Reverend Joseph E. Kurtz, D.D. Bishop | Archdiocese of Louisville

St. James Church in Louisville welcomed more than 3,000 people during its annual “Music Under the Dome” event, which took place as part of the Highlands’ “Bardstown Road Aglow” on December 6. The parish, located at 1826 Edenside Avenue, has made this holiday music celebration a tradition each December.

The event features six hours of live music with performances from various ensembles and artists, including the St. James Singers Choir, St. James School Choir, Sacred Heart Academy’s Madrigal Choir, and Bellarmine University’s Schola Cantorum. According to Philip Hines, director of music for the parish and organizer of the musical performances, musicians perform both sacred and secular Christmas pieces such as “The Hallelujah Chorus” and “We Wish You A Merry Christmas.” He noted that the performances are carefully scheduled: “The six hours of live music...are ‘timed out down to the minute.’”

Hines explained that some musicians travel from nearby cities like Cincinnati and Lexington to participate in a trombone ensemble consisting of 39 musicians. “There’s nothing like it anywhere else,” he said.

Attendance varies throughout the evening; some visitors listen for only 20 minutes while others stay several hours. Hines described the impact of the experience: “On this night, people can come here and sit in a beautiful, absolutely gorgeous space, and hear music of the season performed with so many different types of instruments, and so many different voices, and music that crosses over the centuries, to really bring them, I think, a real spirit of Christmas,” he said. “I’m pretty much convinced that this event would have converted both Ebenezer Scrooge and the Grinch to have the true spirit of Christmas.”

Mary Ann “Annie” McDonald, a longtime choir member at St. James Church, said that when the event began more than 15 years ago it was much smaller: “No more than 50 people in the church at a time.” Now it is described as their largest social outreach each year. She attributed its growth to Hines’ leadership since he became organist and director of music in 2015 after serving at Holy Spirit Church for over three decades. Hines is set to retire from St. James Church in January 2026 after more than five decades of music ministry in the Archdiocese of Louisville.

McDonald expressed hope that guests see St. James as a welcoming parish through this event.

Father Gary Padgett, pastor at St. James Church, called it an “evangelistic” occasion where parishioners greet visitors on the sidewalk with home-baked cookies and cider before inviting them inside for warmth and music. He stated: “It’s a great way to get a lot of people to see and experience the church.” Padgett also emphasized his hope that attendees leave with a positive impression: “If they experience something where they are welcomed, where they see beauty, perhaps it changes their mind on what they perceive the Catholic Church is.”

Flyers listing Christmas Mass times are handed out during the event as an invitation for attendees to return later in December. As Padgett summarized: “People will come back and say, ‘I came here for ‘Bardstown Road Aglow.’ From top to bottom, it’s an evangelistic event.”