Merrill Jenson | |
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Born | Richfield, Utah | January 20, 1947
Origin | Provo, Utah |
Occupation(s) | Film score composer |
Years active | 1976-present |
Merrill Boyd Jenson (born January 20, 1947) is an American composer and arranger who has composed film scores for over thirty films including Emma Smith: My Story, Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration, The Testaments of One Fold and One Shepherd, Legacy, Harry's War, and Windwalker. Many of the films Jenson composed music for were directed by Academy Award-winning director Kieth Merrill. Jenson has also composed several concert productions including a symphony that premiered at Carnegie Hall. Additionally, he has composed music for many television commercials including the acclaimed Homefront ads, music for three outdoor pageants, and several albums. Jenson lives in Provo, Utah with his wife Betsy Lee Jenson.
Jenson was born in Richfield, Utah on January 20, 1947. He was introduced to music at an early age with his mother teaching him how to conduct music in front of a mirror while listening to recordings of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. She also taught him to play the piano while his father taught him the trumpet. He attended Brigham Young University where he directed the BYU Cougar Marching Band and graduated with a degree in Music Composition. Soon after graduating, Jenson took on odd jobs at the film studios in Los Angeles in order to be near the industry. While there he was able to meet and associate with some of the great film composers of the day.
Jenson eventually landed a few tiny composing projects at the LDS Motion Picture Studios. His big break came when he met director Kieth Merrill. Merrill hired Jenson to compose the score to the sequel of his Academy Award-winning documentary The Great American Cowboy. Jenson’s score to The Great American Indian was recorded with him conducting the London Philharmonic Orchestra. This was the first of many collaborations between Jenson and Merrill including Windwalker Harry's War, and Take Down.
Jenson worked for many years with Bonneville Communications writing music for films and commercials for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints including The Phone Call (1977). During this time Jenson composed music for the award-winning Homefront commercials and films such as How Rare a Possession: The Book of Mormon. Later he also wrote the music for the three films that have played in the Legacy Theater in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah: Legacy, The Testaments of One Fold and One Shepherd, and Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration.
Jenson collaborated with award-winning composer Sam Cardon to compose the music for three PBS documentaries by producer and director Lee Groberg: Trail of Hope: The Story of the Mormon Trail, American Prophet: The Story of Joseph Smith, and Sacred Stone: Temple on the Mississippi. A career highlight for him was composing the score for the critically acclaimed film Emma Smith: My Story which played in many theaters across the country.
Jenson has taught music composition at Brigham Young University since 2008, and at Snow College since 2012.
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Janice Kapp Perry is an American composer, songwriter, and author. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, she has written over 3,000 songs, some of which appeared in the church's official hymnal, and in the Children's Songbook. Some of her most well-known songs include "I Love to See the Temple" and "A Child's Prayer."
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Clay Christiansen is an American organist who previously played for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (Choir), often on the Salt Lake Tabernacle organ. He accompanied the Choir in Salt Lake City and when it was on tour. Christiansen also provided organ recitals in the Salt Lake Tabernacle and the Conference Center.
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The Old Salt Lake Tabernacle, was a tabernacle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that was built in 1852 in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory. It stood on Temple Square where the Salt Lake Assembly Hall now stands. The building was 126 feet long and 64 feet wide and seated 2,500. It was constructed of adobe bricks. It was also called the Old Tabernacle and the Adobe Tabernacle. It was the original home of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Improvements were made in 1860s, but it was demolished in 1877 and replaced with the Assembly Hall, a larger structure.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and a topical guide to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The Mormon Trail Center at Winter Quarters is a museum and visitors' center of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints located in the Florence neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska, United States. The museum interprets the story of the Mormon Trail along with the history of a temporary Mormon settlement known as Winter Quarters, which was located in the Florence area between 1846–1848.
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