Tabernacle Choir to perform in Olympic opening ceremonies
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With three dynamic chords that "sound like they echo off the entire Wasatch Front," the Mormon Tabernacle Choir will join the Utah Symphony in a thunderous opening of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games during ceremonies Feb. 8th. Proceedings are expected to be viewed by 3.5 billion people.
"All composers, when they learned the Tabernacle Choir would be singing, wanted to include them in their works," said David Goldberg who helped produce the Centennial Games in Atlanta in 1996 and is producing the opening ceremonies in Salt Lake City.
Participation by the choir was announced by the Salt Lake Organizing Committee in a brief press conference Nov. 27 in Abravanel Hall, located across from Temple Square in Salt Lake City.
"It's an incredible honor, a great trust, to be a part of the opening ceremonies," said Craig Jessop, director of the Tabernacle Choir. "We consider it a vote of confidence.
"The choir will have extensive involvement in the ceremonies — more than I ever dreamed," he said. "We know the Olympics belong to the world, not just one location. But as the host city, with the choir having represented the city and the nation for 150 years, it's an honor to be included in the festivities."
Headlining the press conference was the announcement of John Williams as composer of the Olympic theme. His list of accomplishments include themes for the 1984, 1988 and 1996 Olympic games as well as many Emmy awards and nominations.
"I told the choir [in this music] I see people skiing the slalom races or ice skating. I believe John Williams has captured the imagery and the artistry of the various sports," said Brother Jessop.
The Olympic theme music opens with three bold chords to proclaim the three aspects of Olympic competition of "faster, higher, stronger."
"The music is vigorous — very brassy," said Mr. Williams, composed with the hope of "invigorating athletes" to compete at their best level.
The choir will also perform four concerts during the two-week Olympic event. They will be accompanied by world renowned artists who will also join the choir during its weekly "Music and Spoken Word" network broadcasts. Additional free concerts will follow the broadcasts.
Other composers who were commissioned to write for the opening ceremonies include Michael Kamen, Robbie Robertson, David Foster, and Mark Watters, as well LDS artists Kurt Bestor and Sam Cardon.
E-mail: shaun@desnews.com
