Join us on Wednesday, March 18, at Signature Books for an evening with Shelby Fisher, who will speak about her new biography, Tracy Y. Cannon: Tabernacle Organist & Pioneering Musician, 1879–1961.
In a recent review for Times and Seasons, Chad Nielsen highlights the book’s broader cultural scope:
Fisher’s biography uses Cannon’s multifaceted career as a lens through which to explore the broader evolution of Latter-day Saint hymnody, ‘art music,’ and cultural tastes during the first half of the twentieth century. Cannon was a man of many hats—a Tabernacle organist, a composer, a director of the McCune School of Music and Art, and a key figure in the Church Music Committee.
Shelby Fisher has provided a clear-eyed and appreciative look at a man who, perhaps more than anyone else of his generation, shaped the ‘sound’ of the Restoration.
An accomplished organist and musician herself, Fisher brings a rare insider’s understanding to Cannon’s life—his ambition, creativity, and the relentless demands of a career devoted to music and faith. This promises to be a rich conversation about art, labor, and the making of a musical legacy.
In Case You Missed It
Photo credit: Isaac Hale, Deseret News
As basketball phenom AJ Dybantsa breaks records at BYU, Deseret News columnist Lee Benson featured Matt Bowman and Wayne LeCheminant’s new book on the subject, Game Changers: AJ Dybantsa, BYU, and the Struggle for the Soul of Basketball. Mormon Land hosts Dave Noyce and Peggy Fletcher Stack also talked with the authors on their podcast, covering everything from basketball’s central role in Latter-day Saint history to how it was that BYU landed Dybantsa, the #1 high school player in the nation. (Hint: It was far more than just the money.)
Breaking Down Patriarchy host Amy Allebest sat down with Carol Lynn Pearson for a wide-ranging, deeply personal conversation about The Diaries of Carol Lynn Pearson—Mormon Author, Feminist, and Activist, Vol. 1: 1956–1990. Listen here.
Historian Benjamin Park interviewed Gary Bergera about his latest documentary history, Educating Zion: The Diaries of BYU President Ernest L. Wilkinson, 1952–1971. Watch it here.