Mormon Tabernacle Choir and The Wondrous Gift of Christmas Christmas Concert Event Description Celebrate the holiday season with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square in The Wondrous Gift of Christmas, conducted by Mack Wilberg. The concert will feature Grammy Award winner Natalie Cole and author David McCullough. Before she captured 1975’s Best New Artist Grammy, Cole appealed to fans and critics alike with her versatility as an R&B, pop, and jazz singer of the first order. Her canon includes such no. 1’s as “This Will Be (An Everlasting Love),” “Inseparable,” “Our Love,” “I’ve Got Love on My Mind,” “Pink Cadillac,” and “Miss You Like Crazy.” The eight-time Grammy winner continues to astonish with her vocal dexterity and her intimate, knowing way with a lyric and melody. Just as she lovingly partnered with her late father, the legendary Nat “King” Cole, for a posthumous duet on the title track on the 1991 masterpiece, they are reunited again on her recently released album, Still Unforgettable, to sing the delightful “Walkin’ My Baby Back Home,” first recorded by Cole’s father in the early ‘50s. Cole also looked beyond songs made famous by her father. “I decided to go deeper into the American songbook and not just get songs from my father, but also from Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne, Sammy Davis Jr., and Peggy Lee. The lyrics of these songs are about life. As a singer, they take me and my audience on a winsome journey.” David McCullough has been widely acclaimed as a “master of the art of narrative history,” “a matchless writer.” He is twice winner of the National Book Award, twice winner of the Pulitzer Prize. In December 2006 he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award. A gifted speaker, Mr. McCullough has lectured in all parts of the country and abroad, as well as at the White House. His books have been praised for their scholarship, their understanding of American life, their “vibrant prose,” and insight into individual character. Mr. McCullough’s most recent book, 1776, the number-one New York Times national bestseller in both hardcover and paperback, has been called, “brilliant . . . powerful,” “a classic.” There are three million copies in print, while Mr. McCullough’s previous work, John Adams, remains one of the most critically acclaimed and widely read American biographies of all time. It is presently in its sixty-third printing. He is also one of the few private citizens to speak before a joint session of Congress. Dates and Location Preview Performance, Thursday, December 10, 2009, 8:00 p.m. Doors open at 7:00 p.m. Concert, Friday, December 11, 2009, 7:30 p.m. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. Concert, Saturday, December 12, 2009, 7:30 p.m. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. Music and the Spoken Word, Sunday, December 13, 2009, 9:30 a.m. Doors open at 8:00 a.m. Conference Center Auditorium Tickets Free tickets for the concerts and the Music and the Spoken Word broadcast are required. Due to the very high demand for tickets to these events in past years, tickets will now be distributed through a random selection process. Patrons may register on the Internet at www.lds.org/events for the opportunity to receive tickets. The registration period will be from Saturday, October 17, 2009, at 12:01 a.m. through Monday, October 26, 2009, at 11:59 p.m. Those without Internet access can register over the phone at (801) 570-0080 or outside Salt Lake City at 1-866-LDS-TIKS during regular business hours (M-F, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.). All registrations received during the registration period will have equal chances at receiving tickets in the random selection process. Not all registrations will be selected to receive tickets. Only one registration per household can be accepted. The maximum number of tickets requested per household is limited to four (4). Patrons not selected to receive tickets will be notified by e-mail. Patrons who are selected will receive their tickets in the mail. Special Considerations Tickets are required for this event. Those with tickets should be in their seats 1/2 hour before the event start time. Standby seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. The standby line will form at the north gate of Temple Square. For this event, admission to the Conference Center is limited to those ages eight and older. No babies, please. Wheelchair seating is available. Patrons who require such seating should inform Guest Services when they arrive at the event. Best dress is requested. Those attending this event are advised that cameras, recording devices, backpacks, food, and beverages are not allowed in the Conference Center. Those attending the concert should consider seasonal traffic congestion, plan to arrive early, and park in designated parking areas only. The length of the concert is approximately 90 minutes.