Black Catholic Gospel Choir returns for 16th annual concert on Nov. 8

Black Catholic Ministry annual Gospel concert, 'Make a Joyful Noise!' to be performed at 4 p.m. Sunday in Dearborn 

DETROIT – It all started with a conference session. 

In 2010, the Archdiocese of Detroit hosted the annual National Association of Pastoral Musicians (NPM) convention, and then-director of Black Catholic ministry, John Thorne, was approached about putting together a session about music from the African American experience. 

NPM organizers set aside one of their smaller rooms, and GIA Publishing, Oregon Catholic Press (OCP) and other liturgical music publishers provided 30 copies of each piece on the program. Thorne, then also the music director at Sacred Heart Parish in Detroit, made some calls to build his choir. 

One-hundred and forty-five singers showed up. 

The demand for this concert was so great – both from the singers and from the conference attendees – that the program was moved to the main auditorium, packed to capacity.

"Every seat in the place was filled up," Thorne told Detroit Catholic. "The momentum came from that." 

After their rollicking start through NPM, this bespoke choir recorded a CD, then held another concert, this time at St. Aidan Parish in Livonia; another standing room only performance. 

It occurred to Thorne that they were onto something – they needed to keep sharing this gift. 

Thus, two annual events were born: a celebration of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in January, and a Gospel concert in November. 

This year's concert, titled "Make a Joyful Noise!", will be held on at 4 p.m. on Nov. 8 at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center in Dearborn. The choir is comprised of 67 singers from across the diocese, most of whom have taken part in very performance since concert's founding in 2010. 

"Most of the singers have been here from the very beginning," Thorne said. "Over the years we've lost some people, but we've also picked up some new friends along the way, too." 

Thorne also emphasized the sense of connection the annual concert creates among Black Catholics across the diocese. 

"This has become like another mini community," Thorne said. "While we only normally do this concert and then the Martin Luther King celebration in January, what we've found is that even though everybody is from all these different parishes, they look forward to seeing each other at these rehearsals." 

Thorne is co-directing this year's concert with Keir Ward, director of music at Sacred Heart Parish in Detroit. 

"The biggest thing for people to know is that this is accessible," Thorne said. "There are people who like choral music, people who like spirituals, people who like praise and worship music – there are people who would like all these different genres within the idiom of gospel music, and we want to make sure that everyone is fed." 

The concert's title is also a call to action – when the days look dark and the night looks drear, there is an enduring hope that guides the faithful, Thorne said. This theme will be apparent, especially in the second half of the program, with music that will encourage and inspire people to lean into hope.