The organ staff and guest organists perform 30-minute recitals in the Tabernacle from 12:00 noon to 12:30 p.m. & 2:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Sunday recitals will be performed from 2:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Tabernacle.
The impressive pipe organ symbolizes the importance Latter-day Saints place on worshipping God through music. The Tabernacle organ has an interesting history. President Brigham Young asked Joseph Harris Ridges, who was born and raised near an organ factory in England, to build the first Tabernacle organ. Suitable timber was located and brought by volunteers from the Parowan and Pine Valley mountains, 300 miles south of Salt Lake City. In the beginning, the organ was powered by hand-pumped bellows, later by water power, and today by electricity. With improved techniques in organ construction, the instrument has been renovated and enlarged several times. Now comprising 11,623 pipes, the organ has 206 sets of pipes (ranks) of voices, and the console has 5 manuals or keyboards. The Tabernacle organ is considered to be one of the finest organs in the world.
The organ in the Conference Center was built in 2000-2003 by Schoenstein & Co. of San Francisco. This organ of the American Romantic style employs a symphonic tonal approach with the richness and warmth characteristic of English instruments. Although designed primarily to provide colorful and varied accompaniment, the organ also renders the solo repertoire beautifully. A five-manual console controls the 7,708 pipes of its 130 ranks, which are spread across seven divisions.
At the time of European expansion, beginning with Spanish explorers traveling from Mexico, five distinct native peoples occupied territory within the Utah area: the Northern Shoshone, the Goshute, the Ute, the Paiute and the Navajo.
1540
The Spanish explorer Francisco Vásquez de Coronado may have crossed into what is now southern Utah in 1540, when he was seeking the legendary Cíbola.
1776
A group led by two Spanish Catholic priests—sometimes called the Dominguez-Escalante Expedition—left Santa Fe in 1776, hoping to find a route to the California coast. The expedition traveled as far north as Utah Lake and encountered the native residents.
1803
The Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition by the United States of America in 1803 of 828,000 square miles (2,144,000 square kilometers or 529,920,000 acres) of France’s claim to the territory of Louisiana.
1804 – 1806
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery Expedition, was the first American expedition to cross what is now the western portion of the United States, departing in May 1804, from near St. Louis on the Mississippi River, making their way westward through the continental divide to the Pacific coast.
1822
The Rocky Mountain Fur Company sometimes called Ashley’s Hundred, was organized in St. Louis, Missouri in 1822 by William Henry Ashley and Andrew Henry. Among the employees was Jedediah Smith, who went on to take a leading role in the company’s operations. The company became a pioneer in western exploration, most notably in the Green River Valley. The operations of other aspiring organizations like the American Fur Company would often overlap, causing a fierce rivalry. Growing competition motivated the trappers to explore and head deeper into the wilderness. Effectively, this led to greater knowledge of the topography and to great reductions in the beaver populations.
1825
Early mountain men and fur trappers including Jim Bridger, Kit Carson and Jedediah Smith begin to map and explore the area now known as Utah. The city of Provo was named for one such man, Étienne Provost, who visited the area in 1825. The city of Ogden, Utah is named for a brigade leader of the Hudson’s Bay Company, Peter Skene Ogden who trapped in the Weber Valley.
One year before the arrival of the Mormons, the ill-fated Donner party crossed through the Salt Lake valley late in the season, deciding not to winter there but to continue forward to California.
1846 – 1847
Mexican–American War was an armed conflict between the United States and the Centralist Republic of Mexico (which became the Second Federal Republic of Mexico during the war) from 1846 to 1848. It followed in the wake of the 1845 U.S. annexation of Texas, which Mexico considered part of its territory, despite the 1836 Texas Revolution.
Donation Land Claim Act of 1850 allowed settlers to claim land in the Oregon Territory, then including the modern states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and parts of Wyoming. Settlers were able to claim 320 or 640 acres of land for free between 1850 and 1854, and then at a cost of $1.25 per acres until the law expired in 1855.
Homestead Act of 1862 The homestead was an area of public land in the West (usually 160 acres or 0.64 km2) granted to any US citizen willing to settle on and farm the land for at least five years.
1869
Completion of First Transcontinental Railroad May 10, 1869 with the ceremonial driving of the “Last Spike” (later often called the “Golden Spike”) with a silver hammer at Promontory Summit, Utah.
This video discusses the Fremont people and their culture. Learn about the rock art, artifacts, and mysteries they left behind. You will also discover the many recreational resources and outdoor opportunities available to the entire family.
The Music and the Spoken Word broadcast will feature the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Visitors are welcome to come and hear the inspiring music in the historic Tabernacle located on Temple Square. The choir’s weekly radio program, Music and the Spoken Word, first aired on 15 July 1929 and has since become the world’s longest-running network broadcast.
Every 1st & 3rd Friday except special occasions or fifth weeks. Dance Instruction begins at 8:00 p.m., dancing from 9:00 p.m. to midnight, during which a variety of food is offered in the multi-purpose room.
LDS standards of dress and conduct apply. All divorces must be final. Age 31+
All dances are fun and safe, and feature “Top 40” music, both past and present.
This video discusses the Fremont people and their culture. Learn about the rock art, artifacts, and mysteries they left behind. You will also discover the many recreational resources and outdoor opportunities available to the entire family.
A short (26-minute) documentary on the geological and cultural history of the state of Utah by the Utah Travel Council filmed in the 1980s (Laughable Poor & Dated Quality).
The BYU Conference Center is an ideal venue for your meeting, conference, seminar, workshop, or special event. With state-of-the-art meeting rooms, audiovisual equipment, advanced presentation technologies, and experienced staff, the Conference Center will deliver outstanding events.
Combine these resources with an unparalleled setting, and you have discovered the BYU Conference Center. It is majestically nestled along the Wasatch Front, right on Brigham Young University’s scenic Campus.
BYU Conference Center Brigham Young University 770 East University Parkway Provo, UT 84604
