MoTab Christmas Concert with David Archuleta

We were lucky enough to win again (thanks to Mel, Kris and Mer) in this year's annual version of the Mormon lottery -- tickets to the annual Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert.  This year's featured guests were David Archuleta and Michael York.

The tickets are given away by the Church in a lottery to registered applicants, then (particularly this year) some were resold for ridiculous prices on E-bay.  Having a big family with lots of applicants scattered all over the country is all you really need to win, we've discovered.

It was a delicious treat for the eyes, ears and soul.  It's hard to put into words what you feel when you settle into your seat on a cold winter's night with 21,000 of your closest friends to feast on the Christmas spirit with the MoTab.  The orchestra and choir is sufficient, but throw in David Archuleta and Michael York for good measure and it's hard to compare!

The music is heavenly, the stage was a brilliant splash of a Christmas fantasy land (I especially loved the houses that looked like gingerbread houses, one of our favorite holiday traditions at our house), and Michael York's narration of the story about the early beginnings of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir was moving and emotional.  John Parry is not a name I had ever associated with the choir, and that's why it was so inspiring.

Here's the story in the Deseret News this morning about the concert.

David Archuleta

Of course, the featured artist was Utah's own David Archuleta.  Wow, what a voice!  It's about as pure as it gets.  I loved his rendition of the not-too-familiar carol, the "Cat and the Mouse."  It was a magical evening filled with song, dance, narration, orchestration, lighting, stage decorations and uplifting and inspiring music.  Mack Wilberg's peerless arrangements (seven on this year's program) continue to impress and delight.

Richard Elliott on the organ when he cranks it up with both feet and both hands flying over the keyboards of the organ is something to behold!  He's a true virtuoso.  He did a variation of "Deck the Halls" you have never heard anywhere else.    He continued to play as we exited the building after the concert's conclusion.

So be prepared to enjoy another Christmas treat next year when it's released to the public and PBS television.  This year's offering on CD and DVD was last year's concert with Natalie Cole and David McCullough.

The MoTab has entered another realm of musical excellence.

Top Ten Reasons to Love General Conference

President Thomas S. Monson

1.  What other church on earth lets you participate via television and the Internet four days a year in your jammies?

2.  The subjects for talks are never assigned, but are reviewed in advance by peers so the inspiration can flow freely at each spring and autumn equinox.

3.  The soaring transcendency of the Tabernacle Choir's music is enhanced as never before because of the arranging genius of Mack Wilberg.

4.  Living prophets are speaking about timely current topics, quoting dead prophets to illustrate how their prophetic utterances have come to pass.

5.  The focus is always on the basic doctrines of the gospel of Jesus Christ without the accompanying specious speculation and debate that sometimes ensues outside the Church.

6.  There is always a sense of being anchored in Christ despite the depravity of worldliness permeating everything else as new temples dotting the globe are announced to help cleanse the filth and establish Zion.

7.  The diverse ethnicity among the leaders of the Church is more evident now than ever before, but the unity of the faith has never been stronger among the members as more volunteers consecrate their service to one another and total strangers worldwide.

8.  Every General Priesthood meeting sets a new attendance record as priesthood power and influence expands and floods the earth with goodness and righteousness.

9.  Each new General Conference reignites memories of past lessons learned.

10.  It's a "refill" of your spiritual reservoirs that's good enough to last six months until the next one.

Mormon Tabernacle Choir Pioneer Concert

Getting a ticket to these events is something akin to winning the lottery, but this is the clean Mormon version.  The good news is the tickets are free, but you've got to ask on line to get them.  To date, Patsy and I have never been "lucky winners," but we have a lot of good friends and family who have shared their success.

That said, we scored some tickets from some generous ward members Thursday night, and we were excited to participate last night with 21,000 of our closest friends as the Choir celebrated 100 years of recording excellence.  The history of the recording industry finds it orgins with the Choir, and every major advancement in the technology has featured the Choir along the way.  We were rewarded spiritually again last night.

I watched a lot of Klennex being shared all around, and the standing ovations were plentiful throughout.  For me, it is always a spiritual feast to hear the Choir.

We certainly were well fed last night.  The Choir is simply beyond words to describe, but Carma Wadley tried in this morning's Deseret News.  No matter where you sit in that magnificent Conference Center, as you listen you are transported into spiritual realms transcending the bounds of earth. 

President Thomas S. Monson expressed it well, "We are richly blessed by this choir and orchestra, which stands shoulder-to-shoulder with choirs above in singing praises to a just God."

The orchestration is superb, the arrangements awesome, the harmony sublime, the choir flawless.  You can understand and hear every word perfectly.  I'm not sure how that's even possible to master the acoustics in such a large venue, but somebody has figured it all out.

It was a panoramic stroll down memory lane, a feast for the soul, a drink from the fountain of eternity.