Over the next four years, the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square will conduct a world tour with stops around the globe and a message of hope. The Choir’s first stop will be in Mexico City, Mexico, from June 13–19, 2023, where it will perform two concerts at the National Auditorium on June 17 and 18. Future locations of the world tour will be announced later.
The Choir last performed at the National Auditorium in 1972 and will return to this rich and culturally diverse city as part of its historic tour. In 1968 the Tabernacle Choir went to Mexico City and sang at the dedication by President N. Eldon Tanner of the El Centro Escolar Benemérito de Las Américas school. It is now the site of the Mexico Missionary Training Center. The Choir also sang in concerts that were part of the International Festival of the Arts, or Cultural Olympics XIX. While at the Pyramid of the Sun, it “sang short groups of songs” that were filmed for Mexico City television shows, according to the Church News archives.
As part of this world tour, the Choir will travel more frequently but for a shorter amount of time. This is a new pattern for the Choir, which historically has traveled every two years. The goal is for the Choir to be more visible globally and to reach as many people as possible with its music. The 2020 Heritage Tour which was postponed and ultimately canceled, would have been about three weeks in length, with concerts planned for cities in six European countries—Stockholm, Sweden; Helsinki, Finland; Copenhagen, Denmark; Oslo, Norway; Cardiff and Newport, Wales; and Edinburgh, Scotland.
Choir president Michael O. Leavitt says: “Our goal is to magnify the Choir’s impact throughout the world by helping people feel God’s love for His children. Our performances will be free. Many will be live streamed so local congregations in the regions we visit can invite their friends and communities to participate.”
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. Choir director Mack Wilberg says that music will transcend cultural and language boundaries: “We feel the greatest gift our music can give the world at this time is hope. That’s what I want people to feel from our music.”
Other hallmarks of the tour will include opportunities for the Choir and Orchestra members to engage in service activities in Mexico City and shoot a music video on location. Members will immerse themselves in the country, which will be reflected in their performances. Free tickets to the concerts will be distributed by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints throughout Mexico City.
The Choir has launched new pilot programs, which include producing a weekly broadcast of Music & the Spoken Word in Spanish and Portuguese. At a recent semiannual conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, global participants reflecting the Church’s worldwide membership were invited to sing with the Choir.