The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square Returns to Mexico City

For the first time since 1972, The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square returns to the heart of Mexico. The Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square will perform three concerts this week in Mexico City as part of their World Tour with the theme of “Hope.”

“We feel the greatest gift our music can give the world at this time is hope,” Choir Director Mack Wilburg said ahead of the tour. “That’s what I want people to feel from our music.”

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Choir and orchestra members arrived in Mexico City on Tuesday afternoon. The more than 400 singers and musicians were greeted by a traditional Mariachi band.

“I’m excited … to see people and see how they respond to the music,” said Principal Tabernacle Organist Rick Elliot. “I’m excited too as a former [Latter-day Saint] missionary to Argentina … to have the Choir singing so many songs in Spanish. There are 10 songs on the concert program that are in Spanish. It’s a new thing for the Choir and they’ve really stepped up to the plate and done a great job.”

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The first performance is scheduled for Thursday evening, with a special concert at the Cathedral of Toluca (Catedral de Toluca) that will showcase a spiritual repertoire. Then, the Choir will return to the Auditorio Nacional (National Auditorium), where it performed during its 1972 tour, with two performances on Saturday and Sunday.

The concerts in Mexico City will feature not only the Choir but guest artists from Mexico, with a repertoire that reflects, in part, the musicality of the culture.

Throughout the week, the Choir and orchestra members will also participate in service projects and cultural activities, and they will record a music video at various landmarks that will air during the concerts.

For the first time, admission tickets were distributed free of charge as part of the Choir’s expanded mission to “reach and inspire people throughout the world.” Watch parties are also happening throughout the country at meetinghouses of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Saturday evening performance will be available on the Choir’s YouTube channel.

The concerts in Mexico City mark the first time the Choir is performing outside the United States since 2019. Future tour dates and locations will be announced later.

Music and the Spoken Word

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Special “Spoken Word” segments of the weekly inspirational broadcast, “Music and the Spoken Word,” are also being recorded at various landmarks throughout Mexico City with announcer Lloyd Newell. Spanish segments were also filmed on location for the new pilot program “Música y Palabras de Inspiración,” which is launching on June 25 and will be available on the Choir’s new Spanish-language YouTube channel. Filming took place on Monday and Tuesday.

“Mexico is so beautiful, and I’m just happy to be here,” said Newell. “We are here to provide a gift of goodwill, of love [and] hope, to bring people a little closer to the divine and help them feel something of … God’s love for them.”