TCATS #271 - Showing Support

Rather than talking about my Tabernacle Choir experiences directly, today, I want to share some thoughts about an indirect Tabernacle Choir experience I had over the weekend. A friend of mine, who's in the choir, invited me to come support him at the Northstar Conference that was held on Friday and Saturday. This friend of mine, along with some others in the choir, experiences SSA (same-sex attraction) and the Conference is held once a year for those who deal with that and other issues along the LGBTQ spectrum. The Conference is also for friends, family, and leaders within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to come learn more about how they can support this segment of LDS population that is sometimes overlooked and misunderstood. While a part of me was, honestly, hesitant to go, I ended up being grateful for the experience. I learned a lot about not just supporting those who have SSA, but I also learned much about how to support others going through ANY hard thing. Here are a few nuggets of doctrine and wisdom that were shared:

**LGBT church members have unique and important gifts to contribute to the building up of Zion. God has given each of us ways to use our talents for His work.
**Love is the fulfillment of the law. When we see others, we should see a reflection of the Savior's love for us, and we should see that, in them. I am he, and he is me.
**Our job is not to fix others, but to support them and love them. Each individual has their own journey. How can we best help them along that journey?
**God allows children to be who they are so that we can increase our own ability to love and accept and be changed in the process.
**God is full of grace and truth. We should be too. We should strive to find the perfect mixture between the two since too much of one, without the other, isn't helpful.
**Even when you're not on the front lines of a crisis or hardship, you can still bear the burden and pull part of the load. 
**When viewing healthy relationships, keep in mind mutual acceptance, being true to self, spending quality time, being vulnerable, having open communication, and not expecting the other person to fill personal gaps that you, yourself, need to work on.
**Own your feelings and then deal with them. Develop friendships to meet needs broadly, not specifically.
**You'll never look back on life and say that you hugged too many people! Hugs are an excellent way to show support.
**We don't need to meet some minimum standard of living before the grace of God kicks in. You don't need to "do your best" (what even is that, really?) before God grants His grace. He gives it freely for the taking as we stay on the righteous path.
**Making covenants with God is an act of inviting more grace into our lives. We need that grace to fully keep those covenants! 
**Come as you are, but don't expect or be OK with staying that way. God is all about changing us into better people while keeping our unique gifts and talents in-tact. 

All in all, I was grateful for what I learned, and grateful I was able to show some support to my friends and to others at the conference who needed support and love as well. The leadership at the conference debuted a touching video--THIS IS WHAT I KNOW--with everyone in that video belonging to the LDS LGBT community. I invite you to take five minutes and watch it. 

Until next time, God be with you.

TCATS #270 - BYU Singers 2019

We had some special guests join us today on Music & the Spoken Word: the BYU Singers! Every other year they get to come and participate and it was really nice to have them. I was talking with a friend during the break about how seeing them brings back memories of when we were in one of the BYU choirs, oh so many years ago. It seems like that time was in the far distant past--and yet, I can remember many moments of that experience with perfect clarity. Music does that for me--it preserves memories like nothing else can.

The Singers sang two numbers on their own, and joined us for two others. Of course they sounded wonderful. Exquisite, even. The whole program was a delight to be a part of and we ended the program with one of my favorites--"Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing." No matter how many times I sing that, I get chills and a warmth wash over me at the same time, every time. It's a powerful anthem about God's love and wanting to be with Him, again.

I guess that's about it for today. Short and sweet! I did want to say though, that when we got our choir announcements this week (they come out every Friday and keep us up to date on what we need to prepare for, which songs we need to memorize, etc), I fully realized how many songs I need to work on for upcoming events. Fortunately, I have most of the songs memorized for conference already, but the Easter Service includes a lot of songs I really need to spend outside time rehearsing. I'm sure I'll get there, but it's kind of like that feeling you get as you prepare for an upcoming final: overwhelmed, but trying to be confident.  

Until next time, God be with you.

BYU Singers on Today's Broadcast, Conductor Andrew Crane

TCATS #269 - New Recording: Let Us All Press On!

This week (Friday, March 8th), a new recording by the Tabernacle Choir & Orchestra at Temple Square will be available, titled LET US ALL PRESS ON. The whole Choir organization is really excited about this new compilation, and I'd have to say that out of all of the recording projects I've been a part of, this one has been my favorite. Why, you ask? Well, for me, nothing can top the spiritual and uplifting powerful that comes with Christian hymns. 

Some of you reading this might be tempted to think that another CD or streaming playlist of hymns really isn't THAT big of deal, is it? I mean, there are lots and lots of recordings of various hymns --so what really differentiates this new recording from all of the others?

While I can't provide you with a complete answer to that question, I can tell you that a lot of inspiration has gone into this new compilation. It was meant to be, and it was meant to come out, now. Our wonderful President Ron Jarrett stood in front of us today, before our rehearsal, and gave us a background story as to how this recording project came about. I won't relate the whole story, but originally, the project was slated to include different songs with a different theme. However, as changes started to take place within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, under the direction of President Nelson, Pres. Jarrett felt inspired that the recording project include a set of hymns to not only inspire the Church members to "press on" in their faith and devotion to Jesus Christ, but to inspire people throughout the world with "music that will appeal to people of all faiths and traditions." In addition, great thought and care was taken in developing the cover art for this recording. As you can see, the artwork depicts majestic mountains rising above clouds, on the backdrop of a sunrise. As Pres. Jarrett commented on the symbolism of this artwork, my take-away from his comments was that each of us, in going through really hard things in life (climbing our personal mountains), will eventually breakthrough the clouds and the fog and be able to see the light. Our daily, weekly, and lifelong struggles can be overcome as we "all press on" in faith and righteous living. All of the hymns on this recording (which, by the way, includes some of my personal favorites like "Standing on the Promises", "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling", and the included arrangement of "All Creatures of Our God and King") are designed to help each of us in our uphill climb.

That all said, I'd invite you to give this new recording a chance to impact your life. I promise you that it will. Yes, there's the CD you can purchase, if CDs are your thing. You can stream the album if you're an Apple music subscriber or an Amazon music subscriber. And I'm hoping it'll be added to Spotify, too, so that the younger generation who listens to music via that platform, can also be inspired by these hymns. 

I'm grateful for music that inspires, uplifts, and keeps us all going in the right direction. And I'm grateful for music that helps each of us feel God's love and approval as we continue our uphill climb. 

The music on this recording can do just that. And probably more.

Until next time, God be with you.

 

TCATS #268 - Unexpected One

On Thursday morning this past week, I was saying my morning prayers and had this thought come to my head regarding Tabernacle Choir rehearsal that night. The thought was that I needed to pray for a specific person who'd be passing by the Tabernacle that evening--someone who had no intention of going into the Tabernacle, but who needed to go in and listen to the songs we'd be rehearsing. That person needed to feel God's love for them. So, that's what I prayed for.

At rehearsal that night, I kept my eye out for all of the people who came in and sat alone. There were a few, but I never did get any impression of who that person was that I had prayed for earlier. It didn't matter though. I had hope that the prayer had been answered and that that specific someone was there, replacing their hopelessness with hope, and their pain and sorrow with love and light from above. It just so happened that two of the songs we were singing this week spoke of love: the hymn Love One Another, and, a song from the musical Oliver! called Where is Love?  As I joined in singing those two in particular, I hoped this person was having the uplifting experience he or she really needed. 

Until next time, God be with you!

PS: Here are a few posts, below, from those around the world watching the live YouTube feed of today's broadcast.

Jerrilyn Ramos: It's so amazing. It really is the fastest half hour to grace this earth. It is SO classy and beautiful! I love those dresses!

Przemek Brzozowski​: I love this choir all my heart 😀

Ernest De Leon​: glad to hear such a message each Sunday! helps me through the week!

Jonas Scoubes: ​Thank you Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square for the amazing music!! This is ringing in our home!!

Rick Russo: ​Totally love The Tabernacle Choir!! 

Paul Jaikaran:  ​Great hymn...great tune ...great composition..thank you Tabchoir for raising up our spirits


 

TCATS #267 - It's the People

Four times a year, the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square performs patriotic music, and today was the first of those four for 2019. President's Day, Independence Day, Memorial Day, and Veterans Day. There wasn't anything too unique about today's "President's Day Special", but it was both fun and encouraging to sing about the United States on an ideal level, and those people who have played a part in what this nation stands for. One of those people was featured on the Spoken Word portion of the program--George Washington. Here are a few sentences from his tribute:

"...more important than all of this is the imprint he left on the lives of the people who knew him—and, indirectly, on every American ever since. He was deeply respected for his unique combination of ability and humility. And in turn, he showed deep respect for others—especially those who stood by his side and fought for freedom in perilous conditions. The idea that General Washington would stop to help men build a bridge is perfectly believable because that’s the kind of person he was. The poetic words written for his eulogy in 1799 are just as true today as they were then: he was “first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.” "

During the break between rehearsal and performing this morning, a few of us were going over the lyrics to John Williams' majestic piece "America, the Dream Goes On"--a song which was on the program. There are places in that song where the lyrics just move right along, so we were trying to memorize them a little bit. One person chimed in with parts of the song he liked--particularly the snare drum and how it sort of creates a picture in your mind of galloping on a horse. One person mentioned how he liked the lyric that talks about a song being sung in places where "you'd think there'd be no song at all." One mentioned how the song HAD TO BE tied to some patriotic movie (I mean, we are talking about the master movie soundtrack composer, John Williams!) At any rate, these are the types of fun discussions we have backstage--along with non-music related topics of course.

Before rehearsal today, the birthday committee announced to everyone that it was Mack Wilberg's birthday this coming Wednesday. We all stood and applauded while Mack quickly left the stage. He doesn't like such attention. But we're definitely grateful for all he does for the Choir organization. So happy 64th birthday Mack!

That's about the scoop of it today. We're releasing a new CD in about four weeks and I'm especially happy to be a part of this one. Check it out HERE.

Until next time, God be with you.

TCATS #266 - Anniversary! + Odds/Ends

Five years ago, almost to the day (2/9/14), was my first Music & the Spoken Word broadcast. I remember the experience vividly--who I was sitting by, which row I was on, how I was feeling, and how excited I was. Just a clip from my blog on that day:  "What a rush singing with the choir today for Music and the Spoken Word! Can't quite describe all the feelings I was having. Nervous, humble, excited. . .and always wondering when the camera was coming my way (which apparently it did a few times). Overall, I was just grateful once again for being able to sing with this choir. I was praying the most that my testimony, fused with the music and lyrics of today's numbers, would touch someone's heart and inspire them to be just a little better."

*Interestingly enough, today's rehearsal before the broadcast will probably go down as one of the most frustrating for our dear director, Mack. Intonation issues, rhythm issues, placement issues...especially for one of the songs we were rehearsing, "Lovely Appear". However, it was very gratifying to see how happy Mack was after we performed that song on the broadcast. It must have gone very well because there was a smile on his face afterwards, along with a thumbs-up! 

*So on Thursday night for rehearsal, evidence of dress code changes for the women was easy to spot. Following the announcement that sister missionaries around the world could now wear dress pants/slacks, the presidency of the Choir decided to extend that same dress code change to the women of the choir (since, after all, those in the choir ARE called to be musical missionaries). Many of the women rejoiced at the change and several took a pic to commemorate the historical dress code modification.

*On Thursday, as well, President Jarrett told us that they wouldn't be able to tell us about our 2020 Tour destination in February, like had been previously announced. Not sure what's going on behind the scenes, but I suppose the announcement will be coming out soon. 

*With my son leaving on a mission just this past Wednesday, I'm a bit of an emotional mess. Up, down, and every which way. While choir this week was good, I'm grateful for my patient choir brethren who had to put up with a somber Ryan. Lots of trials going on right now, and I'm not sure how I feel about everything. But things are easier to get through with a good support system at home, with friends who reach out, and with a God who definitely looks at us as kids as kids worth bothering about.

Until next time, God be with you.

TCATS #265 - The Last Laborer

I'm standing in a very spacious, brilliantly-white building that doesn't seem to have a roof. Millions are gathered, and I sense that my loved ones are with me--somewhere--though I can't actually see them. Somehow, even though we're there, together, we're also there just as individuals, waiting. Waiting for the last laborers to join us. There's a sense of urgency for those last few people to come. Time is running out and I'm anxious to see if anyone else I know will come through a set of doors, over in one of the corners. I notice, though, that the once steady-stream of people coming through those doors has now turned into a trickle and I wonder, and hope, there will be more.

I begin to sense there are only a few minutes left and then God will have gathered in the last of His sheep. Such an exciting time! So many people I know have fought the good fight and finished the race. They have overcome incredible personal challenges and with faith in their Savior, they have finally made it home. My joy, though, is not yet complete as I keep looking at the doors. I get the strong impression there is someone I know and love who is not yet with us. And I can tell from the music playing that only a minute or so remains. The chorus of voices, the swelling of the strings, the crescendos of sound are now retreating--becoming less and less. The voices are calling upon all of us to rejoice, but how can I completely rejoice when there's someone else who needs to come through that door?

I slowly move closer towards the doors. Perhaps only 15 seconds remain in the song. Tears spring to my eyes as I'm forced to confront the possibility of someone I love not joining in the invitation to rejoice. Then it happens. As the last "rejoice" is sung, the doors quietly open one last time and the last laborer walks through. It is him. He has come! My tears turn to those of happiness and of wonder, mercy, and grace. My soul fills with immense gratitude as I give him a big hug of love and relief. And though the song has ended and we wait quietly for Christ to appear, my soul inwardly continues to sing that one word. The word I can now wholeheartedly endorse: Rejoice!

This emotionally draining narrative above is what goes on in my head and heart every time we sing All People That on Earth Do Dwell. I don't know why, but it does. I don't even know who the last laborer truly is in this story, strangely enough. I never get to see his face. But after the song is over, I'm left to ponder the reality that we're all laborers. We're all on this journey. Some started a long time ago, while others joined just recently or have yet to join. But wherever we all are, I hope we can live with a sense of urgency to love and allow others to love us. After all, that last laborer may very well choose to walk through those doors because of us--because the love we showed them helped them become the person they wanted to be, and the person God wanted them to be.

Until next time, God be with you.