Chester Arthur didn't much care for "Hail To The Chief" and so asked Sousa to write a replacement. This is what he came up with in 1886 - it is said that it was intentionally upbeat to keep people moving in the White House reception line.
But Hail To The Chief was traditional - dating to the 1820s in its use for the President - and so Sousa's replacement was soon gone.
The March King -- we used to march around the room in kindergarten to a Sousa march, probably to tire us out.
ReplyDeleteThe Marine Band played the "Liberty Bell" march at Obama's first inauguration as I recall. People may recognize it from the Monty Python show, I wonder if that was done with tongue in cheek?
Anyway , Sousa was the man when it came to band music.
Thanks. I've been looking for some good 4th of July music. We've got lots of Christmas music, but very little for the 4th. Tossed it in my cart, I have.
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