
