Pearl Award

Music has had a long history in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, from the days in Kirtland, Nauvoo, and the settlement of the West, to the present day. In the early days of the Church, stripped-down Mormon folk music, which could be sung without accompaniment due to the lack of instruments in Utah, was popular. In the 19th century, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir was created and began touring, while musicians began writing devotional and praise music with a Mormon influence, paralleling the success of Christian Contemporary Music. Several organizations have existed and do exist to promote these artists, such as Deseret Book and the now-defunct Faith-centered Music Association. Starting in the late 20th century and to the present day, Mormons have been increasingly involved in modern popular music in America and elsewhere in the World.

Mormon folk music constituted some of the earliest white/euroamerican music in the boundaries of modern Utah. These songs, simple and easy to remember, were usually sung without accompaniment because of the scarcity of musical instruments in territorial Utah. Although they often employed the same tunes as folk music elsewhere, Mormon folk is distinctively Utahn. The songs often include unique pioneer-era Mormon culture references such as crossing the plains, Mormon ecclesiastical leaders, and LDS religious convictions. Hymns and other folk music were used to lift the spirits of all the saints along their treacherous journey known as the Mormon Trail. They are still used as praises or prayers to their Heavenly Father as well as a way to welcome comfort, peace and guidance from the Holy Ghost whom they try to keep as a constant companion.

Since 1847, the Latter-day Saint influence in Utah music is manifest in the state’s most famous musical institution: The Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Named after the Salt Lake Tabernacle on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, the 300+ member choir is world-famous. The LDS Church supports the choir both for prestige and as a proselytizing tool for spreading familiarity of the church. The choir performs at least weekly at the Tabernacle for a radio program called "Music and the Spoken Word" which is the longest-running national radio program in the US. The Mormon Tabernacle choir has released innumerable albums since it first recorded in 1910.

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