TCATS #456 - Seven Songs!

Whenever history has been made with the Tabernacle Choir, I want to make sure I document it. So that's what I'm doing today.

This was one of those history making experiences that no one really even talked about. Certainly the audience didn't know. It wasn't announced or pointed out. Nothing was written about it. But today on Music & the Spoken Word, we sang not our typical five songs. Nor did we sing six. We sang seven! And the producers even managed to fit in this medium-length organ solo that was nothing short of impressive.

Out of those seven songs, there weren't too many I was thrilled about singing. In fact my favorite of the bunch was a long-time classic of the Choir--Climb Every Mountain, from The Sound of Music. Sometimes it's the lyrics of this song that stand out to me. Sometimes it's the melody and harmonies of the song itself (and how it's arranged). But today it was the fact that the song brought me back to a time long ago. A time when things were simpler. Life was easier. And responsibilities were very few. I still remember the first time I watched Sound of Music. It was Thanksgiving Day and the big meal of the day was finished. It was nearing 7pm, everyone was getting a second or third helping of pie, and all of my family and extended family were excited to sit down in front of the TV and watch this wonderful musical that they had been talking about for days. I sat down with them, being maybe 11 or 12 at the time, and ended up enjoying every minute of it. Who knew, at the time, that I'd land a part in my high school's performance of it five years later. And who knew I'd be singing songs from it with the Tabernacle Choir 30 years later.

Switching topics, Thierry Fischer came to the Tabernacle today to rehearse with us the ELIJAH oratorio following the broadcast. He currently is the director for the Utah Symphony and will be the one directing us as we perform ELIJAH in a couple of weeks. While I still don't love this musical work, it was a nice experience to be directed by Thierry (pronounced "Terry"). I think the Choir really put on their "A" game for him and as we went through the first half of the piece (which took an hour), I finally had the feeling that I'd be able to get through this OK. Along with that feeling, I have to give credit to my friend Wes who has been singing right next to me for the past five weeks. He knows I've had a hard time with it and has lent support and encouragement that has been very much appreciated. And speaking of people to thank, I also thank my wife for her encouragement and prayers as well. Who would have thought this would have been such a struggle? I hope that when it's all said and done, I can look back and pick out a few good things about the experience. But to be honest, people helping me get through it has already been a positive. And being conducted by Thierry and him sharing his passion about the piece was a positive as well. 

The obvious "life take-away" I suppose is to let people help you get through things. Let them serve you. Also, as you're going through hard things, maybe there's something that's good. Even if it's small and almost unnoticeable. 

Until next time, God be with you.

TCATS #455 - Tour, Easter, Elijah, & Collin

I wanted to take a few minutes and update y'all on a few things.

TOUR

First, the roster for who's been selected to participate in the Mexico City, Mexico tour in June, was posted on Friday. I was rather surprised to see that almost everyone who signed up to go, is going! About 315 of us. And the standby list is only 14 people long. So why is this so surprising you may ask? Well, for tours in the past, the number of choir members going has been quite a bit less. I've been told one of the reasons for this is because there's often a logistical problem of trying to fit so many people onto a typical stage (at a typical performance venue). Also, for tours in the past, the standby list has been pages long. I'm thinking that maybe more people have wanted to come on this tour because it's shorter and overall more do-able for many who don't want to use a lot of their vacation time. Perhaps another reason more are being allowed to go is because now that they aren't taking any spouses--which has caused the overall number they're taking to actually be LESS than what it was before. Roommate selections, itineraries, getting passport info and physician sign-off info finalized, etc. will all be a part of the next month or two.

EASTER CONCERT

We found out on Thursday that the Easter Concert for this year has been canceled. I'm personally glad they did that because it was just going to be too much. We've had all of these extra rehearsals to learn ELIJAH and after performing ELIJAH we'd launch right into all of the Easter Concert extra rehearsals, intermingled with General Conference rehearsals. Anyway, the Easter Concert is being replaced by what they're calling "Music & the Spoken Word PLUS". As for what the "plus" means, we haven't been told. But if I had to guess, it would either include some unique music elements or it would just be an extended performance (maybe 45-60 min, rather than the traditional 30). Or maybe both!

ELIJAH

I've mentioned this several times before, but rehearsing ELIJAH has been so difficult for me. My wife helped me realize that maybe all of these lyrics that talk of a very vengeful and wrathful God who loves to punish and destroy are triggering me into confronting into some of the ways I used to view God in my own life. Ways that included Him punishing me for who I am, being disappointed in me for not measuring up, and not caring to compassionately intervene when I feel like I needed Him the most.. On top of that, I just struggle when God is portrayed in those ways. Such a god cannot be the God I worship. At any rate, I almost broke out in tears during rehearsal as it was just too much to handle. Not sure how I'm going to get through the next few weeks.

COLLIN

Today we gave a standing ovation to Collin Jefferies who has served on the stage crew for many, many years and is finally ending his service. What makes Collin so special in my mind is that he falls into a select category of people who, despite their limitations or disabilities, goes forth in faith and serves and makes a difference. Collin can't use too much of his right hand, AND YET he's just as valuable as the rest of the crew that does all of the various manual labor tasks (setting up chairs, tables, stands, microphones, etc. etc). It's been a weekly inspiration to watch him and he will be missed. 

Make it a good week everyone!

Until next time, God be with you.

TCATS #454 - Pressing On & Moments of Grace

Last week I was attending a mission farewell meeting for my sweet nephew Jack--and therefore didn't attend Choir. I was glad to be back this week though and the line-up for Music & the Spoken Word today was quite a good one. 

If you're a fairly avid fan of the Choir, you have heard by now Rick Elliott's arrangement of "Let Us All Press On". (HERE) It's by far the best arrangement of this hymn that I've ever heard and pushes all the right buttons. And it was a song I just needed to be able to sing today. Things have been hard lately, personally, and sometimes I feel like my spiritual "well" needs a good filling up! The lyric that spoke to me today from that song was "In the days of trial His Saints He will cheer". I've been learning lately that even though each of us might be in the thick of hard things, there are always good/positive moments to hold onto and that bring what might equate to "cheer". It's like God is saying, "I want to cheer you up as you're going through these hard things, so here's a good moment to hold onto, even if that moment is brief. It's a testament that I love you." As I thought about all of that, I couldn't quite hold back the tears during the rehearsal and the performance.

I asked Wes, who was singing next to me, what his favorite lyric from that song is, and he said "An unseen power will aid me and you." I think that fits in nicely with mine. We can't see God or Christ or the Holy Ghost. But they are there. And are often aiding us by giving us these small moments of grace to cheer us up.  

I hope that as you go through your week this week, you'll be able to spot those moments of grace that are designed to keep you feeling God's love as you work through the hard.

In other news, the various section leaders got released this past week and new ones put in their place. What does a section leader do, you ask? Well, they make sure attendance is reported properly and are go-to people for questions/concerns/problems that the members of their section might have and need to share. Anyway, the Bass 2 sections leaders are now my good friends Ben and Siope. And with Siope now having a new calling, I'll need to offer some suggestions to the librarians as to who they can call to help me now in the library. Watch out basses......you might be tagged! 

I think that's about it. Other quick tidbits: rehearsals for ELIJAH continue, though I can't say I'm any more excited to perform it than I was just a week ago. Several choir members feel the same way though there are those who really love it. On the Mexico tour front, we were told in Friday's newsletter that the choir leaders hope to have a final list of those who will be invited to participate, by end of month. 

And that, is a wrap.

Until next time, God be with you. 

TCATS #453 - A Look Back, A Look Forward

Hello, hello my friends! And welcome to 2023. Members of the Tabernacle Choir had a nice long two-week break but met again for the first time this past Thursday for the first rehearsal of the year. Some of us actually met on Tuesday as that was the first day of Choir School for all of the individuals who just barely (and successfully) went through the audition process. Those joining them were the new folks from 2022. (As mentioned before, if you make it into the Choir, you not only have Chorale rehearsal for your first year, but you have it for the year after, too.) So it's been a busy start to the year for the "second-years" in particular.

Before jumping into how things have gone for 2023 thus far, I did want to include in this post the famous year-end pictogram. Each year, Choir member and friend Siope Kinikini puts together a very cool pictogram that includes all of the highlights of the year. So without anymore introduction, here it is! (zoom in by clicking on it)

As for 2023, there's not too much to report, yet. Rehearsal on Thursday went just fine and it was great to see the new people wandering the halls looking all excited to be there. I wasn't a big fan of hearing the infamous "You'll be disappointed if..." speech (refer HERE for more details) as I don't understand why we need to hear it every year. Plus, there were some quotes added to the speech that I wasn't a fan of, either. But aside from that, the rehearsal was good and the first broadcast of the year today went well too. My favorite song from today was the Alleluia piece. Every time I sing that one, I feel like a warm, majestic blanket of peace has wrapped around me. 

As for the months ahead, what do you have to look forward to? 

February: ELIJAH Concert w/ the Utah Symphony
March: Easter Concert
April: General Conference
April: Retirements
June: Mexico City tour (for any of you who will be in Mexico)
July: Summer Concert
October: General Conference
December: Christmas Concert

Additionally, sometime during 1Q, Music & the Spoken Word will begin to be available in Spanish, with a Portuguese version to follow.

I think my personal goal this year is to extend more grace to the Choir leadership. Like other individuals in  leadership positions within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, they are prone to make mistakes and, at times, be less sensitive and inclusive as I feel like they should be. But no one is perfect and I'd like to think they do the best they can. So I need to keep that all in mind as things come up and I'm prone to shake my head and wonder why.

Thanks for your continued support of this blog and for your interest and support of the Tabernacle Choir. I'm looking forward to more blog entries as I journey behind the notes.

Until next time, God be with you.

TCATS #452 - Christmas Concert Top Ten

Well, the Choir, orchestra, bells, conductors, support staff, the guest artists, and the families of all of those just mentioned, made it through the very busy Christmas Concert week! Everyone involved in the actual concert met on Tuesday night and again on Wednesday night to put it all together. The concerts followed on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, with a "mini-concert" on Sunday (which consisted of the normal 30 min Music & the Spoken Word, followed by 30 additional minutes of parts of the Christmas Concert for just the in-house audience).

If you want to read professionally published articles on the concert, feel free to click on the multiple links below. The purpose of this particular blog entry, though, is to share with you my own experience and perhaps give you a peak behind what the audience saw.

ARTICLES

DesNews
LDSLiving
Church News
Salt Lake Tribune

 

My TOP TEN Moments (in no particular order)

10. There weren't any songs I didn't like singing this year, but the one I think I enjoyed the most personally was "Lo, How a Rose E're Blooming". I already blogged about this song, and like I said in that write-up, it's just a beautiful tune and singing it a cappella really brought it into my heart. Honorable Mention: "I Saw Three Ships"--especially the last 15 seconds of that song. 

9. Having the privilege of singing next to my very good friend, Bro. Wes Malquist for the Thurs and Fri night concerts. His side comments, funny jokes, impeccable knowledge of the music, enthusiasm, encouragement, and friendship were (and always are) very much appreciated.

8. Observing how the various men and women within the choir leadership effectively handled certain issues that came up--which could have caused several choir members to lose focus on what mattered the most.

7. Listening to a mini-devotional (including a Q&A) in which the guest artists (Lea Solonga, Sir David Suchet, and Nicholas Winton Jr) were given some time to talk about themselves, their experiences this week, and answer questions that choir members had. The experience was very insightful. Among lots of things they said, they were all in agreement that their time here with the choir organization has been life-changing. They have been extremely grateful for the hospitality and friendship they've felt and have been overwhelmed with the kindness they've experienced.

6. Hanging out with friends during the breaks we had. It was fun talking about how the "concert experience" was going for everyone and hearing each other's take on impressions, favorite musical numbers, and guest artist reactions. Of course we talked about lots of other topics too. 

5. Reading through all of the social media posts that members of the choir posted to our non-public FB group. So many shared how they or people they know had been affected by what they saw and heard. Many miracles, many inspirational stories, many thankful hearts from people going through hard things.

4. Being greeted after the concerts by the Choir presidency (including the wives) who congratulated us on a job well done.

3.  Seeing audience members turn on the lights of their phones after being invited to pledge their lives to serving and uplifting others in 2023. It was truly symbolic in so many ways. Even just one light in the darkness shines brightly and is noticeable (meaning that one person's light can be effective in helping someone else) but as that one light turned into thousands of lights, it was evident how quickly light can cut through the darkness and individual acts of goodness can add up.

2. Hearing the story of how Nicky Winton saved over six hundred children from certain death just as WWII was about to start. You can read more about that story at the link, but it was so inspirational. The last remaining child of Nicky was at the concert --and during the devotional, he spoke of additional acts of service his father did during his life which clearly painted the picture that Nicky was truly a man of service throughout his entire life.

1. Having my joy in singing with the choir reignited. Leave it to Christmas music to work a miracle.

Special thanks to my carpool buddies and to my wife and kids who came to support me (and kept things going on the home front while I was away). Love you all!

Until 2023, may God be with you.

 

(Pictures courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and LDSLiving.com)

Lea Solonga

Audience members holding up their lights

Lea Solonga

Sir David Suchet

Holding up lights to signify a pledge for good works

Wes and me after the 12/18 MSW

Carpool buddies having some pre-concert eats

Wes, myself, and Patrick

Wes & Patrick enjoying some dinner after our recording session

TCATS #451 - Es ist ein Ros entsprungen

I loved all of the Christmas songs the Tabernacle Choir got to perform today, but I think the one I enjoyed the most was "Es ist ein Ros entsprungen" or, translated "Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming". While I'm not a huge fan particularly of the title, the song itself--the tune--somehow embodies all of the good things about Christmas. Somewhere along the way when I was smack dab in the middle of my teenage years, Mannheim Steamroller's version of this song made an impression on me and tied together all the positive things about Christmas--which has carried over into my adult years. So, as I sang it today, I felt good and was hoping that others were feeling good listening to it.

Also, it's very rare that the Choir does anything a cappella. It just takes too long for a choir this size to work on and perfect an a cappella song. So when we performed this song today without any accompaniment, the experience seemed to make it all the more special. The happy feelings were a bit deeper--a bit more meaningful. It's almost like a cappella singing (particularly when it's a slower moving piece) causes each singer to have to rely on each other a little more than usual because we're much more exposed. As Bro. Wilberg would say "there's no where to hide". We each have to do our part very well.

Speaking of "very well" AND our conductor Bro. Wilberg AND things that are rare, our conductor gave us a compliment today that I don't think I've ever heard. He said our performance today was "exceptional". I turned to Wes and asked "Did he really just say that?" Haha. Yes, yes he did.

In other news, this next week is THE week! Our busiest week of the year. Rehearsals Tues and Wed, with performances Thur, Fri, and Sat. And Sun of course. I feel like we're ready. Some of the newer choir members will undoubtedly still be looking over their music right up until Thursday. But they are doing great. We'll all get there. 

A shout out to all of my fellow choir friends today who were extra loving and supportive. Compliments, hugs, well-wishes, comical commentary, and genuine concern about current life challenges--all of these things were given and received in abundance. Such good people. And on top of that, I got a nice text after the performance today from my wife who continues to support me in this musical journey (and puts up with all of my being gone this coming week). Thanks Jenn!

Last thing: if you weren't able to see last year's Christmas Concert, it will be shown on TV throughout December. Check out this link for details. Regarding this concert, guest narrator Neal McDonough said "Creating this show of Christmas, and talking about the things that I love most, it’s truly a highlight of my career,” said McDonough. It’s so emotional and so powerful what we say on stage. The whole true meaning of the show is all about family. I am just so honored to be part of a show, alongside a world-class group, that really talks about life. It’s about kindness and forgiveness and realizing that it’s not about us, it’s about the greater good. For me to be able to express how I feel onstage, it’s such an empowering feeling because I haven’t really had that ability to be able to speak about how I feel about life and how I like that to be with my art. It’s an inspiring, humbling, fantastic feeling.”

Until next time, God be with you.

TCATS #450 - The Little Things

Today was a long day. Sundays for the Choir are normally long, but today I spent 9 1/2 hrs as a musical missionary. We had the normal broadcast in the morning. And then we regrouped at 4:30pm to prep for the First Presidency Christmas Devotional at 6pm. By the time I got home I was weary. 

That said, singing Christmas music is always satisfying and I tried to find the little things that made the long hours of today more of a delight. Ready for a few?

1. I got to get into a car this morning that had been inside my [warmer] garage instead of outside in the very cold air.

2. The roads and weather were good throughout the day. 

3. I sat by two good friends for both the MSW broadcast and the devotional. We talked of good, important things.

4. I got a few hugs.

5. My friend Patrick was back after a week of being out sick, right ready to sing and be a part of the magic again.

6. The full carpool gang drove to and from the devotional together. It's probably been five months since all four of us drove in together.

7. I was able to stifle a sneeze and two facial itches while potentially on camera. 

8. I appreciated how beautiful and Christmasy decorated the Conference Center was. (Bless those people who spent countless hours doing that)

9. I got to help a fellow bass by taking his music back to the library and checking to see if his new badge had come in.

10. I got a few nice texts from family and friends showing their love and support for time spent today.

There's ALWAYS something good to find, even within days that are very full, or very tiring, or very stressful, or very draining, or very hard. Sure, you might have to really think about the day's events to find what exactly made you even the least bit happy, but I know you'll find something. Give it a try the next time you are tempted to think the day was a complete disappointment.

Until next time, God be with you.