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American National Anthem

I am looking for the American National Anthem, A Star-Spangled Banner, with the words, if available in PDF or NWC format. Otherwise, please send me a URL and I will key it into NWC myself.

This is from a life-long USA supporter in South Africa, me!

Thanks very much.

Re: American National Anthem

Reply #2 –
Currently, the fashionable song in the U.S. of A. is "God Bless America." The song goes back many years -- It may be that the overtly religious connotation is a response to current affairs.

Otherwise, a lot of Americans (I am one) prefer "America the Beautiful" (Oh beautiful for spacious skies...etc.) to the official "Star Spangled Banner" since its lyrics are more positive.

If you are looking for something that is characteristically American, try the well-known Sousa marches.

Of course, for the many British readers of this forum, you can burn the candle at both ends using "My Country 'Tis of Thee / God Save the Queen."

Re: American National Anthem

Reply #3 –
So, where does one find "God bless America" or "America the beautiful"? I have tried both search terms and the database comes up with a fat zero.

Re: American National Anthem

Reply #5 –
... although, having just listened to their version of "America the Beautiful", I suggest you may wish to look elsewhere. The harmonic setting is decidedly non-traditional.

Re: American National Anthem

Reply #6 –
"God Bless America" was written by Irving Berlin, at about the time of WWII. I believe it is still under copyright, meaning that the music ought not to be freely available on-line. Certainly, it is possible to purchase copies of the sheet music at (American) music stores, or on-line from Internet vendors.

I am not certain whether "America the Beautiful" is recent (copyrighted), or older (public domain). As for "My Country 'Tis of Thee," certainly the melody is public domain, and the words are widely known.

Incidentally, I have come across non-standard versions of "America the Beautiful" that I believe are optimized for amateur choral singing. There are several verses to the song. The first, most well-known, is not particularly jingoistic. Some of the others are.

National anthems, and related patriotic songs, often become controversial with the passage of time. Consider the Marseillaise (France), with it blood flowing in the fields. Consider "Deutschland Ueber Alles," with its interpretation that was not intended (and could not have been intended) by the writer. Even in America, a folk song such as "This Land Is Your Land" is criticized for meaning "This land isn't yours (Natives) any more, it's mine (Europeans) only!" Needless to say, any song mentioning God is criticized by nonbelievers, believers of other persuasions, some believers who don't specifically believe that, and critics of "the dominant paradigm."

Re: American National Anthem

Reply #7 –
The lyrics to "America the Beautiful" were written by Katharine Lee Bates in 1893 (and revised in 1904). The melody, as I understand it, is even older. Both should by now be in the public domain.