The Passion Project
Presented by the University of Notre Dame Folk Choir
Premiering March 5th-12th, 2022 in Buffalo, New York City, Hudson, Philadelphia, and South Bend.
The Creators
J.J. Wright - Musical Director, Composer & Pianist
Lorraine Mihaliak - Chorus Master
Tristan Cooley - Librettist & Stage Director
Franky Rousseau - Composer, Engraver & Guitarist
Ike Sturm - Composer & Bassist
Anna Staud - Assistant Stage Director
The Project
Published: February 13, 2022
Author: The Notre Dame Folk Choir
The Passion is a newly composed musical ritualization of Christ’s Passion. Emerging from a collaborative process between students in the Folk Choir and professional artists, the piece combines Scripture drawn from all four Gospels with original poetry, which is all set to newly composed music.
Since its founding forty years ago, the Notre Dame Folk Choir has been committed to creating new music for liturgical worship and finding common ground between sacred and secular music. The 50-person ensemble serves the Notre Dame community, including the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, as one of its principal liturgical choirs and has toured across four continents and released eight studio albums. Led by Grammy® Award winner Dr. J.J. Wright and joined by guitarist Franky Rousseau and bassist Ike Sturm, The Passion will be premiered during a tour of the East Coast in March and will culminate in a pilgrimage and recording in the Holy Land in May.
In addition to this live concert series, the Folk Choir will share more about their production journey through a live virtual series with ThinkND, Notre Dame’s open access digital learning community, entitled: “The Way of the Cross: A Passion Pilgrimage Through Song”. The first session will be Tuesday, March 1st, 2022 - register to join here.
This tour is made possible in part through a Vital Worship Grant from the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, Grand Rapids, Michigan, with funds provided by Lilly Endowment Inc. Any inquiries about the tour may be directed to Director J.J. Wright at jwright9@nd.edu or Co-President Anna Staud at astaud@nd.edu.
For more info, visit folkchoir.nd.edu
Instagram: @ndfolkchoir
Facebook: @ndfolk
