The opening song of “The Morning Breaks” during the “Music & the Spoken Word” on Sunday, July 13, was one of the songs in the first broadcast 96 years ago.
During the final song of the 5,000th broadcast Sunday—“High on a Mountain Top”—music director Mack Wilberg used the baton director Anthony J. Lund used in that first broadcast on July 15, 1929.
The Tabernacle Choir, Orchestra, and Bells at Temple Square celebrated the 5,000th episode of “Music & the Spoken Word”—the longest continuously running network broadcast in history—on Sunday, July 13, 2025, in the Conference Center in downtown Salt Lake City with a tribute to the history of the program and those who have participated in and have been impacted by the show.
“‘Music & the Spoken Word’ continues each week as a beacon,” said choir President Michael O. Leavitt during the pre-show. “A beacon of peace, a beacon of light to the world.”
The milestone events included a pre-show, the regular 30-minute “Music & the Spoken Word” broadcast, followed by an encore musical celebration. The pre-show and the encore celebration were presented to the more than 11,500 people gathered in the Conference Center. The post-broadcast encore celebration concluded with many former choir and orchestra members in the audience coming onstage to sing the final two songs.
Attendees includes two members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—Elder David A. Bednar and his wife, Sister Susan Bednar; and Elder Gerrit W. Gong and his wife, Sister Susan Gong—along with other Church officers and religious, community, business, and political leaders.
Read more at the Church News.
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