MTC Week #69 - Come 'Round Right

There are three things I wanted to write about today, so I'll jump write into the first.

1 - Today's Music and the Spoken Word broadcast marked the first for the new members of the choir. It was fun to see their enthusiasm and feel their anticipation as they officially began their Mormon Tabernacle Choir journey. After the broadcast was over, Lloyd Newell had all of us sit down except for the new members, and then proceeded to recognize them in front of all who were in attendance. We all clapped and smiled and I'm sure the rest of us in the Choir were perhaps thinking back to the day we joined. I know I was. Yes, it was only a year ago for me, but at least for today, it seemed like a long time ago.

2 - Tour excitement is starting to build as our choir leaders are giving us more and more information about it. With verbal announcements before rehearsals and written paragraphs in our weekly email announcements, we're starting to think about it and prepare for it more. While we're still waiting for a more detailed day-to-day itinerary, there are pockets of time here and there when we're not performing or rehearsing that we'll be able to do some sight seeing. The current choice before us is how we'll be spending some free time in D.C. We're to pick whether to go on a tour of Mount Vernon (see the mansion and gardens, the family tomb, and spend a short time in the museum and gift shop) or to go to the National Mall (and visit the Smithsonian Museums, Ford’s Theater, Arlington Cemetery, or the Monument Walk, among other sites). In not too much longer, we'll begin a slew of extra rehearsals to prepare for the two concert programs we'll be performing at the various venues (one is for when we perform indoors, one for outdoors). Fun times ahead!

3 - There was one song we sang today that had me really thinking. I thought about the words over and over again and I just wanted to share a few things that came to me. The title of the song is "Simple Gifts" and is a Shaker song composed in 1848:

'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,
'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.
When true simplicity is gained,
To bow and to bend we shan't be ashamed,
To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come 'round right.

These words speak to the very core of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Life is good when we live simply; when we come down from pride and live in humility; when we focus on loving others and treating them with respect; when we submit to the trials and hard things of life that allow us to molded into the person God wants us to be; and when, at the end of each day, we have turned from temptation and weakness and our individualized vices and have thus "come 'round right." 

Until next time, God be with you. 

MTC Week #68 - Triple "R" (Requiem, Retirement & Ryan)

At the end of any notable week with the Choir, I always find myself in the same emotional place--a place I don't mind being. And that place is "grateful."  

The Temple Square Chorale and the Orchestra at Temple Square put on their annual concert this past Friday and Saturday. As mentioned previously, the 2nd year Choir members participated with the 1st year members in this experience-- and all that we had been working on during these past four months came to fruition this weekend as we sang Mozart's REQUIEM. After some final rehearsals (last Saturday, and this past Tues, Wed, and Thurs), and some excellent warm-ups each night from Cherilyn, Ryan Murphy gave us some final notes and then expressed his gratitude for us. He said that this Chorale has been one of the best he's had the privilege to work with and cited skill and consistency as two reasons for that assessment. Helping us remember 2 Timothy 1:7 "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.", he left to go conduct the orchestra portion of the program while us choir members waited a bit for our turn to take the stage.

We took to the stage, ushered in so expertly by our fellow choir member Gerald

Gibb, and enjoyed presenting to the audience Mozart's Requiem. From a music

technicality standpoint, there were several things could have done better on. But our spirits were strong and overall we sounded great based off of post-concert feedback. Even Ryan was thoroughly impressed as he spoke to us Saturday night about our performance. As we reviewed the mistakes we had made, we went back out on stage Saturday night and nailed it! It was a good feeling. And it was very rewarding seeing the 1st years so happy about what they, and all of us, had accomplished. In fact the friend I stood by (1st year Dave Lawrence, who I had sung with at BYU) was all smiles!
We felt....grateful.

Truth be told, while I struggle a bit singing pieces that are in another language (simply because the words, not being in English, don't convey the same meaning to my spirit and heart), I found that singing this Requiem was amazing. The depth, the emotion, and the overall meaning of the songs were so impacting. From the loud shouts of Dies Irae! to the haunting melody of Lacrimosa, I found myself on an emotional rollar coaster. While the official meaning of "requiem" is a "mass for the dead", I like to focus on the origin of that word which is "rest." And are we not all on a journey to find rest? Rest from the cares of this world and from our troubles and sorrows? Through Christ, this is all possible.

While attending Chorale again this year has come at a cost (Tuesday nights are one of the busiest nights for my family), I am sad to have it end. Befriending many of the 1st year folks, singing an excellent work of music, and learning from Ryan Murphy, have all been wonderful experiences.

With the Requiem and the Chorale experience finished, we assembled this 

morning for Music & the Spoken Word. Unlike every other week however, today's broadcast was the last for several members of the choir (27 I think it

was). These individuals were set to retire today after serving anywhere from 5 to 20 years. As such, everyone's emotions were on the sentimental and sad side--particularly for those who were retiring and those who knew well those who were retiring. Even some of us who didn't have much tie to these individuals (being too new to the choir) were emotional as well! The reason for this, I concluded, was two fold. First, even though we didn't know these choir members very well, they were still a part of the "choir family" and the choir would not be the same without them. Second, tender emotions surfaced just by putting ourselves in their shoes. Would time go by as quickly for us as it did for them? Anyhow, trying to get through singing "Homeward Bound" on the broadcast was a mess given the applicability of the lyrics.

View of the retirement ceremony (thanks RB)

The retirement ceremony itself was very nice. Bro. Wilberg had each retiree come up, and while they were being presented a plaque, he would read some words that that retiree had written down. Such words spoke of choir memories, notable events, and general feelings of having sung in the choir. It was all both interesting and contemplative and while I could write more about feelings I was having, I was mostly just grateful that I get to have the experiences I'm having.

Scott Russon (left) and Dave Peterson (right)
were two of the retirees. Scott was in my ward
growing up and we often did musical numbers
together in my earlier years.

A photo of the marble plaque given to each retiree

To end today's post, (and to address the third "R" in today's title), my great friend Ryan Bateman and I arranged for all of us Ryan's in the choir to get a photo taken. And since one of the retirees was named Ryan, today had to be the day! Congregating outside the Tabernacle for a bit, Deb Gheris took a few photos of all eight of us. And we were grateful that associate conductor Ryan Murphy joined us! Results of this unique photo shoot will be posted as soon as the photos are available. Much thanks to Ryan Murphy, Ryan Bateman, Ryan Omer, Ryan Withers, Ryan Bell, Ryan Larsen, and Ryan Snarr for participating in this fun event. After all, us Ryan's have got to stick together!

Until next time, God be with you.

MTC Week #67 - Marking Up

Marks.

Every good musician has many of them throughout each song being learned. Pieces of music already come with several markings that inform the musician how to sing (or play) the piece the way the composer intended. However, as the director leads the choir and orchestra through rehearsals, he or she points out things that the musician needs to be aware of and even has the liberty of changing existing marks to fit a different style or interpretation. 

In Choir School, we're taught to look through a piece of music and "spot the traps" even before the director points them out. "Traps" meaning notes or rhythms or dynamics that we have a greater potential of singing incorrectly if we don't focus on them. With red pencils handy, we use circles, arrows, dots, straight lines, and a whole host of other markings to remind ourselves to sing it right.

The frustration with all of this comes when we don't PAY ATTENTION to the markings. 

At Chorale rehearsal on Saturday, as we were going through Mozart's Requiem, whether it was actually singing in the Tabernacle, or standing on risers, or being in a straight line, or it being a Saturday morning (or a combination of all of those things), we had a hard time paying attention to things that were already marked. Bro. Murphy would say, on several occasions, "do you have this marked in your music?" For which I'd quickly look and discover that yes, yes I did have it marked. Except that I hadn't paid attention and had thus sung it wrong. From then on out, I made an increased effort to notice the markings. And you know what? Those marks were extremely helpful and made the rehearsal go so much more smoothly.

Marks can be applied to life. As we go through our days, and months, and years

here on earth, we learn many things. To live happily requires that we "spot the traps" and make mental marks of what to do and what not to do. Many of those marks comes from mistakes we make because we don't want to repeat those mistakes. Other marks we proactively strive to remember because we're smart enough to know what will (or will not) ensure a good outcome. 

Regardless of where the marks come from, we just need to pay attention to them. That is not easy. There are plenty of times when the choir gathers for rehearsal and we take too long to "get into the zone" and concentrate on singing the way our music and markings are telling us how to sing. Our director is typically not very happy about that. But he's patient and he helps us remember and points things out again and again so those marking take hold.

God, our ultimate director, is patient too. And when we fail to heed our marks and mess up, He's there to help us back on the path. He wants us to be happy each and every day. And Christ paid the price that we can get back on the path. How grateful I am for that.

I end with a verse from one of the songs we sang today that fits this theme:

Praise, my soul, the King of Heaven; To His feet thy tribute bring.Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven, Evermore His praises sing: Praise Him, praise Him, alleluia!Praise the everlasting King.

Let us pay attention to the marks! And if there are days we don't, we can most certainly be healed, restored, and forgiven as a loving Heavenly Father helps us get back up and move forward.

Until next time, God be with you.

Singing "Praise My Soul, the King of Heaven"

MTC Week #66 - April Conference 2015

As I sit here pondering over what to include in this post (as Conference weekend is always so full of thoughts and experiences), I thought it best to just write what's in my heart. I suppose I can't go wrong taking that route, can I? 

General Conference is something I always look forward to. Even before I was in the choir, I had such feelings of anticipation. It's a time when I feel a lot of warmth and a lot of light. It's a time when I feel unity as church members from across the planet come together and show their faith--faith that as they listen to both the words spoken and the music performed, they will be inspired to be more like Jesus Christ.

Being in the choir has only added to the "general conference experience." And today, being Easter, I was extremely grateful to sing songs about Christ, His life, His teachings, and His resurrection. I love my Savior and I acknowledge the enormous impact He has had in my life. Sharing my testimony and love of Him through music this day was a treasure and great blessing.

One of the ways it was a great blessing was being able to sing at all. Health-wise this past week, I've felt fine but I've had this nagging cough which has made it difficult to sing. (Any of you who have tried to sing while resisting the urge to cough can certainly relate) For much of the rehearsal time this week, I simply had to mouth the words while sucking on lozenges and drinking lots of water. But through prayers and blessings from heaven, I was able to sing just fine yesterday and today. A tiny, personalized, Easter miracle.

Another way it has been a blessing was watching the 1st-year folks make their choir singing debut as they were each assigned one of the conference sessions to sing at. Talking to several throughout the week, they were both nervous but excited. And today I saw a lot of both of those emotions reflected in their countenances. It brought me back to just a year ago when I was in their shoes. Their excitement helped generate excitement for me and I was grateful to have been with them yesterday and today.

There were so many great songs we sang today that I'm at a loss of which one to focus on. However, if you were to combine all of the messages of these great songs, I think the theme could be summed up by a phrase from one of the children's songs we sang today called He Sent His Son: 

Have faith, have hope,Live like His Son,Help others on their way.

Isn't that what it's all about? Christ's atonement, Christ's resurrection, Christ's entire life of service and instruction...it's all so that each of us can have faith and hope in Him, improve and be like Him, and then employ our efforts to helping others.

Two last things I want to say.

First, I want to thank my fellow basses for their friendship and for their excellent musicianship. I want to thank the fine organists and conductors for their talents. And I want to thank my wife and family for their support while I sang this weekend.

Second, for all of you who watched any or all of conference, just remember that we improve little by little. Sometimes it's a bit overwhelming to hear all of this great counsel from prophets and apostles and then figure out where to start implementing it all. Take one thing, make one goal, and go from there :) 

Until next time, God be with you.

(below are some random pics)

After the Sun AM session concluded

Waiting in line for lunch

 

A few of us "2nd Years" commemorating our first conference one year ago

Singing "Lord I Would Follow Thee"

Another from "Lord I Would Follow Thee"

Singing "Stories of Jesus"