Salt Lake Tabernacle, Salt Lake City (must see)

A great marvel of sound and acoustics, this domed building is the home of the famed Tabernacle Choir, and was the previous home of the Utah Symphony Orchestra until the construction of Abravanel Hall. Inside, the beautiful pipe organ – one of the largest in the world – is something to see, but catching a Sunday morning choir performance (or a rehearsal at the least – Thursdays at 7:30pm) counts as one of those experiences of a life time. Both the tour and the choir concerts/rehearsals are free to the public, by the way!

At a time before electronics and audio amplifiers, the Tabernacle was constructed with remarkable acoustic qualities so the entire congregation could hear sermons given here. The roof was built in a three-dimensional ellipse – a concept that came from none other than church president Brigham Young, who reportedly said that the design was inspired by "the best sounding board in the world ... the roof of my mouth." It is common for LDS missionary tour guides to demonstrate the acoustics by dropping a pin on the pulpit or tearing a newspaper there, which can be heard throughout the building.

Built without nails, the structure itself was an architectural wonder in its day, prompting a writer for Scientific American to comment on "the mechanical difficulties of attending the construction of so ponderous a roof." Apparently, the supporting beams were made by a shipbuilder, who used his knowledge to hold together the dome by means of horsehair and leather alone. In 1882, while on a lecture tour of America, Oscar Wilde noted that the building had the appearance of a soup-kettle; he added that it was the most purely dreadful building he ever saw. Some visitors around the beginning of the 20th century criticized it as "a prodigious tortoise that has lost its way" or "the Church of the Holy Turtle," but Frank Lloyd Wright dubbed the Tabernacle "one of the architectural masterpieces of the country and perhaps the world."