Catholic Musician with Cantor

Closed Pre-Solicitation Posted

Solicitation number
M00264-25-SSA-008
Agency
Responses due
Set-aside
Total Small Business

Opportunity facts

NAICS code
711130 Musical Groups and Artists
PSC
G002 Social- Chaplain
Place of performance
Quantico, Virginia 22134, United States

Notice details come from SAM.gov. Updated .

About this opportunity

The United States Marine Corps is seeking a Catholic Musician with Cantor through a pre-solicitation sources sought announcement to provide musical support for Roman Catholic Masses and related religious services at the Marine Memorial Chapel on Marine Corps Base Quantico. The contractor must deliver instrumental music accompaniment for weekly Sunday Masses (at 0900 and 1215 hours), special and seasonal services, Holy Days of Obligation, and funeral and memorial services, with responsibilities including coordination with the Catholic Priest on liturgical music selections in accordance with Roman Rite rubrics. Key qualifications required include a minimum of five years of experience as a Catholic chapel organist, American Guild of Organists certification, formal organ training, and proficiency in music harmonization, along with the ability to pass a background check and obtain base access credentials. The Marine Corps is conducting this sources sought announcement to gather market research information regarding contractor capabilities, past performance, and ability to meet specific requirements; formal evaluation criteria for the final solicitation have not yet been established. Interested vendors must submit their responses by January 20, 2026, at 10:00 AM EST, with responses limited to a maximum of 15 pages and should include a capabilities statement, business details, and answers to specific questions about service delivery and references.

This opportunity is designated as a Total Small Business set-aside, meaning only small business concerns are eligible to compete for the contract award. No current contractor or incumbent has been identified in the pre-solicitation materials. The contract will operate on a base year period of performance from September 28, 2026, through September 27, 2027, with four potential option years extending through September 27, 2031, providing a maximum contract duration of five years. The contractor must provide their own instruments (excluding the chapel organ and piano) and secure a sub-contracted Cantor capable of performing all liturgical music parts; specific budget ranges or award values have not been disclosed in the pre-solicitation notice. The contractor will be responsible for all music-related rehearsals, including weekly choir rehearsals and soloist rehearsals as required, with each rehearsal defined as a minimum of one hour of preparation time.

Notice text

Command Religious Program requires Contractor support for the delivery of musical support as Musician/Organist and Cantor for the Roman Catholic Sunday Masses onboard MCINCR-MCBQ at the Marine Memorial Chapel and for special/seasonal services and Holy Days of Obligation (including their vigils), as well as funeral and memorial services. 

The requested task shall include the following: 

  • The Contractor, the Musician, shall be responsible for all music associated with worship and provide instrumentation for all music (preludes, postludes, congregational music offertories, anthems, choral music, and service music).  The Contractor/Musician shall coordinate with and recommend to the Catholic Priest on all instrumental music and songs for each Mass/service, in accordance with the rubrics and liturgical instructions of the Roman Rite as articulated in the Roman Gradual and the General Instruction of the Roman Missal. There will be a 5-minute prelude before the Mass and a 3-minute postlude after Mass.
  •  The Contract/Musician shall be responsible for all music and choir rehearsals associated with the Catholic Masses/worship.  The Contractor/Musician shall provide instrumentation for weekly scheduled choir rehearsals (times to be determined by the Catholic Priest), soloist rehearsals when they are part of the musical program and seasonal/special rehearsals, as required.  For this contract a rehearsal is defined as a period of time no less than one (1) hour during which the Contractor/Musician rehearses that music in preparation for public use in the Catholic Chapel programs (which includes both Masses).
  •  The Contractor/Musician shall recommend and provide instrumentation for funerals and memorial services for active-duty Marines, for active-duty Marine Corps Base Quantico personnel, and/or for family members of active duty MCINCR-MCBQ personnel of the Catholic Faith, as needed.
  • The Contractor/Musician shall provide recommendations to the Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) concerning the proper maintenance of the chapel organ and pianos.
  • The Contractor will provide in advance the music plan for all regular and special/seasonal Masses/services, at least one month in advance.  For Masses/services scheduled on short notice, the plan of instrumental music will be passed to the Contractor/Musician as soon as possible.
  • The Contractor shall provide all instruments, other than the organs and piano in the Marine Memorial Chapel (MMC) or designated worship location on MCINCR-MCBQ Quantico. 
  • The Contractor retains the first right of refusal for to provide instrumentation (or appropriate substitute) and soloist accompaniment when required for scheduled Catholic Chapel Wedding Masses, understanding the families can always elect to provide their own musicians if desired.  The Contractor will provide a list of alternates if unable or unwilling to support a wedding. Since weddings and wedding rehearsals are not part of the Chapel Program, fees for the services are not covered within the contract.  Fees for these services will be provided by the wedding couple and in accordance with published wedding guidelines.
  •  The Contractor shall recommend music and provide instrumentation for funerals and memorial services for active-duty Marines, for active-duty Marine Corps Base Quantico personnel, and/or for family members of active duty MCINCR-MCBQ personnel of the Catholic Faith, as needed.  For non-Marine Corps Base Quantico personnel and/or family members the Contractor retains the first right of refusal for to provide instrumentation (or appropriate substitute) and soloist and accompaniment fees for this service will be provided by the family or funeral home, understanding the families can always elect to provide their own musicians if desired.  There will be a 15-minute prelude before each funeral/memorial service.
  •  The Contractor shall show flexibility with regard to musical selection and be willing to include both contemporary and traditional music in the preparation of all worship Masses/services.
  • The Contractor shall show flexibility with regard to volunteers who play instruments other than the piano or organ and welcome the accompanists and or instrumentalists.
  • The following special musician events are to be supported by the Contractor:

Ash Wednesday Mass

Tenebrae Service

Holy Thursday Mass and Procession

Good Friday Service

Easter Vigil Mass

Confirmation Mass

Corpus Christi Procession

Christ the King Procession

Children’s Nativity Play

Files

File Type Posted
A.1 SOW ICO Catholic Musician with Cantor.docx DOCX document
B.1 M00264-25-SSA-008 Catholic Musician with Cantor.docx DOCX document

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