Robert Cundick, Composer (Music)

Robert Cundick was born in 1926 in Sandy, Utah. He is perhaps the best known for his 27 years as Mormon Tabernacle Organist on Temple Square in Salt Lake City. His principal teacher was Alexander Schreiner. He has composed in choral, orchestral, and chamber genres. Robert Cundick studied composition with the late American composer Leroy Robertson. In 1955 he received his PhD and began teaching at the University of Utah. He later taught at Brigham Young University for 24 years. As Tabernacle Organist emeritus, he contiues to devote much of his time to composition. A strong advocate of tonal composition in traditional forms, he believes that one can continue to compose music that speaks to both performer and listener in a fresh manner using a language that is familiear to general audiences.

Elder David A. Bednar, Composer (Text)

Elder David A. Bednar was ordained and set apart as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on October 7, 2004. Prior to his call to the Quorum of the Twelve, Elder Bednar served as an Area Seventy, Area Authority Seventy, Regional Representative, twice as a stake president, and as a bishop. Elder Bednar was born on June 15, 1952 in Oakland, California. He served as a full-time missionary in Southern Germany and than attended Brigham Young University, where he received a bachelor's degree and a master's degree. He also received a doctoral degree in organizational behavior from Purdue University. After completing his education, Elder Bednar was a professor of business management at Texas Tech University and at the University of Arkansas. He than served as the president of Brigham Young University-Idaho from 1997-2004.