Christmas comes to town with Brian Stokes Mitchell

It was a good thing that Brian Stokes Mitchell had already sung with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir at the Tanner Gift of Music concert.

"That way, I wasn't in a state of shock when I stepped out on the stage with those 360 voices behind me," he said of the 2008 Christmas concert.

"I already knew it would be delightful, and it was even more so. It was a blast the first time, and the second time was only better."

Mitchell returned to Salt Lake City last week for media appearances related to the PBS airing of the Christmas concert this year and to sign copies of the CD and DVD, "Ring Christmas Bells." They went on sale this holiday season.

"It was all so great," he said of his Christmas experience. "I loved every part of it. I loved the concert. I loved the rehearsals. I loved the arrangements. I loved working with Mack (Wilberg). I loved the whole process. It was a lot of hard work. It took a lot of time, but I liked that, too. There was not a downside to any of it."

He is thrilled with the way both the CD and DVD turned out. "People ask me which one to buy, and I tell them both. You need the DVD to get the full impact of the concert, to hear Ed Herrmann, to appreciate the nuances. But you need the CD to listen over and over in your car."

His songs on the CD include "The Friendly Beasts," which was such fun to sing, he said. "It's a song I've always loved, and Mack said it was one he's loved. But it's usually all done in the same key. We started talking about ways to vary it. I've done some animation voice-overs, so doing the cow with a low voice and the dove with a high voice seemed like a natural."

He was also happy to be able to sing his own "New Words."

"That was a Christmas gift for my wife. Our son was supposed to have been born on Christmas Day, but he came early. On his first birthday, I took him into the studio and recorded him saying his first words. So, to me that's a Christmas song. Christmas is such a family time."

Mitchell also has a new children's book out called "Lights on Broadway," which provides an A-to-Z look at the world of theater, including quotes from actors and a CD of him singing "I Was Here."

"I say it is for kids from 8 to 80," he joked. "It was a blast to design. And all the proceeds got to the Actor's Fund, which I've been president of the past five years." The fund is designed to help people in the entertainment industry in times of personal or family crisis.

Another book Mitchell is proud of being a part of is one called "I'm The Greatest Star," by Robert Viagas, which contains brief biographies of "Broadway's Top Musical Legends from 1900 to Today."

"There I am, with the likes of Fred Astaire and Ethyl Merman. What an honor!" he said.