The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square will perform in the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California, in June 2026 — a century after the first performance there, announced ChurchofJesusChrist.org on Dec. 11.
The Tabernacle Choir first performed at the Hollywood Bowl on July 28, 1926, to an estimated 15,000 people. The choir returned to the Hollywood Bowl stage on Aug. 20, 1941, and again on May 23, 1963.
The choir and orchestra’s performance in June will be sponsored by the O.C. Tanner Gift of Music Trust as part of the ongoing collaboration between the choir and the trust to “share hope, faith and inspiration through music,” according to the announcement. It will be the first concert in collaboration with O.C. Tanner Gift of Music outside of Utah.
Mack Wilberg, music director for the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square, left, looks up after a concert as part of the Tabernacle Choir “Songs of Hope” world tour at Movistar Arena in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. | Tess Crowley, Deseret News
“The choir’s return to the Hollywood Bowl is both a commemoration of our history and a celebration of the enduring relationship of the choir with the O.C. Tanner Gift of Music organization,” said Tabernacle Choir President Michael O. Leavitt.
More details about the concert, including ticket information and guest artists, will be released at a later date.
The O.C. Tanner Gift of Music concerts with the Tabernacle Choir and Utah Symphony were the idea of neighbors Obert C. Tanner, businessman and philanthropist, and President Gordon B. Hinckley, then an Apostle and later President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to help encourage unity among the community. The concerts are funded by an endowment from Obert C. and Grace Tanner.
The first concert was in 1983, and the free concerts were every few years — typically in Salt Lake Tabernacle or the Conference Center. The most recent was a 40th anniversary celebration in 2023.
The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square and the Utah Symphony present Felix Mendelssohn’s oratorio “Elijah” for the O.C. Tanner Gift of Music concert on Feb. 17, 2023, in the Salt Lake Tabernacle in Salt Lake City. | Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square
Recently, both the choir and the trustees of the O.C. Tanner Gift of Music Trust worked to expand the original community-focused vision to one with a broader, more global purpose. The June 2026 performance in the Hollywood Bowl is “the first expression of this renewed and expanded collaboration, with the goal of uniting music, faith and philanthropy on a global scale,” according to the announcement.
“The O.C. Tanner Gift of Music is thrilled to sponsor this unique event at the Hollywood Bowl featuring the Tabernacle Choir and other special guest artists,” said Scott Sperry, president and CEO of O.C. Tanner. “Lives will be enriched from these concerts.”
The Hollywood Bowl concerts follow the choir’s recent “Songs of Hope” world tour, which has included performances in Mexico in 2023; the Philippines and the southeastern United States’ Florida and Georgia in 2024; and Peru and Argentina in 2025. Each has included guest artists. The concerts in Peru and Argentina are available on the Tabernacle Choir’s YouTube channel. Tour performances in Brazil are scheduled for February 2026.
Dancers and the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square stand as the audience applauds after their concert at Movistar Arena as part of the Tabernacle Choir “Songs of Hope” world tour in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. | Tess Crowley, Deseret News
Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square “Songs of Hope” tour:
2023: Mexico City, Mexico
2024: Manila, Philippines; and Florida and Georgia, southeastern United States
2025: Lima, Peru (available on YouTube); and Buenos Aires, Argentina (available on YouTube).
2026: Brazil
Past O.C. Tanner Gift of Music concerts include:
1983: Giuseppe Verdi’s “Requiem”
1985: Americana music
1989: Operatic and concert selections with Kiri Te Kanawa
1991: Operatic and concert selections with Frederica von Stade
1994: Hector Berlioz’s “Requiem”
1996: James DeMars’s “An American Requiem”
1998: “An Atlantic Bridge” with The King’s Singers
1999: Johannes Brahms’s “Requiem”
2000: Vaughan Williams’ “Hodie”
2002: Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 8
2005: “A Celtic Celebration” with Ronan Tynan and the band Leahy
2008: “An American Songbook” with Denyce Graves and Brian Stokes Mitchell
2009: Mahler’s Symphony No. 2
2013: 30th Anniversary Gala featuring singer-songwriter James Taylor
2016: Mahler’s Symphony No. 8
2019: Golden Spike 150th celebration with Brian Stokes Mitchell and Megan Hilty
2023: Felix Mendelssohn’s oratorio “Elijah”
