Phenomenal impact of Tabernacle Choir
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Editor's note: The following are excerpts from reviews in Eastern newspapers about the Tabernacle Choir.
The 360-person choir is its own phenomenon. Self-created as a vehicle for spiritual uplift within tiny pockets of migrating Mormons in the early 19th century, the group has successfully fashioned itself as a patriotic, concretely American ensemble available to all. A nearly sold out crowd at [the New Jersey Performing Arts Center] in normally sleepy June and an aura of devotional fervor among the fans attested to the extra-musical appeal the Mormon singers have.
In a 2 ½-hour program with three encores, they delivered much to be admired. Perhaps one of the strongest impressions outsiders have of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is how immensely detailed is its internal organization, and the same is true of the choir that represents it. From bottom to top, the singers are sorted, arranged and trained by vocal type. There is a feeling of rippling transparency of sound within each section, which, because of the group's size, were Monday sometimes sub-divided into intricate counterpoint.
The second overwhelming musical impression is of the steely discipline of the singers' approach to rhythm. There were no lingering 's' in cutoff, no sloppy articulation of syncopated notes. . . .
They . . . sing with an unbuttoned, wide open sound that feels vibrant and pure. . . .
What was clear is that the Mormon Tabernacle Choir excels within its own mission and offers a template of how discipline and training can make a large volunteer choir into a functional, flexible musical instrument.
— The Star-Ledger
New Jersey
The choir is united by mandatory membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as by the socially and politically conservative, family-based priorities that accompany it. Overwhelmingly Caucasian in a world of artistic multiculturalism, the singers come from generations of similar training, with vocal cords unsullied by the alcohol or tobacco from which Mormons famously abstain. Choir membership isn't a recreation, it's more a calling. . . .
The clean, focused sound leaves no question what's being said. And that road, again, leads back to the kind of dedication that comes with faith. "That's the secret of the choir," Jessop says. "It's the glue."
— The Philadelphia Inquirer
"It occurred to me that the [Boston] Pops and the choir had never performed together," said Keith Lockhart, Pops conductor and music director of the Utah Symphony, "and I thought it would make a wonderful grand visual and musical statement if they could come here for July Fourth, and that was part of the incentive for putting this tour together."
— The Boston Globe
It must have been sweltering on stage at Wolftrap Saturday evening. Several hundred choristers and musicians packed onto the boards, yet the sea of white dresses and shirts remained pristine. The precise enunciation and attentive delivery achieved by this enormous choir is a testimony to the discipline and leadership of its music directors.
— Washington Post
Soon after [Charles] Osgood finished composing [a musical adaptation of the Pledge of Allegiance,] he sent a copy to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir to see what they thought of it. They liked it enough to add it to their patriotic repertoire and include it on [their] "Spirit of America" [CD].
"It's quite something to listen to 360 voices and a symphony orchestra perform something you wrote," Mr. Osgood said.
— The Star-Ledger
New Jersey
