Dominican bluegrass band speaks with the Rover

The Hillbilly Thomists, a bluegrass band of Dominican friars, performed for a sold-out crowd at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center on September 24. The concert was part of the “Aquinas at 800” conference and was sponsored by the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture (dCEC) and the Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government (CCCG).

Despite a tornado warning on campus earlier in the night, Leighton Concert Hall was filled with excited attendees. From the Thomists attending the conference, to Notre Dame students, to South Bend families, all were able to enjoy welcome relief from the storm outside through music.

The Rover had the opportunity to speak to Fr. Simon Teller, O.P., a vocalist and fiddler in the band, and current chaplain at Providence College. When asked what the most important message the band could bring to Catholic college students was, Fr. Simon answered: “I think a lot of our songs have a sort of optimism behind suffering, because after the Cross comes the Resurrection.”

Fr. Simon continued, “No matter how far we fall, no matter how much we sin, God’s mercy is great. … He can bring you with Him from death to life.”

The band takes its name from a comment by the author Flannery O’Connor, a twentieth century Catholic novelist and essayist from Georgia: “Everybody who has read Wise Blood thinks I’m a hillbilly nihilist, whereas I’m a hillbilly Thomist.”

The band’s name was conceived of by Fr. Austin Litke, O.P., not present at the concert, and Fr. Thomas Joseph White, O.P. In the words of O’Connor, as “preachers of the Incarnation,” the friars’ music combines their Thomistic theology with southern bluegrass melodies.

The first members of the band, Fr. Thomas Joseph and Fr. Austin, were joined by several other friars, and, after playing together for several years, began to record their music. Their first and eponymous album reached number three on the Billboard Bluegrass Charts. Since its launch in 2017, the band has released three more albums: Living For the Other Side in 2021, Holy Ghost Power in 2022, and their most recent release, Marigold, which reached second on the Bluegrass Charts in 2024.

The band performed a selection of their songs, ranging from “Bourbon, Bluegrass, and the Bible” to the title track from their newest album, “Marigold.” At one point, to the excitement of the crowd, Fr. Peter performed an acoustic version of the Notre Dame Victory March to introduce the song “Good Tree,” a track from Holy Ghost Power.

Other highlights included “Jacob’s Ladder,” during which Fr. Justin called for audience participation, and Fr. Thomas Joseph’s distinctive vocals on “Way Down to New Orleans.”

Two of the band’s members, Fr. Joseph Hagan, O.P., the percussionist, and Fr. Peter Gautsch, O.P., who played the guitar, dobro, piano, and harmonica throughout the night, are Notre Dame alumni. Fr. Joseph, who graduated from Notre Dame in 2009, is now the chaplain for undergraduate formation at the Catholic University of America, and Fr. Peter graduated from Notre Dame in 2011.

The other members of the band hail from around the world. Fr. Thomas Joseph, who was also featured as a keynote speaker at the Aquinas conference, is rector of the Pontifical University of St. Thomas in Rome. Fr. Simon is chaplain at Providence College. Fr. Jonah Teller, a guitarist who is also Fr. Simon’s brother by blood, is the parochial vicar at St. Joseph’s Church in Greenwich Village, New York City. Fr. Justin Bolger, O.P., who plays guitar, as well as several other instruments, is the Catholic chaplain at Brown University. Bassist Fr. Timothy Danaher, O.P., is chaplain of Dartmouth College.

Sophomore Ellen Burks, who was backstage during the concert, told the Rover: “I thought it was wonderful how joyful and enthusiastic the friars were throughout the concert, both on and off the stage. As they left the stage, they were chanting, ‘Not too bad, not too bad,’ which was certainly much too modest for their performance!” Students and conference attendees alike echoed her sentiment, singing along with the performers and videoing the performance for their family members.

With their concert at Notre Dame, the Hillbilly Thomists have concluded their 2024 Marigold Tour. Their four albums can be found on all streaming platforms, and at www.hillbillythomists.com.

Dora Tomko is a junior in the Program of Liberal Studies, who enjoys causing confusion as to her place of origin through her love of the Hillbilly Thomists, use of “y’all,” incongruous English pronunciations, and insistence that it is a hoagie, not a sub. If you’d like to know where she’s really from, she can be reached at dtomko@nd.edu.

This article has been modified since publishing. Dartmouth College was incorrectly referred to as “Dartmouth University”. Additionally, Flannery O’Connor was referred to as a “nineteenth century Catholic novelist”. She both lived and wrote in the twentieth century.

Photo Credit: The de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture

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