Notre Dame Folk Choir | “Drawn Back to the Table”: A Musical Adaptation of the Passion and Resurrection
Notre Dame Folk Choir | "Drawn Back to the Table": A Musical Adaptation of the Passion and Resurrection
24
May
The University of Notre Dame Folk Choir presents “Drawn Back to the Table”, a musical adaptation of the Passion and Resurrection, on 24 May at 8pm, in the Fátima Auditorium of USJ Ilha Verde Campus.
About the Notre Dame Folk Choir:
The Folk Choir serves the University of Notre Dame as one of the principal liturgical choirs, singing every Sunday during the academic year at the 12:00pm liturgy in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart. Members of the choir come from a variety of academic disciplines, but are brought together by a shared love of music and a desire to practice, explore, and share their faith. Through participation in the choir, members offer themselves as gifts to one another, and to the congregations for whom they sing. They share their vocal and instrumental gifts, as well as their individual personalities, to create a life-giving, supportive family. Students often find that their experience with the Folk Choir bears witness to the love, grace, and lasting joy God calls us to share with one another. Following the example of Blessed Basil Moreau, the choir aims to unify the hearts and minds of both our members and the congregations we serve through our song.
The Notre Dame Folk Choir was founded in the late 1970s and quickly the choir moved far beyond the conventional definition of a “folk” group. The choir works to bridge the gap between contemporary compositions of a post-Vatican II church community and the rich expression of traditional choral repertoire.
Our musical offerings have been gathered from numerous cultural traditions, and a special emphasis is placed on contemporary music. Many of the pieces in our repertoire have been arranged by the choir’s directors and a variety of other composers active in the field of sacred music.
About the Musico-Drama:
Drawn Back to the Table is a music-drama about the passion and resurrection based on scripture, tradition, and the lived experience of a collaborative process between students in the Notre Dame Folk Choir and professional artists. The story is framed around the “Road to Emmaus.”
The passion and resurrection are a framework for encountering suffering and injustice, teaching us how to respond with love and humility. We see our work as a daily invitation to deepen and enrich our memories through Jesus, and we hope, through this project, to do this together with you.
About the Music Director
J.J. Wright’s style cannot be easily categorized. Trained as a jazz improviser at the New School for Jazz in NYC, he’s also passionate about sacred music. Palestrina and Bach vie with Monk and Cannonball Adderley as just a few of his harmonic and melodic inspirations. While with the U.S. Naval Academy Band, Wright performed for the President—as well as several other high-profile diplomatic gigs—and with the Caribbean Jazz Project: Afro Bop Alliance, recording and performing with vibraphonist Dave Samuels. The album was nominated for a GRAMMY for ‘Best Latin Jazz Album’ and won the Latin GRAMMY in the same category. In addition to Mr. Samuels, J.J. has had the privilege of performing with Billy Hart, Ike Sturm, Nate Wood, Chris Cheek, Zach Harmon, Mark Ferber, Matt Ulery, and Delfeayo Marsalis.
In November 2016, O Emmanuel, debuted at the top of the Billboard Classical Charts where it remained for eight weeks. Based on the ‘O Antiphons’ of Advent, O Emmanuel was commissioned by the Notre Dame Children’s Choir, and is scored for children’s choir, adult vocal soloists, string quartet, woodwind trio and Wright’s jazz piano trio.
J.J.’s graduate studies at the University of Notre Dame brought him to Rome where he researched and wrote his dissertation on early Baroque oratorio. In addition, he studied at the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music and interned with the Sistine Chapel Choir.
He is currently Director of the Notre Dame Folk Choir, a role he began in 2017, and has released three albums and traveled to East Africa and Israel with the choir. On their most recent album, J.J., Tristan Cooley, several professional collaborators and the Folk Choir created, premiered, recorded, released and toured The Passion, a staged rendition of the scriptural story. The album was recorded in the Holy Land and produced by Joe Henry. The Passion has been performed in churches and performing arts centers up and down the East Coast, most prominently at The Town Hall in NYC and The Strathmore Music Center in Bethesda, MD.
J.J.’s most recent album is a collaboration with Brother Isaiah, a Franciscan Friar of the Renewal who serves the poorest of the poor. Mysteries & Medicines was released with great acclaim and generated more than 1 million streams and downloads less than a month after it was released.
When he’s not conducting, composing, or recording, he’s a husband and father to four beautiful children.
Details:
Date: Sunday, 24 May 2026
Time: 20:00 – 22:00 (GMT+8, Macau time)
Runtime: 2 hrs w/ intermission
Language: English
Location: Auditório Centenário de Fátima, USJ Ilha Verde Campus
Open to Public, Free admission with registration.
