Grandeur accompany the Mormon tabernacle choir; Audra McDonald and Peter Graves at the temple square

For many years, during December, I have enjoyed immensely the performance of soprano Shirley Verrett and the Mormon tabernacle choir at the temple square on PBS television. Since the passing of Ms. Verrett, the young Audra McDonald has been performing, and has shown a great promise in her rendition of some of the great masterpieces. Her voice is crisp, warm and sometimes deep. The four-time Tony Award-winning Broadway singer and actress with veteran movie and television actor Peter Graves have made this concert a memorable experience. Ms. McDonald's talents were showcased in a Michael Davis-arranged medley of African American spirituals, "Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow," "Sweet Little Jesus Boy," "Children, Go Where I Send Thee," "I Wonder as I Wander," and "Go Tell It on the Mountain." Later in the program she was featured in another Davis medley of contemporary favorites, including "We Need a Little Christmas," "Pine Cones and Holly Berries," "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "The Christmas Waltz," "Silver Bells" and "Deck the Halls." The second feature of the program is Peter Graves' reading from the New Testament about the birth of Christ with background music from the choir and orchestra building into the majestic "Angels, from the Realms of Glory," with audience members invited to join the chorus, "Gloria, in excelsis deo."

In the opening, a procession of flashlight/candle-bearing dancers gave an air of grandeur to the musical performance of the French "Carol to the King." This concert also includes the first-ever collaboration with Ballet West, Salt Lake City's illustrious dance company, and the company's ballerina Kristin Hakala dancing the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite. The Nutcracker is one of the composer's most popular compositions, with the music associated to the romantic period and contains some of his most memorable melodies. The Trepak, a Russian dance is one of the most recognizable pieces in the ballet.

The fine tradition of the Church of Jesus Christ and Letter Day Saints (LDS) of including some of the great talents in music in their Christmas concerts have made each and every holiday season a memorable one.

Reference: Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir DVD - Vol. 2, Audra McDonald