What a long and tiring week.
But as the choir endured what we were called upon to do, several highlights emerged and blessings were felt.
The fun all began Tuesday night as the choir convened for another rehearsal of Mahler's 8th Symphony. A symphony that we have been rehearsing for probably upwards of 40-50 hours (I could go back and get an accurate count, but that's an approximate guess that's hopefully somewhat close). As we met Tuesday, we were joined by the Utah Symphony, The Madeleine Choir School (comprised of elementary/junior high kids), and eight soloists. And Thierry Fischer, of course, as our conductor. We went through various portions of the symphony. And then on Wednesday night and Thursday night, we went through the whole program, occasionally going back to perfect certain parts here and there.
I can say, that despite the difficulty of learning this masterpiece, it was gratifying to see it all come together with the full ensemble. Mack had given us the pep talk way back in Sept/Oct time frame, that learning Mahler's Eighth would equate to "heavy lifting". And heavy lifting it certainly was! There were plenty of rehearsals that were grueling and plenty that seemed to go on forever. But as it all came together this week, I had a new appreciation for this work of art and was grateful to be a part of the overall musical experience.
Our performances were Friday and Saturday evening--singing and playing to a full-capacity crowd. My favorite performance was on Saturday. As a choir, we seemed to have fewer mistakes that night. For me personally, it just felt better. The symphony contains a lot of interesting and emotionally charged sections. But my favorite was the magnificent ending.
It was grand.
It was glorious.
It was moving.
And afterwards, kind Thierry Fischer gave Mack Wilberg and the Madeleine Choir director a big hug for all of their help in preparing the choirs. I was grateful for that, particularly since Mack spent all of that time preparing us and wasn't able to actually conduct us. To his additional credit (and with no surprise), each night he was right there giving us notes on what to improve based on our performance the night previous. Fully invested, he was! As always.
Will I miss it? No.
Will I miss waking up every morning with Mahler's music going through my head? No.
Will I miss rehearsing it? No.
Am I grateful I was part of the performance? Definitely.
After all, it feels good to do hard things, doesn't it? Isn't life itself full of hard things? And each time we get through one successfully, we feel good. We feel like we've grown. And we feel like we've learned.
The next morning, being very tired (following each performance, there was a recording session we had to stay for), we prepared for Music & the Spoken Word--singing some personal favorites such as "Redeemer of Israel", and "Arise, O God, and Shine". Afterwards, we stayed for filming of the Virtual Choir project. I had no idea this project was so BIG. I don't think I've personally seen so many cameras and lighting equipment and monitors, all in one space. We were joined by several dozens of "extras"--non-choir members who had applied to come sing with the choir for this project. Men and women from a wide range of ages and nationality and individual uniqueness. Once they took their places, we sang "Hallelujah" from Handel's Messiah, many times, as cameras took footage after footage.
You can see some pics, below. AND, here's a great summary/feature story from a local news channel that will give you a better appreciation of how the filming went and what the project is all about.
Anyhow, it'll be interesting to see the final product once it's released next month. As always, I was grateful to be a part of the experience. Anything that is designed to promote good, uplifting music and to help others feel included and inspired is always great to be a part of.
Until next time, God be with you.
(some photos courtesy KSL)
An interesting morning with the Choir, to be sure.
As I wasn't at the Thursday rehearsal, I had to be content observing the choir's performance from the side balcony benches. I'll admit, it's hard to just watch. I know some choir members who don't think twice about it--they are actually grateful to take a break and enjoy just sitting and listening. But honestly, I'd much rather be singing. It kills me to be "benched."
Sitting there, waiting for rehearsal to begin, a good friend came over to say
hello and talk a bit, which I was grateful for. Then, about 20 minutes into rehearsal, Dave Gheris (the seating manager) came over and pointed to five of us and motioned us to come over. He then said to go down, get into our tuxes, and go to the horseshoe (a practice room underneath the Tabernacle).
As I proceeded to go downstairs with the others, I asked the others what this was all about--thinking maybe, just maybe, they knew something I didn't. But no one knew a thing. Are they going to have us sing something? Are we going on a field trip? Is there a new meet-and-greet-the-audience program that I missed hearing about? I couldn't for the life of me figure it out.
Once there, we were finally told what was going on.
Bonneville Communications has organized this "World's Largest Virtual Hallelujah Chorus" project (to promote our upcoming Handel's Messiah concert)
in which people from all over the world can submit a video of themselves singing the Hallelujah chorus (in whatever part they sing). They will then be digitally placed into the choir as they sing the chorus. See more details HERE.
Anyway, as part of that, the few of us choir members who had congregated in the horseshoe (women included) were asked to stand in front of some cameras and get our picture taken in various facial poses. They will then take those photos and insert us into the choir video shoot happening next week--which is all part of this virtual chorus project. I'm not entirely sure where, exactly, we'll appear in the final project. But when the whole thing is complete, the video will be posted for all to see.
Out of my tuxedo and back to the benches, I observed the choir singing various patriotic numbers in honor of Presidents Day. I think my favorite number was "This House I Live In" by Earl Robinson. It asks the question "What's America to me?" It got me thinking of what America means to me. And I appreciated the opportunity to think about that question. Especially during a year of such heated politics.
After the broadcast, we spent the next two hours rehearsing Mahler's 8th, but
this time, with the actual conductor who will be conducting the concert--Thierry Fischer. It always takes time getting used to a different conductor, but Thierry knew what he was doing, of course, and made some suggestions along the way that seemed to resonate with all of us. At the end of rehearsal, he was very complimentary and said that he couldn't wait for next time.
And speaking of next time, this coming week is one of THOSE weeks where we get to be at the Tabernacle every night. Both for rehearsals and then for the actual concerts Friday and Saturday. As with all performances though, it'll be fun to see it all come together.
Will I miss the Mahler rehearsals though?
No, probably not. :)
Until next time, may God be with you.
As we began rehearsal this morning, Ryan Murphy challenged us to think about missionary work and missionaries that we knew, while singing one of our songs "How Lovely Are the Messengers" by Felix Mendelssohn. The main lyrics of the song are based on a scripture in the Book of Isaiah:
Isaiah 52:7: How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
I was grateful for the challenge, since one my nieces, Rachel, just left to serve a mission a couple of months ago, to North Carolina. And a nephew, Tanner, just left last week to serve in Argentina. They are the first niece and nephew to go, and many more will follow--including some of my own children, I'm sure. (For those of you not as familiar with missionary work within The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you can read more HERE.) As my wife and I, along with my kids, have started to pray for Rachel and Tanner, we're daily reminded of the importance of missionary work and how wonderful it is that we can all be missionaries and let others know of the teachings of Jesus Christ through our words and daily actions. We're grateful to share something that means so much to us, and has truly helped us be happy.
At my parents' home, there's a map of the world on the wall with pin-on banners showing various locations. And under that map is a listing of who has served full-time missions thus far, starting with my mom and dad who, before they were married, both had the opportunity to serve in Germany. It's been fun to look at each time the family gathers--to think about who will be next to leave, and to be reminded of how important it is to share truth with others.
While my mission to Japan was an extremely humbling experience (particularly learning the language), I am grateful that I was able to share important truths with the people of Japan. I'm very grateful, too, that I was blessed with other missionary opportunities afterwards: to be a part of the Hill Cumorah Pageant and to be a performing missionary in Nauvoo, Illinois. These were certainly some of my life's highlights, including now being able to sing in the Choir. But my greatest missionary moments have come as my wife and I have been able to teach and love our children. These are opportunities and experiences I wouldn't trade for anything.
The great thing is, that regardless of who we are, we can all be a positive and uplifting influence on others, sharing truths we've learned within our families and with everyone in our sphere of influence.
The world needs more light. So be a light!
Until next time, God be with you.
For this week's post, I thought I'd just include some random thoughts and info about current Choir happenings/observations.
>>Right after choir rehearsal was over, I checked my phone for messages and saw that my 10 year old daughter had texted to say that I had been on TV exactly 14 times this morning! My family's devotion to my calling always surprises and humbles me.
>>Mack gave us one thumb-up after the broadcast. This means, as you might expect, "good job." Sometimes we get two thumbs-up, which, I suppose would mean "excellent job."
>>The broadcast today included a segment about Rockwell's paintings. I was able to see the Rockwell exhibit at the BYU Museum of Art a couple of months ago and it was great. I like the simplicity and everyday events and people depicted in his paintings.
>>We continued to work on Mahler's 8th Symphony after the broadcast. Everyone had just received a seating chart for this concert, the night before, and part of that seating chart included several individuals sitting in the balcony benches. I was one of these. What was funny, was hearing everyone's theories as to why the balcony individuals were chosen to sit there. Everything from looks, to voice quality, to ability to blend, or not being as loved or appreciated (which is certainly not true). I was just internally chuckling as I didn't think it mattered too much.
>>Speaking of this Mahler concert, word is that tickets sold out in 40 minutes.
>>We got new performance folders today! If you have noticed on broadcasts, our old folders were a burgundy color. Our new ones are good ol' standard black. I don't know how often we get new folders, but I'm pretty certain it's not very often. So hey! I'll enjoy this momentous occasion.
>>At church today, a couple who had been serving as General Service Missionaries on Temple Square, spoke about their experiences over the past five years. It was very interesting hearing their inspiring true stories--mostly of individuals who they interacted with in some way during Mormon Tabernacle Choir performances or General Conference. Most of these stories ended the same: people being overcome and in tears. Tears of feeling inspired and happy.
Until next time, God be with you.
I'm so thankful to be a part of The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and this week was no exception. There aren't any out-of-the-ordinary experiences or choir news to share this week--we simply worked hard to prepare for this morning's broadcast and worked hard continuing to prepare for our upcoming performance of Mahler's 8th Symphony.
I thought about two oft-repeated lines of text today, from a negro spiritual song we sang called Then We'll Sing Hosanna. The two lines were these:
But we have but the one more river to cross,
And then we'll sing hosanna.
Confirming the intended meaning of this phrase with a friend of mine, this speaks of the negro people who, amidst their incredible hardships and struggles, knew that death was the final river to cross before they'd find ultimate peace.
As I was pondering this phrase further, I thought about some other personal interpretations. One speaks to a mindset I sometimes get in that isn't very healthy. It's the "after I get through this, THEN I'll be happy" mindset. As we all know, getting through a particular trial does bring a measure of happiness. But the ending of a trial always bring another one to take its place. So unless we can live happily along side our trials, we're going to find it hard to be happy most of the time.
Another thought on this phrase was making sure that as we do make it through trials, hopefully by calling upon God's help and applying the atonement of Christ, that we DO take time to "sing hosanna." Or, in other words, give thanks for the help and strive to live in a state of gratitude.
Lastly, I wholeheartedly agree with the original meaning of these two lines of text. From the Book of Alma, in the Book of Mormon, we read: And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.
Until next time, God be with you.
There was a mini spiritual revival going on at the Tabernacle this morning! The men donned their white coats and black bow ties, while the women wore their fusia dresses. Together with the orchestra, we sang four spirituals to pay tribute to not just Martin Luther King Jr., but all of those men and women who worked (and continue to work) so hard for freedom, racial equality, and justice. We were joined by our good friend Alex Boyé, who (as usual) did a great job in portraying the deep and important message behind these songs.
From a singer perspective, I really enjoyed the opportunity to be a part of this program today. The songs were all very familiar (memorized) and I was able to fully concentrate on the messages of the songs. It was gratifying to know that the messages reached the hearts of many in the audience as I noticed several individuals wiping away tears of gratitude and appreciation. The overall spirit in the Tabernacle humbly testified of the importance our Father in Heaven and His son, Jesus Christ, place on the themes of equality, love, brotherly kindness, and freedom.
I know that the fight for racial equality is still a war that has not been completely won. But I'm grateful for those who are fighting in that war and who continually seek opportunities to show what side they are on. I'm also grateful for literature that's been written and for films that have been made such as Remember the Titans, Selma, The Great Debaters, The Blind Side, The Help, and others that my wife and I have enjoyed showing to our kids to give them a greater understanding of this nation's past, the equality struggles it went through, and the great men and women who were not afraid to stand up.
I end today's post with a paragraph from today's Spoken Word:
"The course has not been easy, nor is it yet fully realized. But we can take hope in our ongoing efforts to correct wrongs, to embrace one another as equal persons and citizens of one nation. This is, after all, a 'sweet land of liberty,' the 'land where [our] fathers died, land of the pilgrims’ pride.' So 'from ev’ry mountainside let freedom ring!'"
Having had two weeks off of going to the Tabernacle on Thursdays, it was actually nice to resume our normal schedule this past week. Nothing in particular was different or unique about our Thursday night, EXCEPT that the new members of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir were there for their first Choir School session. I suppose that technically, they aren't members of the choir, yet, since they must go through 16 weeks of lessons and instruction. However, after they complete their "boot camp", they will join the rest of us in the loft and blend their voices and testimonies with ours.
A friend of mine and I took a little walk before choir rehearsal started to see if we could get a look at these new members. We found them having a tour of the Tabernacle. Along with seeing their faces reflecting wonder, happiness, and a bit of nervousness, I was scanning the group to see if I recognized anyone I knew. I didn't find anyone. At some point though, I look forward to meeting them--and, if they happen to be a bass (and somewhere near my height), I'm sure I'll have the pleasure of singing next to them and getting to know them a little.
Welcome, new people! We love you and are grateful for your testimonies and talents.
Turning attention to the broadcast this morning, the song that ended up being my favorite today was simply titled "Alleluia". The lyrics of the song were equally simple (the word "Alleluia" just repeated itself over and over, which mean "God be praised"). Describing the song this way might leave the impression that it was simply uninteresting.
On the contrary. It was simply beautiful.
Each time the phrasing repeated, more parts were added, more harmonies, and an increase in volume. I thought of different parts of my life and the parts of my life yet to unfold. I thought of coming into the presence of God after this life was over. I looked out at the audience and I thought of many of them making it faithfully through their personalized trials and tribulations of this life, and finding a very sweet reward in the end, for doing so. I thought of those who may choose not to fight the good fight and ultimately reject their Savior. I thought of the grandeur of heaven, the beauty of music, and the pure love of God. And I thought of the desire I have to show more love to family, friends, and all of my brothers and sisters.
And all of those thoughts fit into that six minute song. It was amazing.
Until next time, God be with you.
