Review: A Thanksgiving of American Folk Hymns

Disclaimer: I performed in this. But rest assured BYU pays me absolutely NO royalties. They didn't even put the names of any of the performers(except for the conductors, of course) in the liner notes. They sure aren't going to pay me anything.

This was recorded in 2 days in April 1994 as a PBS special that was shown that fall & winter during the holidays. They also showed it in subsequent years but I haven't heard of it being shown in a while. Its also available on VHS & DVD.

This is a review of selected tracks.

Saints Bound for Heaven(BYU Combined Choirs & Orchestra) - A rousing introduction to this cd. It starts out with, frankly, a shaky fanfare by the trumpets but once the choir comes in, the accompanying brass ensemble(including the trumpets) settle down and the piece moves rather well. A good selection to start this cd.

My Shepherd Will Supply My Need(BYU Concert Choir, flute, oboe, harp) - Written in 3/4, this Wilberg arrangement is a delightful psalm that is performed well and is soothing to listen to. The flute, oboe, & harp add substantially to the presentation and leaves the listener with an almost idyllic sense of being. Very Nice.

The Morning Trumpet(BYU Men's Chorus) - An a capella performance arrangement, this piece has a religous/miltary anthem 'feel' to it. Well performed, this piece drives the listener and seems to have the purpose of motivating the listener to action, especially with individual 'action' words which being emphasized. Well performed.

Cindy(Men's Chorus, fiddles, percussion, piano) - A enjoyable, raucous arrangement of a popular folk tune. The tone of this piece is a country-hoedown - just kind of a good time. Complete with fiddles and footstomping this is a song that you will be singing to yourself after listening.

The Promised Land(BYU Singers) - This a capella arrangement has a real old world feel to it. Kind of Puritan-Colonial America.

Redeemer of Israel(BYU Combined Choirs & Brass Ensemble) - A sensational arrangement of a popular LDS hymn. The opening brass fanfare is well conceived and leads into the main section with force. This piece, another piece of Wilberg magic, brings excitement to this popular hymn by adding brass and creating enough variation in the melody to keep the the musical line new and interesting. A very powerful setting of a great hymn.

Battle Hymn of The Republic(BYU Men's Chorus & Philharmonic Orchestra) - If this one sounds familiar its because its a close copy of the arrangement that the Mormon Tabernacle Choir won a Grammy with some years ago. Well executed, this arrangement for Men's Choir is performed solidly from top to bottom.

Come Thou Fount(BYU Combined Choirs & Philharmonic Orchestra) - Mack Wilberg really has a talent for taking a very simple melodic line and blowing it up into a huge masterwork. This piece is no exception. This adaption of the 17th century colonial hymn starts out with a small group of female voices gently setting forth the basic melody creating an ethereal quality in the process. This is followed by an orchestral interlude and then the entrance of the male portion of the choir...this time stronger. The basic premise of the piece is to start soft & finish strong while alternating the male & female voices and joing them together at the end. Not exactly a new form but Wilberg does all of this wonderfully and it all fits together seemlessly. The performance is well done and there is are strong emotions that really comes across on the recording. This is a terrific performance.


Overall, a very good cd. Pick this one up if you like choral or inspirational music.

Testimony Meeting ideas


Some ideas for efficient Testimony meetings. If you are Mormon then you know exactly what I'm talking about. If you aren't then just try to think of the last time you listened to several speakers in a row who rambled on with no real point:


The Appeals Court Method: Have three small lights mounted on top of the podium; one red, one yellow, one green. The green one means that they have 2 minutes, the yellow 30 seconds, and when the red comes on their time is up and the microphone is switched off


The Monty Burns Method: This one is rather simple. There is a trap door that the speaker is standing on. After the speaker has gone over time or after the Bishop has determined that he/she has become tiresome then he hits a special button that opens the trap door and the person takes a trip down a giant slide into a room to which all of the screaming kids have been taken to from the chapel. This one can be easily incorporated into the 'Appeals Court' method.


The Motel 6 Method: This is mainly to keep 8 people from hopping up 2 minutes before the meeting is supposed to end. It consists simply of a 'vacancy-no vacancy' sign on the front of the podium. The 'vacancy' part is lit until the Bishop determines that enough people are on the stand to finish out the meeting, at which point the 'no vacancy' portion is lit. Perhaps a couple of those toll both barriers that raise and lower when you pay a toll can be used to help regulate this.

The Gong Show Method: I trust that this doesn't really need much explanation. DO NOT LET THE YOUNG MEN PARTICIPATE IN THIS!!!!



Interesting what you can come up with when you sit through enough of these things.

Well, there you have it. Several ideas for an efficient and semi-reverant testimony meeting. I am sure that at least one of these methods can help your ward.

A very nice 1978 article about The Gospel & The Arts:


http://library.lds.org/nxt/gateway.dll/Magazines/Liahona/1978.htm/tambuli%20february%201978%20.htm/first%20presidency%20message%20the%20gospel%20vision%20of%20the%20arts.htm

'The HFAC Crew' Pictures

Every fall a group of us who went through the music program at BYU in the early to mid 90's, get together in Provo for a weekend to remisice and just enjoy each other's company. Usually we have a dinner party on Friday and on Saturday go to Brick Oven(a local pizza place) as well as attend a BYU football home game. I came in from Texas, another came from LA, and another drove in from Colorado. The rest live in the Provo/SLC area. It turned out really well this year(the weekend of Oct 15th) as people came this time that I hadn't seen in quite a while. It was nice visiting with everybody.

This is the fifth consecutive year that we've done this.

Here are some pictures:


Friday's Dinner



























Brick Oven




















The Game
BYU v CSU

The BYU Marching Band







Curtis Brown hits the hole











Curtis Brown off right tackle...Touchdown BYU!






Well, there you have it. It was a lot of fun and great seeing everyone again.

BTW, BYU defeated CSU(Colorado State) 24-14.