The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square’s 2022 Christmas concert “Season of Light” is available on the choir’s YouTube channel.
The 90-minute concert featured “Disney Legend” Lea Salonga and British actor Sir David Suchet joining the Tabernacle Choir, Orchestra and Bells at Temple Square and Gabriel’s Trumpets.
Suchet shared the story titled “Endless Gifts, Endless Night: The Nicholas Winton Story” about Winton’s effort to organize the rescue of children from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia prior to the war breaking out in 1939. Winton’s son Nick Winton was a surprise guest at the concert.
During the concert Salonga, a Broadway singer and actor, sang choir music director Mack Wilberg’s arrangement of “Payapang Daigdig” — a Filipino song that translates to “Peaceful World” and can be considered a counterpart to “Silent Night” — and “The Story Goes On” from “Baby,” along with other Christmas songs.
Salonga is the singing voice of Princess Jasmine from “Aladdin” and Fa Mulan for “Mulan” and “Mulan II,” and she won a Tony Award for her role in “Miss Saigon.” She has also won Olivier, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World awards.
She was also the guest artist during the choir and orchestra’s “Songs of Hope” tour stop in the Philippines in 2024.
Suchet is best known for his television role as Agatha Christie’s famous Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot.
The annual Christmas concerts are performed live in person with the 360-voice choir, 90 orchestra members, 32 bell ringers with the Bells at Temple Square, eight trumpeters with Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble and three organists. The following year, they are broadcast on PBS and BYUtv.
PBS began broadcasting a recording of the previous year’s concert in 2004. In 2017, BYUtv joined with the choir to produce the 90-minute broadcast specials.
The concert with Salonga and Suchet is also available for streaming on BYUtv.org and the BYUtv app. It is also scheduled to air on BYUtv on Thursday, Dec. 25, 12:43 a.m. MST.
