Some Christmas traditions just feel too powerful to miss—and this is one of them.
The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square’s 2024 Christmas concert, titled “Hope of the Season: Christmas With The Tabernacle Choir,” is reaching an even wider audience this year as it streams and broadcasts on PBS and BYUtv for the 2025 Christmas season. This means that whether you are a longtime fan or completely new to the Choir, you can experience the full production from home.
But here’s where it gets especially meaningful: this isn’t just a concert—it’s a powerful blend of music, story, faith, and service.
The 2024 Christmas concert featured Broadway star Ruthie Ann Miles and film and television actor Dennis Haysbert. Together, they helped share the remarkable true-life story of Charles Mulli, who grew up as an orphan in Kenya. The concert traces his journey from abandonment and poverty to discovering Christianity, starting a business, building a family, and ultimately making a life-changing decision: opening his home—and his heart—to countless other vulnerable children. Mulli himself attended the performances, adding a deeply personal dimension to the event.
How to watch the concert on PBS
The 2024 concert is already available for streaming through PBS. Since Thursday, November 27, viewers have been able to watch “Hope of the Season” on the PBS YouTube channel, on PBS.org, and via the PBStv app. If you are comfortable using streaming platforms, it is as simple as searching for the Tabernacle Choir Christmas special and clicking play.
For those who prefer traditional TV broadcasts, PBS continues to air the concert on its stations. All specific times listed below refer to PBS Utah, but schedules may vary by location. It is always wise to double-check PBS.org or your local listings in case stations adjust their programming.
PBS Utah scheduled viewing times (all in MST):
- Monday, December 22, 1:00 a.m.
- Wednesday, December 24, 7:00 p.m.
- Friday, December 26, 1:00 a.m.
- Saturday, December 27, 1:00 a.m.
- Sunday, December 28, 12:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m.
In addition to the 2024 concert, PBS Utah will also air the 2023 Christmas concert, titled “Joy: Christmas With The Tabernacle Choir,” featuring Broadway vocalist Michael Maliakel and British actress Lesley Nicol (beloved for her role as Mrs. Patmore in Downton Abbey). That special is scheduled for Monday, December 15, at 8:30 p.m. MST on PBS Utah.
For more national and local broadcast details, viewers can also refer to pbs.org/show/christmas-tabernacle-choir.
The work of Charles Mulli and Mully Children’s Family
One of the most moving aspects of the 2024 concert is its focus on the life and service of Dr. Charles Mulli. Mulli is the founder of Mully Children’s Family (MCF), an organization that operates 11 locations and provides residential care for more than 6,800 youth and children. Since its founding in 1989, MCF has rescued over 30,000 children, many of whom were homeless, abandoned, or living in extremely difficult circumstances.
Mulli explains that their outreach extends beyond residential care. The organization also supports surrounding communities, including programs such as providing lunch to local schools—something that can make a significant impact on children’s health, education, and hope for the future.
Before the dedication of the Nairobi Kenya Temple in May 2025, Mulli and several of the children associated with his school visited the temple during its open house, as reported by the Church’s Africa Newsroom. This visit symbolized not only their spiritual journey but also a powerful connection between faith-based service and sacred spaces.
While in Salt Lake City for the Christmas concerts, Mulli met with Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Their relationship continued beyond that initial meeting: the two met again in October in Kenya during Elder Rasband’s ministry visit there. Mulli also had discussions with several leaders from the Church’s Africa Central Area.
As previously reported by Church News, leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints presented Mully Children’s Family with a substantial donation to help Mulli continue his humanitarian work. And this is the part most people miss: the concert is not only entertainment; it is tied to ongoing efforts to alleviate suffering and expand opportunities for children in need.
Inside the Christmas concert production
The Tabernacle Choir’s Christmas concert is known for its scale, quality, and emotional impact. The 2024 production brings together:
- A 360-voice choir
- An orchestra of 90 musicians
- 32 bell ringers with the Bells at Temple Square
- Eight trumpeters from the Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble
- Three organists
All of these performers—the choir, orchestra, and bell ringers—are volunteers. They go through rigorous auditions and commit to specific attendance and rehearsal requirements. This level of dedication means you are watching people who choose to devote countless hours of their own time to create something uplifting for others. Some might say this level of unpaid commitment is extraordinary—others might wonder whether such an intensive volunteer model is sustainable in the long term. What do you think?
A long-running broadcast tradition
PBS began airing a recording of the previous year’s Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert in 2004, making it a beloved seasonal tradition for more than two decades. In 2017, BYUtv joined with the Choir to co-produce 90-minute broadcast specials, helping the concerts reach families worldwide through free, family-focused television.
The 2025 Christmas concerts, performed on December 11–13, are also expected to air next year on PBS and BYUtv, continuing the pattern of recording, producing, and sharing the previous year’s concert with a global audience.
Watching on BYUtv
The 2024 concert “Hope of the Season” is also part of BYUtv’s Christmas lineup. BYUtv offers both live broadcasts and streaming through its website and app. All listed times are in Mountain Standard Time (MST), and viewers are encouraged to confirm times close to the date in case of schedule changes.
BYUtv scheduled airings of “Hope of the Season” (MST):
- Thursday, December 18, 6:01 p.m.
- Saturday, December 20, 5:30 p.m.
- Sunday, December 21, 4:30 p.m.
- Wednesday, December 24, 4:30 p.m.
- Sunday, December 25, 8:34 a.m.
After the initial broadcast, you can check BYUtv.org and the BYUtv app for on-demand streaming availability. For many families, this makes it easy to gather and watch together at a time that works best for them.
Additional BYUtv Christmas programming
Beyond “Hope of the Season,” BYUtv is also airing other Tabernacle Choir programs throughout December, giving viewers multiple ways to enjoy Christmas music and messages.
Programs scheduled to air include:
- “Music & the Spoken Word” with Michael Maliakel and Lesley Nicol: Sunday, December 21, 3:30 a.m. MST.
- “Christmas With the Tabernacle Choir featuring Megan Hilty and Neal McDonough”: Wednesday, December 24, 6:00 a.m. MST.
- “Season of Light” with singer Lea Salonga and actor Sir David Suchet: Thursday, December 25, 12:43 a.m. MST.
BYUtv also offers a rich library of previous broadcasts available to stream anytime on BYUtv.org and in the BYUtv app, including:
- “Music & the Spoken Word” episodes with Maliakel and Nicol from 2023
- The 2022 concert “Season of Light” featuring Lea Salonga and Sir David Suchet
- The 2021 special “O Holy Night” with Megan Hilty and Neal McDonough
Some viewers might see these repeated specials as a comforting tradition; others might prefer brand-new content every year. Do recurring Christmas broadcasts deepen the sense of nostalgia, or do they risk feeling repetitive?
Music releases and playlists
To extend the experience beyond the broadcast, the Tabernacle Choir has released the 2024 concert in multiple formats: DVD, CD, and digital album editions. This allows people to enjoy the music in more personal ways—at home, in the car, or through headphones during a quiet moment.
On the Choir’s official YouTube channel, a playlist titled “Hope of the Season | Christmas Concert 2024” features nine videos from the concert. These include:
- Ruthie Ann Miles singing “O Little Town of Bethlehem”
- Miles performing “Hark the Herald Angels Sing”
- The orchestra presenting “Joy to the World”
- Organist Richard Elliot performing “When You Hear the Pipe and Drum (Patapan)” with a jazz quartet
Other videos in the playlist highlight the Choir and Orchestra performing:
- “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”
- “’Twas Midnight in the Stable”
- “Alleluia, Amen (Air in G)”
- “Hallelujah” from “Messiah”
- “Welcome Christmas Morning!”
For those who prefer audio-only experiences, another “Hope of the Season” playlist on YouTube includes music from 16 songs presented in the concert, along with Dennis Haysbert’s powerful narration of the Christmas story from Luke 2. That same album is available on major streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and others.
This wide distribution raises an interesting question: does having sacred or deeply spiritual music on commercial platforms like Spotify and Apple Music make it more accessible and missionary-minded—or does it risk blending sacred content too casually into everyday listening? Opinions may differ strongly here.
Explore more Christmas music
On the Choir’s YouTube channel, you can also find a broader Christmas playlist featuring more than three dozen songs and videos from “Hope of the Season” and various previous Christmas concerts. This collection is ideal for creating a continuous stream of Christmas music in your home, at work, or during holiday gatherings.
For additional details about concerts, broadcasts, recordings, and upcoming events, you can visit the Choir’s official website at TheTabernacleChoir.org.
Those interested in more behind-the-scenes and personal reflections from the 2024 guest artists can also read “‘Such a glorious feeling’: 2024 Christmas concert guest artists share about performing with the Tabernacle Choir” on Church News.
Now it’s your turn:
Do you think large-scale religious concerts like this are primarily about worship, entertainment, humanitarian awareness, or a mix of all three? And should sacred Christmas music be shared as widely as possible through TV and streaming—even on commercial platforms—or kept in more formal worship settings? I would love to know whether you agree with how the Tabernacle Choir is sharing its message or if you see it differently—what’s your perspective?
