What does a music instructor do?
A Music Teacher instructs children and adults to sing or play instruments. They may teach lessons at school, train students at home, or conduct choir rehearsals.
Music instructor responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real music instructor resumes:
- Direct camper band, lead collaborative songwriting, and organize performances.
- Accomplish building curriculum that do not exist in previous years focuse on Pre-K through 6th grade.
- Instruct musical skills and techniques to middle and high school students on the saxophone, clarinet, and flute.
- Apply classical/jazz saxophone and clarinet tutor
- Instruct in the fields of mathematics and the English language.
- Instruct children in songwriting, ensemble playing, and stage presence.
- Cultivate an active musical learning environment for children grades k-8; select music & conduct choir.
- Form a guitar ensemble, recorder ensemble and orff ensemble with students ranging from 3rd through 5th grades.
- Develop and prepare music, both vocal and instrument, curriculum for students (kindergarten to high school).
- Instruct students ranging from beginner to upper intermediate -prepare repertoire from early Suzuki books, as well as high-school level concertos
- Provide instruction with Orff ensemble, class guitar, hand bells, recorder consort, world drumming ensemble and percussion.
- Perform clinics for saxophone sections and ensembles
- Conduct weekly music class for preschool and kindergarten students
- Form extra-curricular chorus and drama program for students.
- Collaborate with drama teacher and provide music for weekly assemblies which include grade-level performances.
Music instructor skills and personality traits
We calculated that 13% of Music Instructors are proficient in Classroom Management, Adaptive, and Fine Arts. They’re also known for soft skills such as Critical-thinking skills, Writing skills, and Speaking skills.
We break down the percentage of Music Instructors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Classroom Management, 13%
Implemented various classroom management techniques for maintaining student attention, involvement and discipline, specifically differentiation.
- Adaptive, 10%
Provide private and partner piano lessons and adaptive lessons to children and adults.
- Fine Arts, 8%
Developed lesson plans to enrich young lives through use of music and fine arts.
- Music Program, 7%
Instructed music for piano students * Organized bi-yearly music programs/recitals for performances at retirement centers/nursing homes * Maintained Excel accounting data
- Instructional Materials, 7%
Maintain lesson plans and instructional materials for students.
- Music Education, 6%
Develop networks and establishing collaborations with others working in music education in area.
Most music instructors use their skills in "classroom management," "adaptive," and "fine arts" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential music instructor responsibilities here:
Critical-thinking skills. The most essential soft skill for a music instructor to carry out their responsibilities is critical-thinking skills. This skill is important for the role because "to conduct original research and design experiments, postsecondary teachers need to analyze information logically." Additionally, a music instructor resume shows how their duties depend on critical-thinking skills: "helped students develop critical-thinking abilities by gaining an understanding of mathematics concepts. "
Writing skills. Another essential skill to perform music instructor duties is writing skills. Music instructors responsibilities require that "postsecondary teachers need strong writing ability to publish original research and analysis." Music instructors also use writing skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "teach one music theory class daily in topics ranging from basic concepts to 4-part writing and analysis. "
Speaking skills. This is an important skill for music instructors to perform their duties. For an example of how music instructor responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "postsecondary teachers need good communication skills to present lectures and provide feedback to students." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a music instructor: "presented lectures on effective classroom management techniques for teachers. ".
The three companies that hire the most music instructors are:
- Music & Arts198 music instructors jobs
- The Salvation Army6 music instructors jobs
- SUNY Geneseo4 music instructors jobs
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Compare different music instructors
Music instructor vs. Art department head
Piano Teachers are responsible for teaching piano lessons and sustaining student progress by explaining and demonstrating various piano techniques. They develop and execute class plans, and prepare course materials such as syllabi and homework assignments.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, music instructor responsibilities require skills like "classroom management," "adaptive," "music program," and "instructional materials." Meanwhile a typical art department head has skills in areas such as "curriculum development," "studio art," "photography," and "graphic design." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
The education levels that art department heads earn slightly differ from music instructors. In particular, art department heads are 0.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a music instructor. Additionally, they're 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Music instructor vs. Piano teacher
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that music instructor responsibilities requires skills like "classroom management," "adaptive," "fine arts," and "music program." But a piano teacher might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "pianos," "suzuki," "classical music," and "private voice."
Piano teachers may earn a lower salary than music instructors, but piano teachers earn the most pay in the media industry with an average salary of $55,390. On the other hand, music instructors receive higher pay in the media industry, where they earn an average salary of $51,461.piano teachers earn similar levels of education than music instructors in general. They're 2.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for music instructors in the next 3-5 years?
Helen Callus
Professor of Viola, Northwestern University
I imagine this might become part of the framework that we offer in the future. Students should understand how to present themselves in these situations, understanding sound and picture quality devices (what microphones and cameras are best), internet speeds, ethernet cables, router devices, lighting, etc. But it is an excellent opportunity to understand the media of film/video and how to create best a sound video recording for competitions, summer festivals, or college applications. We were already using that medium for prescreens, so this is a chance to refine that skill as, without doubt, that will be a part of our future.
Music instructor vs. College professor
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from music instructor resumes include skills like "classroom management," "adaptive," "fine arts," and "music program," whereas a college professor is more likely to list skills in "curriculum development," "classes taught," "mathematics," and "semester. "
When it comes to education, college professors tend to earn higher degree levels compared to music instructors. In fact, they're 17.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 8.5% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Music instructor vs. Performing artist
Even though a few skill sets overlap between music instructors and performing artists, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a music instructor might have more use for skills like "classroom management," "adaptive," "fine arts," and "music program." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of performing artists require skills like "private parties," "r," "poetry," and "facebook. "
In general, performing artists hold similar degree levels compared to music instructors. Performing artists are 0.9% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 1.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of music instructor
Updated January 8, 2025
