Performing on thebrstage of Carnegie Hall in New York City is a dream many musicians have had andbrmost believed would never come to fruition.
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When directors ofbrMillennial Choirs and Orchestras “MCO,” announced that the 2019 tour wouldbrbring us to that historic venue, sacrifices were made and plans put into effectbrby each of more than 3,000 choir members and musicians in five states.
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Groups inbrCalifornia, Texas, Idaho, Arizona, and Utah, including men, women, and childrenbrof many faiths, moved mountains to make that dream a reality.
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By July, thousandsbrof working hours of planning and preparation brought choir members andbrsupporting families to the feet of Lady Liberty to testify through music theirbrfaith in Jesus Christ and love of Country.
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On July 12, and thebrfollowing afternoon, the Arizona, Texas and Idaho divisions of MCO performedbrinside Carnegie Hall for stunned audiences. New York City did not expect thisbrpower delivered through music and went away moved. Saturday evening promised tobrfollow suit as men, women, and children, some as young as four years old, beganbrto tune and warm-up for the final concert.
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When suddenly allbrlights except for instrumentalist’s stand lights went out, the choir just tookbrit in stride, the stage crew brought a battery-powered light for the conductorbrand on they sang. Before long, however, it was clear to Carnegie staff that thebrpower outage was larger than could be repaired quickly and the building neededbrto be evacuated.
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Once gathered in thebrstreets to await word, choir members did not wait long before beginningbrimpromptu performances of “I Believe in Christ” and “In Christ Alone,” followedbrby “I Stand All Amazed.”
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Performers were notbrthe only ones amazed. As evacuated New York dwellers heard ethereal soundsbrfloating over their streets, cell phones were raised to record this strangebrevent.
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Before long,brpassers-by could no longer pass by, and singers could not be seen for the crowdbrof dazed onlookers. Hands raised like a jungle of tree branches holding phonesbrhigh and hoping to catch and hold the feeling these songs evoked.
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One woman, anbrimmigrant, shared her enthusiasm by stating that she would never have beenbrinside Carnegie Hall to listen but that she was so impressed she had shared thebrexperience with friends and family as far away as Europe.
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The event wasbrrendered even more unearthly as the setting sun reflected down the avenues ofbrhigh-rise buildings in a twice-yearly occurrence known as “ManhattanHenge.”
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As hundreds, if notbrthousands, of voices raised celestial music that reverberated from New York’sbrwalls, the setting sun seemed to echo the feeling and painted enraptured facesbrin the crowd with golden rays. Who knew that this Carnegie stage would bebrturned inside out and Millennial Choirs and Orchestras would sing for all thebrworld as over the following days the whispered words, “Did you hear about thebrpower outage in New York City?” were shared through social media with millions.br
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Who knew that the testimony that “I Believe in Christ” would floatbrthe streets of New York City and then travel the globe? No person could havebrplanned this. There is little doubt that a higher power was at work. (Submission by TrudybrPeck to Serve Daily.)
