HT music director

Mr. J. C. Terpstra earned his bachelor’s degree in organ performance from Midwestern State University in 1997 under Professor Ronald Hough and his Master of Music in Choral Conducting from Southern Methodist University in 2007 under Professor Alfred Calabrese. While there, he was a member of the Meadows Chorale and the Concert Choir. He was one of the bass soloists in the Chorale’s performance of J. S. Bach’s Mass in B minor. He has performed in a variety of organ recitals throughout the city of Wichita Falls, sung with the University Oratorio Chorus, Pro-Musica, and also as a featured singer with the Wichita Falls Symphony Orchestra. He played cello with First Orchestra; a newly formed volunteer community orchestra in Dallas. Previously the Director of Music and Organist at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Wichita Falls, Texas, Mr. Terpstra has been Director of Music at Holy Trinity since January of 2004. In addition to being Holy Trinity's principal organist and directing the Sanctuary Choir, his duties at the church include directing the Schola Cantorum, the St. Vincent Men’s Schola, the Handbell Choir, and the Cantor Team. He frequently joins the musicians at Holy Trinity's monthly Taizé service, playing piano or flute. Mr. Terpstra is a member of The American Guild of Organists, the American Choral Director's Association and the National Association of Pastoral Musicians. In his free time, he enjoys swimming, long distance cycling and teaching piano to his very small neighbors.

Jay wrote a series of Musical Notes for the weekly church bulletin during 2007 and 2008. We've included a few samples here.

Thiago X. Nascimento has been the rehearsal and performance piano accompanist of the Sanctuary Choir since the spring of 2008. Originally a self-taught musician, Thiago attended Dallas' Booker T. Washington High School of Performing and Visual Arts where he won the Downbeat award for best classical performance three years in a row before graduating in 2002. He briefly attended the Peabody Conservatory of Music at Johns Hopkins University and then returned to Dallas to study at Southern Methodist University where he was awarded a merit scholarship to the Meadows School of the Arts. He studied with concert pianist Alessio Bax until his graduation in 2008. He plans to continue with a masters degree in performance and composition. Thiago lives in Mesquite with his wife Diana who is singing with the Sanctuary Choir in this year's Memorial Concert.