MTC #174 - In With the New

There's a parable found in the Book of Jacob, from the Book of Mormon, that talks about tame and wild olive trees. In the parable, the Lord of the vineyard, along with his servants, are working hard to make sure the olive trees grow well and produce good fruit. Near the end of the story, despite all of the hard work, the Lord of the vineyard laments that the trees have become wild and are producing bitter fruit. His servants convince him, though, that they should graft in branches from a tree producing good fruit, and see if that graft has a positive effect on the ailing tree. 

I thought about this parable at Thursday night's rehearsal as Mack Wilberg officially welcomed all of the new choir members. He made it very clear that the rest of the choir really NEEDED these new members. We needed their enthusiasm, their excitement, and we needed their freshly learned musical skills and best practices. In short, we would be a much better choir because of them.

In going back to the actual parable, I took the liberty of adding a few applicable word substitutions: 

And there began to be [new members] again in the [choir]; and the [existing and new choir members] began to grow and thrive exceedingly; and the [bad singing habits & practices] began to be plucked off and to be cast away; and they did keep the [technical singing aspects] and the [spiritual focus] thereof equal, according to the strength thereof.

And thus they labored, with all diligence, according to the [direction of the leaders and directors] of the [choir], even until the [bad singing habits & practices] had been cast away out of the [choir], and the [directors] had preserved unto [themselves] that the [choir members] had become again [to reach their potential]; and they became like unto one body; and the fruits were equal. . . 

After the broadcast was over today, I turned around in my seat to look at two of the new choir members who happened to be sitting directly behind me. They were all smiles, and as I looked into their eyes, I could almost hear the words "Look! We did it! We stood up at the right time, we brought our folders up and down correctly, we remembered the words, and we used our Choir School knowledge to sing our best. Most importantly, we were able to bear testimony through our singing."

Yes, it's good to have them here. And yes, it's good to be influenced by them and become better because of them.

A few other tidbits I wanted to mention:
--I just loved all of the songs today. Particularly "All People That on Earth Do

Dwell" and "Happy and Blest Are They". 
--A new CD is coming out soon. Check out the details here and if you're interested, you can purchase here.
--We're starting work on a new recording which won't be released until next year. I don't think this project has been given an official press release so I should probably wait until that happens to talk about it further. But fans of the choir should be quite happy about it!

Until next time, God be with you.

MTC #173 - Everybody Hurts, Sometimes

Endings.

They are so hard.

They are especially hard for those of us who are emotional, tender-hearted, sentimental, melancholic, and change-averse. (Hmm, sounds like me)

I vividly remember my high school graduation—looking out from the stage at my fellow students realizing I probably wouldn’t see most of them ever again. It was at that moment I wanted to freeze time and scream “this can’t be right. I’m not ready to grow up!” I also remember the last day of college, which moment came as I walked not on a stage (I didn’t attend commencement), but out of the Testing Center having finished my last final exam. While I was grateful to be done with tests, I was a jumble of emotions for what lie ahead—and my heart hurt for the things, experiences, and people I’d miss.

The beginning of a Mormon Tabernacle Choir member is filled with lots of wondrous things. The first time singing on a broadcast; the first time seeing one’s self on TV; the first time participating in each of the various annual concerts; the first time a piece of music is learned and memorized; the first tour experience; the first time singing in General Conference; the first recording session. And the list goes on. The firsts are filled with lots of excitement, anticipation, and humility. But at some point, all members must pass through the “zone of LASTS”.  The last concert, the last tour, the last time singing this song or that one, and the last Music & the Spoken Word broadcast.

So it was for 23 choir members who officially retired today. Either they had reached the age of 60, or they had been in the choir for the maximum 20 years. Whatever the case, these 23 had been going through their “lasts” for quite some time now. And today marked their official exit from the zone of lasts. Following the broadcast, a Retirement Ceremony was held, with Mack Wilberg reading parting thoughts (as written by each retiree), recognizing each with a handshake and/or hug, and presenting them with a beautiful plaque to remember their time in the choir. Those not retiring, sat, looking on, perhaps contemplating how much time they had left. For me, it was that, and also thinking about the experiences and conversations I had had with several of those leaving—particularly my fellow bass brothers. At the end of the retirement service, those retiring stood in a line facing the choir, and we sang "God Be With You" to them. Emotional? Yes.

As I drove home, and as I sit here, now, my heart hurts for those who have left. Who knows though? Maybe they’ll bravely walk through the new door in front of them with optimism and eagerness. Or, on the other end of the spectrum, maybe they’ll wish there was a coping support group they could join! All I know is when it comes time for ME to leave, I’ll probably want that support group! Particularly when I watch the first broadcast post-retirement--knowing I don’t get the privilege of occupying one of those seats in the loft any longer, and all that goes with that occupying privilege.

Thank you David. Thank you Blaine. Thank you Craig. Thank you Jonathan. Thank you Steve. Thank you Scott. And to all of the other 17, thanks for your service as well. Until we meet again, God be with you. 

Pictures from today's broadcast

(click to enlarge)

Blaine

Craig

David

Jonathan

Steve

Scott

MTC #172 - Christ and You

Happy Easter! 

For the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, this past week was akin to Christmas Concert week as we met every evening (minus Monday) to rehearse or perform. It also happened to be a very busy and emotional week at my day job, and the busiest week my wife has ever had. So, you can imagine how glad we were to finally celebrate Easter today, having survived our various taxing responsibilities. As always, I do want to thank my wife and kids for helping all of the complicated moving parts on the homefront to fit together during my absence. It's no small task. I'm so grateful for them. 

Along with regular Thursday rehearsals, the Choir had 10 extra rehearsals (16+ hours) to prepare for the Easter Concert that we performed this past Friday and Saturday night. The Concert consisted of two Easter-themed works: "Christ on the Mount of Olives" by Beethoven; and the world debut of "A Cloud of Witnesses" by Mack Wilberg (w/Lyrics by David Warner). Beethoven's work included several soloists, all of whom did a fantastic job. I was particularly

impressed with the soprano (Celena Shafer) who seemed to be performing with everything she had, emotionally, physically, and mentally. (I might be slightly partial, too, since she's a fellow Viewmont High School alum) While some of the solo numbers seems to be a little lengthy for my taste, there were two things I enjoyed most about performing this. First, the basses, in particular, were given the opportunity to play the part of the soldiers--who, of course, were upset at Christ claiming to be the King, when it was Ceasar who

was rightfully king. At one part, as we (the soldiers) are proclaiming this, our director Mack said to go ahead and just "let loose"--giving our singing all of the emotion and anger and roughness we could muster! "Behold Him, the deceiver! Who dares to say that He, is King instead of Ceasar. Then seize and bind him fast." It was a weird sensation playing the part of the soldiers, representing all of those who were against Christ. It caused me to feel, in some small degree, the prevailing anger that the apostles and followers of Christ, felt, at that time, from those who were determined to crucify the Savior. Second, I loved ending with the piece "Hallelujah!" It was a very powerful contrast in emotions--going from singing the words of the soldiers, to proclaiming the light and glory of Christ.

Regarding "A Cloud of Witnesses", singing this was a very different experience. It was not your typical composition with recurring melodies and standard phrasing. Instead, we all played the parts of those who were involved in the post-crucifixion events: Christ, the apostles, the angels, and the women. Our task was telling the story and often the notes we sang were repetitive and/or didn't have a lot of range. Kind of like we were speaking, but still singing. If that makes any sense. It's hard to describe. And while it took me awhile to really like how different it was, I did end up liking it very much. Perhaps, in part, because it was different and also, because I felt it was effective at conveying not only the story line, but what the individuals and groups of people were feeling. Overall, I was just happy for Mack Wilberg--that he was able to put together such an amazing musical work of art. I can't even imagine writing the score for just one of the musical instruments, let alone all of them! Not to mention all of the choir parts. David Warner, who provided all of the lyrics, visited during one of our pre-concert warm-ups and just said how grateful he was that we were able to perform this. The one thing I most remember him saying is that unlike most songs that have melodies that carry it along and which the audience can identify with, "A Cloud of Witnesses" requires the singers and orchestra members to not only spiritually and emotionally connect with it, but requires them to be living Christ-like lives in order for that connection with the audience to occur and be effective.

Anyway, it was a great concert and once again, I feel so blessed that for almost all of the significant holidays during the year, I get to experience them by not only singing about them, but being immersed in them in a way that only the medium of music can provide.

Today's Music & the Spoken Word was packed with individuals and families who wanted to start off their Easter morning with the sounds of the Choir, the Orchestra, and the Bells on Temple Square. There were more people at our broadcast this morning than there were at our concert last evening. My favorite of all the songs we sang was the first one "Christ the Lord Has Risen Today." It setup the rest of the Easter-themed program perfectly. Of course ending with Handel's "Hallelujah" chorus was just icing on the cake.

Lastly, though it wasn't connected with the concerts this week, I had the opportunity to watch a performance of "Savior of the World" put on my one of my neighboring congregations. Though it was all fantastic, at the end, as everyone came on to sing the final number, my focus rested on a young man who had clearly been impacted by the experience he had just been a part of.  His mouth started quivering as he kept trying to sing, but he was so overcome that he just couldn't hold back his "tears of testimony".  As I sat there watching the tender scene, I thought  "You know what Ryan? This is what it's all about. It's feeling the love of our Savior, personally, and having that impact your life in all you do. It's about Christ and YOU. It's realizing that while the Atonement and the Resurrection are for everyone, there's a "you" included in that everyone."

Until next time, God be with you. 

MTC #170 - Conference Five

With big events like General Conference, there's always the option to write about a lot of generalities or, instead, focus on just a few specifics. And I think for this post, I'll opt for the latter. For some general reviews, you can go HERE, HERE, and HERE. :)

There are five things I'd like to comment on:

1) The choir sang about 20 or so songs during conference (including Music & the Spoken Word songs). There were several I really enjoyed singing, but the one I think I enjoyed the most was "Now Let Us Rejoice". As a bass, this one was actually not very pleasant to sing because the bass part was so very high (definitely in tenor land). But I've always loved this hymn as far back as I can remember. And it took on increased significance when I was a missionary back in Japan. Before leaving that two-year experience, I met with the congregation of Saints and we all sang that song together as I pondered the Japanese people I had grown to love. Runners-up: "How Firm a Foundation" and "His Voice As the Sound". (All conference music can be found HERE.)

2) One of my favorite talks at conference that tied in very nicely with a song the choir sang ("There is Sunshine in My Soul Today") was Elder Jeffrey Holland's talk where he likened all of us to being in a choir and singing various songs and various parts (humorously, he forgot to mention tenors as one of the parts people could sing). Here's a quote from that talk. "If, for a time, you are unable to echo the joyous melodies you hear coming from others, I ask you to hold tenaciously to the line in this hymn that reassures 'Jesus listening can hear the song [you] cannot sing."  AND "You are unique and irreplaceable. The loss of even one voice diminishes every other singer in this great mortal choir of ours, including the loss of those who feel they are on the margins of society or the margins of the Church."

3) April Conference is always an emotional time for the Choir as there are many singing in conference for the last time and many who are singing for the first time. I happened to sit next to one choir member (Craig) who was singing in conference for the last time. He sort of became known as the "Snickers Man" because if you happened to sit next to him (on either side or in back) on Sunday morning or during a concert, this nice guy would pull out a Snickers candy bar and give it to you. Right behind me was another choir member leaving (Blaine) who we will certainly miss as well. He's a professional sound guy and has provided the choir men with bass/baritone/tenor tracks to practice to week in and week out, for years. I have comments I could make about many more of those leaving us, but I'll save those for later.

On the other side of the timeline, while I don't yet know any of the new folks who just joined us this year, I heard one in the dressing room afterwards saying how overcome he had become with tears and emotions as he sang "How Firm a Foundation." These new guys bring such a fresh and exciting spirit to the Choir. It's great. 

2) I noticed, after conference was over, two young men wind their way down the aisles to get to the one particular aisle that all of the apostles pass by on their way out of the Conference Center. They had this eagerness in their eyes, smiles on their faces, and hands poised to wave to any apostle who lifted his hand to wave first (which they do quite often). It was touching to see how much waving to an apostle meant to them.

1) Lastly, I am very grateful for my wife and kids who are always such a support to me as I fulfil this calling and opportunity. Let's face it...before I was accepted into the Choir, Conference weekend twice a year was associated with lots and lots of family time. Sitting around on our couches together, enjoying the talks and music, eating snacks, and making comments to each other about things we were hearing and feeling. But now that I'm in the Choir, the family is incomplete. It's been a transition for all of us. That said, my wife and kids keep a tally of how often they see me on the big screen and new for this year, I pick a song from each session and dedicate it to my wife--so she knows I'm thinking of her while I sing it. I think we'll keep that new tradition going. 

Until next time, God be with you.

MTC #169 - Tribute to June

I'm very grateful for the songs we were able to sing yesterday as they helped bring strength and comfort following a very sad event that happened to my brother Hyrum, his wife Jenna, and their two boys, Will and Sam. We were informed Friday that Jenna's pregnancy had ended after only six months. Little June Kathleen Pitt was delivered stillborn, leaving behind a sad family that was so eager to bring her home and shower her will all the love and happiness inside them. Instead, June went straight back to her loving Heavenly Father and Mother who had other plans for her. 

The good news, is that Hyrum and Jenna can do just what we sang about yesterday. Typically when the Choir sings this favorite song of mine, I think about my own life and what the words mean to me. But yesterday, as we sang "Standing on the Promises", I thought of my brother and his wife and how they are, with faith, standing on the promise that June isn't really lost to them. She's a part of their eternal family. And they'll get to see her and love her and raise her one day. 

One of the other songs "I Will Follow God's Plan for Me" made me think about trusting God and holding fast to His word and His love--how times of grief and unanswerable questions can be overcome by faith in God's plan. 

Another of the songs, "The Ground" is one that the composer wrote for a work entitled "Sunrise Mass". From his words: "it’s called The Ground because I wanted to convey a sense of having ‘arrived’ at the end of the Mass; to have reached a kind of peace and grounded strength, after the long journey of the Mass, having gone through so many different emotional landscapes." I couldn't help but think of the emotional journey that those who have lost one ones have to go through, and how they can arrive at a peace and grounded strength as they rely upon God for strength. 

The last song we sang was a fitting tribute to June and her family. "May the Good Lord Bless You and Keep You" has these words:

May the good Lord bless and keep you whether near or far away
May you find that long awaited golden day today
May your troubles all be small ones and your fortunes ten times ten
May the good Lord bless and keep you till we meet again

I'm sure that Mack and Ryan had no idea how perfectly these songs would fit together for a family who was grieving this weekend. But I'm thankful they were inspired to add them to the program, and I'm grateful for a Heavenly Father who hears and answers prayers, and brings comfort and peace in a variety of ways--including inspired music.

Until next time, God be with you.



 

MTC #168 - Home

Usually about once a year, the BYU Singers join us for Music & the Spoken Word--and today happened to be that day. We were grateful to have them, and delighted in the opportunity to hear their beautiful voices. We were also grateful

to be directed by Dr. Andrew Crane for one of the songs on the program. Dr. Crane is the director of the BYU Singers and has also performed with the Choir on occasion. I thought it was fascinating to see him come to the podium and start rehearsing the song--giving necessary feedback, correction, and compliments, just as Mack Wilberg would--appearing to be perfectly comfortable and completely in his element. I suppose that it what talent, experience, and confidence will do for you! I wouldn't fault a guest conductor for being just a little bit nervous in directing over 400 singers, but with Dr. Crane, it wasn't even an issue. 

Impressive.

As an aside, a friend of mine mentioned how seeing the BYU Singers took him back to his college years. And I had to agree. Along with all of the wonderful memories of singing at BYU, however, came the fact that I'm in my 40s are am not in that time of life anymore. I used to go back to campus periodically, not too long after I graduated, and felt like I still fit right in. But that definitely is not the case any longer. Those years were filled with ups and downs and have their place in my personal history. And the memories of singing were some of my best memories. But that time was then, and now is now, and I'm glad that now is now. :)

From my BYU days. These were two fellow friends & basses

My favorite song on the broadcast today was called "Softly and Tenderly"--a song that talks a lot about HOME. The song's chorus says

Come home, come home,
You who are weary, come home;
Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
Calling, O sinner, come home!


I think we can all relate to how good it feels to come home after a long, hard day. Or maybe we've been away on a trip or visiting family or involved in some other event, and at some point we just long to be home again. My favorite times are when my wife and I get to have all of our kids home at one time,

enjoying each others' company and participating in conversation and shared experiences. The same feelings come about when I allow my Savior to be a part of my life. I come home to Him through doing things he's asked me to do. I come home by being the type of person He wants me to be. Coming home to appreciate his sacrifice and live his teachings allow me to feel peace. And I'm grateful for that. 

After the broadcast ended today, we had some surprise visitors (and former guest artists) come to the stage and say hello to us. John Rhys-Davies said a few words (he's in town for Comic Con I think) and David Archuleta also said a few words. Both were very kind in expressing how much they love the choir and the warmth they feel when they hear us sing. It was good to see them and to hear their words. 

Until next time, God be with you. 

BYU Singers from today's broadcast

 

MTC #167 - Variety

While rehearsing for the broadcast this morning, a friend leaned over to me and asked "Do you have a favorite [song] today?" I stopped to think about which of the five pieces we were singing was my favorite, and I had to conclude that I really didn't like any one of them more than the other. All of them were good songs with good messages and unique styles. A German hymn tune which reminded me of Christmas, a sweet love song from the movie BAMBI, a baroque piece by Bach, a spiritual about trials (featuring Alex Boye) and a spiritual about forsaking war and doing significant spiritual things "down by the riverside." It doesn't get much more diverse than that. 

It got me thinking about the variety of people and experiences I get to enjoy in my life and how God intended for us to be impacted and influenced by this variety. Each person in our lives has a part to play, big or small, in how we learn and grow. Each experience brings opportunities for growth as well, and gives us perspective and hope. I'm thankful for a Heavenly Father who provides all of these experiences and relationships and grateful for a divine learning process that, while not always understood or agreed with, is exactly what I need. 

Until next time, God be with you.

Singing Down by the Riverside