Clay Christiansen and Brian Mathias — the oldest and newest Mormon Tabernacle Choir organists, respectively — were sitting in a conference room in the Tabernacle basement, chatting amiably about how they came to be where they are, literally and metaphorically.
Christiansen recalled with distinct clarity that he was appointed to his position Sept. 15, 1982. Mathias, the man hired just weeks before to take over Christiansen’s spot when he retires in April, shook his head in disbelief upon hearing that date.
The musicians’ time as colleagues will be brief, their overlap a temporary arrangement intended to give Mathias time to acclimate before Christiansen steps away from the Tabernacle roster of three full-time and two part-time organists.