The story, by reporter Kirk Johnson, details a 1962 broadcast of the choir from Mount Rushmore to Cold War Europe.
They stood rooted, gripped with the excitement and responsibility of the moment, and when the cue came, they opened with a song that was meant to appeal to the sensibilities of Europe — “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” composed in the 1520s by Martin Luther — followed by the stirring American anthem “Battle Hymn of the Republic.”
Read the full story in The New York Times here.