Kurt Bestor

Kurt Bestor (born 1958) is an American keyboardist and composer specializing in new-age, film scores, and jazz. He is known for his synthesizer-based Christmas music similar to Mannheim Steamroller Christmas, some of which were featured on the Weather Channel during the holiday season in the 1980s and '90s. His well-known songs are "Prayer of the Children", "Mama Don't You Weep". He is also known for composing music for the 1993 movie Rigoletto, and for writing music for the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic games, as well as various official The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints videos.

A longtime Utah resident, Bestor plays concerts in the Salt Lake City area and with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

Kurt Bestor was born in 1958 in Waukesha, Wisconsin. He took piano lessons from his mother as a child. His grandpa played the trumpet in Western Big bands and his uncle played with the trumpet in Jack Benny's band. Later on Kurt Bestor and his family moved to Orem, Utah in 1966, where he attended Orem High School and learned how to play the trumpet. When Bestor watched the 1975 film Jaws, he later recalled "I knew that's what I wanted to do when I saw Jaws during high school. I have made a goal to score films ever since." He decided to compose soundtracks for movies which he went on to do for The Buttercream Gang and Rigoletto. He was also influenced by classical music.

In 1977 Bestor and his family joined the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He later went on a two-year religious mission in Yugoslavia where, where he observed social problems such as homelessness, poverty and war, which would inspire his later song "Prayer of the Children." After his mission, Bestor married his first wife Melodie.

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