17/24
Transcript

Yesterday was a hard day. We couldn't get to Philadelphia until the afternoon, so yes, we had that time in the city in the morning. But that meant we got up early, ate breakfast on the bus, the box breakfast. We're on a bus, went straight to the center, did a sound check, ate on site, performed, we didn't even get to our hotel till 11. That's as long as a choir day goes. The president of the Mann Music Center, when she greeted us at the sound check, she told everyone this building was built for the bicentennial. And it's the summer home of the Philadelphia Orchestra and it's an important place. But I think that gave choir members kind of a feeling of connection, because they realize, "Oh wow, this is where the bicentennial was partly celebrated." Just knowing American history and the significance of American history certainly made us as performers, when we were singing songs like "God Bless America" and "Battle Hymn of the Republic," I think it probably stirred us a little bit more. The crowd was very, very responsive. So it was a very nice crowd. Brother Elliot did a wonderful job in his organ solo. Brother Boye did a great job with his two African American spirituals. And the choir just really came, the sound was good. We've had two previous performances to kind of hit our stride, so I think it was probably our best performance so far. Lloyd Newell always asks members of the choir or the orchestra who have connections with where we're singing to stand. So for instance, last night, I had lived here through the '90s in Pennsylvania, I and probably a dozen other choir members who had family or who lived here stood up. It's kind of fun because the audience really cheers. They love to see. This isn't just a bunch of Mormons from Salt Lake; these are some of our own people. The moment we get on that stage and the performance begins, it's not just the adrenaline of performance which I think any performer feels. As we begin to sing, the first notes the orchestra plays, you feel the Spirit. I just feel a great sense of responsibility when I'm on that stage, for both members and nonmembers alike. I've got to do my job. I've got to bear my testimony through song. I've got to do my best.

Tabernacle Choir 2011 Tour Day 4

Description
The Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square perform for a sold-out crowd at Philadelphia’s Mann Center on the fourth day of their East Coast tour.
Tags

Related Collections