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naturalplastic
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03 Nov 2015, 7:20 am

You have to be Whitney Houston to sing the SSB.
Most of us sound less like Whitney Houston, and more like Roseanne Barr when we try to sing it.

When I took a music appreciation class and learned a little music theory it occurred to me that the perfect tune for a national anthem would be Beethoven's Ode to Joy because (a)its easy for untrained singers, and (B) its rousing (like La Marsailles). And it occurred to me that that we could write a replacement to the SSB to that tune. Trouble is: I learned later that I was not the first person to think of that idea. Dozens of countries already have national anthems set to Beethoven's OTJ ranging from Tonga to the European Union. So we need something distinct.

America the Beautiful is often picked as a candidate to replace the SSB.

But the acid test of any national anthem is this: whether it could jhold its own in that scene in Rick's Cafe in the movie "Casablanca" when a musical showdown breaks out between patrons singing the anthems of Germany, and patrons singing that of France. In a musical showdown between Deutscherlied and La Marsailles BOTH the SSB and America the Beautiful would get their asses kicked. Niether of the two American songs is rousing enough.

But any song set to Beethoven's Ode to Joy would kick ass. The Battle Hymn of the Republics, and God Bless America might also hold their own though.

But there are perils in seeking a new national anthem as well. Check out Albert Brooks's classic Seventies routine about "Rewriting the National Anthem".



ZenDen
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04 Nov 2015, 9:55 am

pawelk1986 wrote:
ZenDen wrote:
Basso53 wrote:
The US did not have an official national anthem until 1931. A variety of patriotic songs were played. America/My Country Tis of Thee was not the anthem. The closest thing we had to an official anthem was Hail, Columbia, which was also played for the President, before being replaced by Hail to the Chief. Hail Columbia is still played for the Vice President.

And the "entire" EU does NOT use variations of Beethoven's Ode to Joy as their anthem. France still uses La Marseillaise, for example. Germany still uses Deutschland Uber Alles.

Also, Finland's national anthem is Mamme Laulu. Not the finale of Sibelius' musical opus Finlandia which is the melody used for Be Still My Soul. After the Winter War of 1939-1940, a Finnish patriot penned lyrics to Sibelius' melody, which became the well loved patriotic song Finlandia Hymni. Which many Finns would prefer as their anthem, but, it isn't. Much as many Americans seem to prefer America the Beautiful to the Star Spangled Banner.


You said: "Germany still uses Deutschland Uber Alles" But that's not quite true. The name of the song you're thinking of is ""Das Lied der Deutschen", and in the first stanza are the words: "Deutschland Uber Alles" which are repeated and which most of the world recognizes. The phrase: "Deutschland Uber Alles" was originally meant to consolidate the small feuding German states, at the time it was written.

The first stanza, is now banned according to German law, and only the third stanza is used.


From what I know the first verse, it is not so much banned, is simply is not performed, because of associations with Nazism, but it is not per se prohibited by law, it just is not "politically correct" to sing it.
Currently, only German rednecks (with all due respect for true American rednecks ;) ) from the NPD or monarchists are singing it


You say: "the first verse, (it) is not so much banned, (it) is simply is not performed" and you may be right. I leaned the other way because of this quote in Wikipedia:

"Upon German reunification in 1990, only the third stanza was confirmed as the national anthem."

I agree, this doesn't sound like "banned" to me either.



naturalplastic
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04 Nov 2015, 10:40 am

Maryland, My Maryland.

Raise the old fife and drum.

Maryland.

She is not dead, nor deaf, nor dumb.

Huzza! She spurns the Northern scum!"



That's the ninth, final,and now little known, stanza of my state's official anthem "Maryland, my Maryland".

It was written by a Maryland guy in 1861 who was teaching in Louisiana just as the nation started to come apart at the seams on the eve of the Civil War.

The songwriter was outraged at the news that Federal troops were marching through Baltimore, and he wrote the song to inspire his fellow Marylanders to secede from the Union, and to join the Confederacy.

Even though the song preaches sedition it was officially made our state anthem in 1939. Go figure.

But nowadays you just hear the stanzas about " Maryland,your beauty is unchanging". The parts about "raising your sword against northern tyranny" are not exactly "banned". Just..ahem...preferred.... not to be performed in public anymore.

The German anthem is probably treated like that.

And speaking of "plagiarism" the Maryland state anthem is set to the same tune as the older "Oh Tannenbaum" (Oh Christmas Tree).