Lamb of God | Sunday Blessings

Jay Hildebrandt interviews two soloist in the "Lamb of God" oratorio presented each Easter Season in several southeast Idaho locations. The concert focuses on the final days of the life of Jesus Christ. Jake and Kiah Spjute explain how their lives have been touched by singing the parts of Peter and Martha in the production.

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The Sunday Blessings Podcast is hosted by Jay Hildebrandt and features stories of faith, hope, and inspiration. You'll hear extended interviews, musician & artist spotlights, and more. Sunday Blessings can be heard weekly on Sundays from 5am-5pm mountain standard time on Classy 97, Sunny 97, and Classy 97 Lite.

Sharing stories of faith, hope, and inspiration. This is the Sunday Blessings podcast. Welcome to the Sunday Blessings podcast. I'm Jay Hildebrandt. We're pleased to have with us the husband and wife team today of Jake and Kaya Spjute.

And thank you so much for joining us today. You're welcome. Yeah. Glad to be here. Now we could talk about a number of topics with with these two people, but today we're gonna focus on the Lamb of God.

It's a special Easter oratorio musical presentation that is presented all around the region, with various different casts, and rather than have me explain what it is, Jake, tell us, you know, and in a nutshell what what this oratorio is and and how it's produced here in this region. Yeah. Sure. So it's a oratorio based off of just the last few days of of the savior's life, and it goes through, all of, you know, some of the big events that happened, the resurrection of Lazarus and, you know, Peter denying Jesus and Pilate and confronting Jesus and all that kind of stuff. So all those events happen, through through music in this production, and it's, it's real it's really beautiful.

The composer is is Rob Gardner, and he's done a few other sort of oratorio like productions in the past as well that are really beautiful and really great. A few of them are are are more about, I would say, LDS specific religious things. But, but this one is, I feel, is is for everybody as far as religion goes because it just celebrates Easter and and the savior. So Okay. You play Peter and you play Martha.

Mhmm. I don't play is is the correct word, but that Sure. But when I think of an oratorio and as I've listened to this, I I feel like it's sort of a modern day messiah Yeah. Kind of thing with with, similar kind of themes there. But the music is still very classical in in some ways, but not, you know, not like from back in in Handel's day.

Sure. Right. So tell me about now that we have the kind of the the, basis of what the oratory is all about, it's there are several cast, I guess, you might call them or groups that do this. So there's an orchestra, and there are singers, many of them professional opera type singers like like you folks are. What's the what's the group like that that well, it performs generally in Southeast Idaho year after year?

So you're right. An oratorio, technically, by definition, is an orchestra and a choir with some soloists, which is what this is. Right? We've got a we've got a great big choir and a live orchestra, which and I think in all, there's like a 30 ish people in our organization, here in Southeast Idaho. So it's really fun.

I mean, we've got people singing of all different types of levels, whether they went to college for music or not, whether they just sing around. But we're not, exclusive by any means. You know what I mean? If you wanna come and sing with us, please do, you know? You do have to try out, don't you?

Yes. Yep. You have to submit an audition. Yeah. But otherwise, come on.

Yeah. Alright. And so, we don't wanna make this date specific for any particular year because it happens year after year. But but, generally, where do you perform and and just as a few weeks before Easter? And what, what are the venues that that this has been performed in here in in Eastern Idaho?

So typically, we've done it in the Stevens Performing Arts Center in Pocatello. Mhmm. There's typically, we do one in Blackfoot at the Performing Arts Center in Blackfoot. The last couple of years, we've done it at the Civic Center. What's it called?

Frontier Center. The Frontier Center. Arts. Yeah. And then we always do a show in Rexburg, but that venue, we've changed, a few years now.

But, typically, we try and do one in each of the four major cities, I guess, in Southeast Idaho. In Rexburg, they typically do either Madison High School or this or just this past year, they did it. At the big giant one on campus under Rexburg. I can't Yeah. Or the name of it.

But the the new the big one. The Eye Center. The Eye Center. Yeah. That's right.

Yeah. Well and and, the audiences love it and, you get pretty good attendance at these? Yes. Yeah. We do.

They're the Pocatello the the Stevens Center, which is the Stevens Hall, which is beautiful. Yeah. That one is usual we usually do a matinee and an evening performance there. And the evening performance is pretty much pretty darn full, and then the matinee is probably a little less. But, I mean, everyone there's been a pretty pretty big audiences.

The the BPAC in Blackfoot holds about 1,200 people, and last year was almost completely filled. So Wow. They're pretty well attended. Yeah. So I wanna hear a little bit more about both of you and in particular your musical backgrounds because in order to land these, singing, roles or parts or whatever you call them, you have to have some, some real talent here.

And I've heard both of you sing before and then and you do have talent. But Thank you. Let's start with you, Kai. What what's your musical background? So I'm from Black Foot.

I my family is pretty musical. My grandparents were pretty heavily involved with theater in Black Foot. They did a lot with the Black Foot community players, getting the new art theater restored. So theater is kind of in my blood. But I just did it all through growing up.

You know, I did it all through high school. And then I went to Utah State and got a degree in vocal performance and did a lot with opera and musical theater while I was there and studied with a bunch of really amazing professors and, anyway, people like that. So Yeah. And then since then, we sing and perform as much as we can. It gets tricky when you have kids, you know, but we we still try and be involved because I love it.

Now they have some good babysitters. Yeah. Yes. We do. We have some good ones.

And, Jake, how about you? Your musical background. Yeah. Same thing as far as after high school and and serving a mission, I went to Utah State. That's where Kai and I met was at at the muse in the music department.

So we, yeah, we worked with sort of the same faculty. Shout out to doctor Cindy Dewey at Houston. We love her. She was our both of our voice teachers. And a matchmaker apparently.

And a matchmaker. Yeah. Yeah. She's she's great. But no.

And yeah. It's kind of the same thing. I worked, I worked at a just a couple different, professional opera companies and and a musical theater company. I worked mainly at Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theater in Logan, Utah, which is run by, mister Michael Ballham. So I was able to work with him and his company for, three or four summers in a row, and then I've performed with Opera Idaho a few times, as well.

And so Yeah. Yeah. Well, great. Getting back to the Slam of God production, I'm particularly interested in in this nondenominational, interfaith, kind of aspect of of the whole thing. How do you feel that that is working out, and why is that so important that it's not just one religion that dominates this, but that it's everyone coming together, whoever wants to take that first?

I think our choir actually has a pretty good amount of singers from different faiths, which is so fun. And I love that the production is not, like you said, it's not, dominated necessarily by one religion because the oratory itself is about Jesus Christ. It's about the events that happen in the Bible. So I think there is really something for any believer in Jesus, for any follower of Jesus. There is something here for you.

The oratory was cool because when you watch a soloist sing it, especially because we'll all be in concert black, we're not in costume, we're not reciting lines, you know, where it's it's really it's a lot easier to put yourself in the shoes of these characters. It's a lot easier to put yourself in Peter's shoes and say, oh man, maybe I would have reacted the same way. And, you know, and then there's, we see Mary Magdalene at the end and she has this beautiful solo. And so it's fun to, like, have the opportunity to put yourself in their shoes, which I think is true for any follower of Jesus. There's nothing that is religious specific in this, but there is something for anyone who wants to follow Jesus, who want who loves to do that, you know?

Yeah. So what what just following up with you, Kai, what's what's the the spirit like you feel in these rehearsals and the performances as you are all together as people of all believers in Jesus Christ, but maybe in different ways? Yeah. I think it's very it's very comforting and it feels like a family, which is really cool. And I think that's part of the power of obviously, that's one of the points of talking about Jesus and that's part of the reason one of the big reasons for any religion, right, is that we come together as a community.

We come together as a people to share a commonality. Right? And especially where it's Jesus, this this person that we try to emulate, this with perfect attributes. And so it's cool to be united in this this cause of all of us trying to be better humans, you know? We have we've made really great friends in this production because all of us, especially when we're in rehearsal, we're all trying to just be better.

We're all trying to do the best that we can to, make the spirit of Jesus felt, you know. We're trying to yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Does that make sense?

It does. It certainly does, Jake. And do you have anything to add to that about the interfaith, non denominational aspect of this and people that you've met there and the feelings that that you get all worshiping together. Yeah. I mean, I think it's, again, kind of just what what based off of what what's going along with what Kaya was saying about how it's just about the the last few days of the savior's life before the crucifixion and then and a and a little bit after the resurrection.

And so that's something that I feel like every Christian denomination believes in wholeheartedly. And so, and it's easy to, you know, it's easy to stay, you know, stay true to to what it says in the bible when all the text is pretty much scripture. Mhmm. All the things that, that we all the word words that we sing are are texts from the scriptures, and so it's not up to, like, a not a whole bunch of interpretation in there. Right.

And so everyone yeah. Just the yeah. The spirit of of, yeah, just coming together and everybody working together to try and bring the spirit of the savior to everyone around us. And, yeah, it's it's been it's it's a really great experience, especially being able to represent a couple of, you know, the characters that that knew Jesus. So Yeah.

I I wanna go wanna delve into that a little bit more sticking with you here, Jake. Singing the role of Peter, I mean, is there any kind of spiritual experience you have as you're doing that thinking, you know, this is I'm playing the playing Peter here and and and trying to feel what he felt. Is that has that changed you in in any way? Definitely. Yeah.

Every this will be my fifth year, this year performing the role of Peter, and so it adds up to, I don't know, 25 or 30 performances maybe. But every time every time without fail, there's always sort of a spiritual connection that I feel to him through the music and the way that, Rob Gardner wrote everything for Peter. There's there's a if you if you study the music and you and you, you know, are somewhat familiar with with Peter in the Bible, you can see that there's that he wrote it in a way that really represents Peter, like, the music thing the things that he says, how he's the things that he sings, how he just rhythms and motifs that are very clever. And you can tell that, Rob Gardner spent a lot of time with, with Peter's character in in this. I mean, probably more so than I would say with almost any other character.

But the there's always every every performance without fail. There's the scene where Peter denies the savior three times. And then right after that, there's a there's a big aria that Peter has to sing that's, that's really heartfelt, and you can just feel like, you can just feel through the music the anguish that Peter and the guilt and the shame that Peter must have been feeling or I would assume probably felt at that time. And so and then, conversely, after the resurrection, when, when he sees when they speak with the savior, after getting off of the the fishing boat that he asks him, Peter lovest thou me three times, and he responds, yay, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. And each time each time I I performed that part specifically, there's always an overwhelming emotion.

Like, there's there's been a few times where I haven't been able to sing it because I'm because I'm crying, and so I just sort of speak it because I can't I couldn't do it. And I think that's just because at some point in in our lives, I feel like all of us feel like Peter sometimes when we feel ashamed of ourselves because, you know, we're trying our best to follow the savior, but we're all going to fail. And sometimes we feel like I I've felt like I've denied him when I, you know, when I make silly mistakes and choices in my life. So that's how I I relate I feel like I relate to Peter in that way. Mhmm.

But, but, again, there's always the savior calling him back and forgiving him. And and so that's how I that's how I feel that connection. Moving for you. I can I can tell? Like yeah.

Kai, what about you with your role of Martha? So Martha is a fun she's a really fun role. And the the the solo that I get to sing as Martha is so fun. It's fun, especially as a singer, to just, like, give it to give it all. And her solo happens at the beginning of the show because we start the story with, the death of Lazarus and Christ raising him from the dead.

And Martha's solo happens right before that happens. And her perspective, I think, is and I love Rob Gartner gave her this perspective because, obviously, we don't know exactly how she was feeling. We can imagine, which is, I think, where this where the words a lot a lot of these words come from. Yeah. But her solo specifically is it's from a point of grief.

Right? Because Lazarus has died and she believes she believes in she believes that Jesus Christ is her savior, and she knows that he has done miracles. She believes all of that. And so to have someone that she loves and that Jesus loved die when she felt like, but you could have fixed this. And instead of, like, instead of picking anger or instead of picking whatever negative emotion, instead, she asks for the savior to make her whole.

She says, I, instead of like, instead of assuming that God forsook me, she is she goes to him and says, let me be better. Help me help me see as thou would see. You know? Like, help me help me see on a better plane. And then oh, sorry.

And then we know that the savior, sorry, the savior brings him back from the dead. And I think that's such a cool that's so applicable, I think, in our life because we the hard things in life are hard, and the heavy things in life are really heavy. And so it's so easy to to feel like to feel angry at God or to feel like God has abandoned us or why me? Any of those things. And so I love that Martha's perspective is not why me, but it is help me be better.

Right? Let me see as thou seeds. Let me let me feel things. Let me feel about things the way that you do so that I can be better, so that I can trust in God instead of trust in my own feelings, you know, my own experiences, which is a really cool it's really cool to sing that part because it feels so real. It feels so personal, and something that I have felt as a human being, you know.

And then immediately after, we have the the choir the choir sings this beautiful big old song about, with the with the text from the Bible, the I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me shall never die. It's so it's so powerful. It's so moving. Yeah.

I can tell this whole thing has really touched both of you Yeah. Profoundly. Yeah. Anything else anything about the, the audience? I mean, it's touched you, I can tell.

And, what about the audiences? When they for these productions, how do you feel that it touches them? What have you heard from them? Yeah. I mean, for at least in my my experience, there's been nothing but positive feedback.

There's as a performer, there's moments where you can tell that you've made a connection with the audience, and you can see and feel their their reactions and feel their emotions and their sympathy and empathy. And there's sort of a connection there that happens. And that I feel like that's a pretty common theme that happens in with lamb of god. But, oh, I mean yeah. I mean, wherever we are in in Pocatello, Blackfoot, Rexburg, Idaho Falls, the the audience is always very generous and very kind with their, comments and and their feedback to us and and and their gratitude, which is very humbling.

And so When people come back year after year, we've kind of I feel like we make friends of audience members. Like, people who haven't the people that we've never met before, but we see you know, they come and see Lamb of God and they've come year after year, and then we see them of at a football game and they're like, hey, we know each other, you know, even though we don't really know each other, but they just, the audience keeps coming back. It's not one thing, it's not a production that I think you see one time and then you check it off. Most of the time it it moves people enough that as soon as they announce dates next year, they're like, I planned my whole week around it. We are coming.

We won't miss this. And Yeah. Anyway, it's yeah. People keep coming. Yeah.

So So why do you think for those who haven't seen it, why would you recommend that in the Easter season that they come and see this? Jake, you first and then Kaya. Yeah. If you haven't seen it before and you're, you know, you're a a devout Christian, I think you would really you would really enjoy, this production. The the music combined with, you know, all the talented orchestra and and brass players and and, like, and, again, there's usually about 80 or 90, members of the choir singing as well.

And so if you're if you consider yourself, you know, a Christian, I I just think you would really enjoy enjoy this beautiful production, because, again, it just follows exactly what what the Bible says in this, as far as the last, you know, few days of the savior's life. And, yeah, people and people are really drawn to it. Yeah. Especially I I feel like especially now in in this kinda crazy tumultuous world that we live in that people are sort of reaching out more towards the savior and looking for something. And I think, the lamb of God production is where you can find something.

And, finally, I just wanna ask ask both of you since this is is a story about Jesus. And, you two are obviously people of faith, and, I just want each of you to kinda share your feelings about the savior with us. First with Jake and then I will make you cry again. No. I know.

Sorry. Y'all are good. No. My my testimony of my savior is is that I know that he lives, and I know that he is aware of all of us. And, and I know that he, excuse me, he came to the he came to this Earth to to show us the way to show us the way home.

And through through the lamb through the this production of lamb of god, you you you witness some of that in in in a musical way, which is really beautiful. But, no. I I know my savior lives. I've I've had too many experiences in my life to where, I couldn't say otherwise. And so it, it just it's it brings me me joy and and and also humility to be able to, participate in a in a production like this and and testify that I do know my savior.

Kaya? I think one of the one of the defining characteristics of my belief in Jesus is that, all anything that is unfair about life will be made right through Jesus Christ. And that's I feel like that's been a big theme in my life. You know, when when you have questions, because inevitably you do, and inevitably the the hard things in life come and they come to anybody. You know, there's nobody that's immune from the grief or the the the hard, sticky stuff of life that just is hard, you know?

And that's the name of the game, right? That is the whole point is the whole point of life, right, is to to grow and to change and to learn and to adapt, but we don't have to do it by ourselves. Right? We don't have to do it alone, and that is a a big I think that's a foundational that's a foundational to my belief in Jesus Christ. I I know that he lives and that anything is possible through him.

And that's so easy to say when things are good. That's it's another battle to do. It's another battle to believe that when things are hard and when Yeah. When things are hard for a long time. But I know because of I mean, through my own experiences, through, the experience of people that I love, that the savior doesn't for forget any of us, that every single person matters, you know, and that every single person's trials and challenges have been felt by Jesus, which means that he gets to then walk beside us, as we walk through the sticky stuff.

Right? He doesn't does he doesn't just take the hard stuff away, but allows us to to experience it and allows us to feel the yuck with him next to us so that it makes us into something better than we are. And that means a lot to me. This production of Lamb of God, I think, does a really good job of that. The music is stunning.

I mean, it will just knock your socks off. And the singing, obviously, is gorgeous. The orchestra I mean, it's just a gorgeous production, but the message is more than that. The message is that you, as an individual, matter to somebody who who is eternal, right, who is infinite, who has felt everything. And I know that that is true.

Thank you so much. Beautiful. Now, for people who wanna wanna see this production, know when and where, it changes the dates from year to year, but there is a website they can go to, wmsei.org, witness music southeast idaho. Mhmm. Well, thank you so much.

I I've I've been touched by talking with you today. We really appreciate it. And we wanna thank all of our listeners and those who are watching this on video as well for this Sunday Blessings podcast. I'm Jay Hildebrand. Thanks for listening to the Sunday Blessings podcast.

If you enjoy the show, please share, subscribe, and rate the podcast. Sunday Blessings is hosted by Jay Hildebrand and is a production of Riverbend Media Group. For more information or to contact the show, visit riverbendmediagroup.com.