This year's Pioneer Day Commemoration Concert by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square was more than just a celebration of the 80th anniversary of the choir's "Music and the Spoken Word" broadcast, though that was certainly the focus of the event.
In a broad sense it gave homage to the place of music in the worship of the Latter-day Saints.
From the dawn of this gospel dispensation, the Lord has enshrined music as an essential part of our liturgy. Three months after the organization of the Church, the Lord gave a revelation to the Prophet Joseph Smith instructing that his wife, Emma, make a selection of sacred hymns. The revelation contained the passage, quoted so often today, "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads" (Doctrine and Covenants 25:12).
The Lord's endorsement of music as an appropriate expression of reverence was again enunciated in "the Word and Will of the Lord," the revelation given through Brigham Young at Winter Quarters on Jan. 14, 1847, to guide the Latter-day Saints in their continued trek westward to the Salt Lake Valley. "If thou art merry, praise the Lord with singing, with music" (Doctrine and Covenants 136:28), He enjoined them, echoing the message of James 5:13.
Of course, this is a tradition going back to the Lord's dealings with His ancient covenant peoples. In our Bible Dictionary, we read, "Psalmody and hymnody were highly developed in the religious services of the Jews and were thus easily continued in Christian worship" ("Hymns," p. 705).
Moroni recorded that music was part of the worship of the Nephites, that "the Holy Ghost led them whether to preach, or to exhort, or to pray, or to supplicate, or to sing, even so it was done" (Moroni 6:9).
In the latter days, most of the early converts to the Church came from religious traditions in which the singing of hymns was integral, so it was natural and comfortable for them to continue that practice in the newly restored Church of Jesus Christ.
Though we have our indigenous Mormon hymns, many hymns we sing today, carried over from that period, are borrowed from other Christian congregations and denominations.
Even "Come, Come, Ye Saints," that iconic Mormon pioneer anthem written by William Clayton in 1846 on the plains of Iowa while the saints were encamped on their westward trek, is an adaptation of a popular hymn familiar to Christians of the day. (Research in recent years has shown that the melody was almost certainly American in origin, not an English folk song, as has been supposed; see Church News, July 27, 2007; p. 3.)
Today, the hymn — with Brother Clayton's words — is in the song books and choir repertoires of some other Christian churches.
Such a shared musical background has helped the Latter-day Saints build friendships and establish commonality with worshipers of other faiths. The Tabernacle Choir has nearly universal appeal because of its musical excellence, but particularly for its performance of devotional music.
Of course, this is understandable to anyone who has shed tears of joy or found consolation or renewed determination from hearing or singing a hymn.
"Hymns can lift our spirits, give us courage, and move us to righteous action," the First Presidency observed in the preface to our current hymn book, published in 1985. "They can fill our souls with heavenly thoughts and bring us a spirit of peace."
With such a rich musical heritage, we have a strong motive to continue and renew its influence in our worship and in our lives. Let us sing the hymns more fervently at home and in our worship services. Congregational singing is one time when individual silence might be inappropriate. Let us participate in our ward or branch choirs, an opportunity to join with our brothers and sisters, young and old, to cultivate talents and share the gift of music with other ward members and to glorify God.
Finally, let us cultivate our appreciation of the songs of Zion, opening the way for the Lord to answer our musical prayers with blessings upon our heads.