We might imagine that in pioneer life it was “church every day,” says BYU Music Group senior music producer Zach M. Collier (BMu ’18), but in reality “it wasn’t just all hymns all the time.” While much pioneer music has been preserved in Latter-day Saint hymnbooks, that is only one aspect of their musical culture.
Collier is part of a project to preserve pioneer heritage through music. Randy T. Lee (BA ’07), head of the project and BYU professor of trumpet, became interested in pioneer music while teaching at the University of Florida. He wondered what happened to the musical culture of the Saints as they moved west, and he had the opportunity to further pursue his research upon coming to BYU in 2023. His efforts led to the project Legends of Deseret: A Collection of Rescued Pioneer Music.
The album features original scores by early Latter-day Saint composers, taken from the Daughters of Utah Pioneers Museum. Most of the music was composed by Charles John Thomas, an early director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and George Careless, known for composing hymns like “The Morning Breaks” and “Behold the Great Redeemer Die.”
Lee wants the project to help people understand that the pioneers “also had to live and enjoy life.” That meant balls and performances. “They had fun,” he says.
The album is full of “music that just instinctively makes you want to move,” adds director of orchestras Nathan D. Haines (BA ’13, MMu ’16), who conducted a number of the songs in the album and coordinated student ensembles during the recording process. The album includes songs like the jaunty “Geranium Polka,” with lilting strings and a fast-paced cornet solo; the waltz-like “‘La Mandalina’ Spanish Dance”; and “The Victoria Redowa,” contrasting a slow, somber start with a lively finish.
The album features musicians from campus ensembles, including the Philharmonic Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra, and Wind Symphony. Lee hopes the experience helps the students who participated “understand that we have a rich heritage and culture . . . that they can connect to and they can draw inspiration from [to] help propel them in their journeys.”
K. Newell Dayley (BS ’64), a former faculty member in the School of Music, helped with rehearsals and recordings for the album. “We lost track of a history of music in the Church that no one knew about,” he notes, “and [Randy’s] brought that back to life.”
