Group Lessons, August 2024

In observance of the 210th anniversary of the writing of the Star-Spangled Banner,  this year's Welcome Back Groups are based on the story and background of the circumstances surrounding the National Anthem's beginnings.  Music and history go hand in hand so we learned about the War of 1812, the Battle of Fort McHenry, Francis Scott Key and.....ramparts, rockets and song.

Below are links to videos found on YouTube.  Some are short, some are long, and some are in-between.  All are a fascinating look at early America.  Some of these have assignments linked to them, one is assigned to students and parents together, and some are for learning more about our nation's history.  The War of 1812 is often called the "forgotten war".  During the early 1800s  it was also called the Revolutionary War II.  Unfortunately most Americans today no longer remember how important the War of 1812 was for us -- without Fort McHenry standing steadfast in 1814, today we might be subjects of the British crown once again. 

Star-Spangled Banner--Flag and Song                              Group Lessons August, 2024

1.  A wonderful story for the entire family.
3.  Shows the still existing evidence of the scorch marks on the stones of the White House Door the floor below the main entry to the White House..  After the British burned the White house, only the stone shell remained.
2. A shorter version of #4 for younger students.
4. This video starts two weeks after Washington City was sacked using both live actors and animated maps.  It describes the 1814 version of "Shock and Awe" that took place during the 25 hour bombardment of Fort McHenry.
5.  This video opens  with a look at the Banner in its current home--the Smithsonian Museum.  The video is a thorough telling of the sack of Washington that leads  Battle of Baltimore (Fort McHenry).  Included is the story of Dolly Madison saving the portrait of George Washington.  We also learn about the "rockets" used by the British and why they were so terrifying.  
7.  Lawyer Francis Scott Key sketched out his verses of "The Defense of Fort McHenry" aboard the USS President,​ then under British guard, while witnessing "the rockets' red flare".  After coming to shore on Sept. 17th, he finished his poem and took it to a newspaper and at least 1,000 broad sheets were published and circulated through Baltimore.   Within a month, the song (still sung as a "glee") was renamed "The Star-Spangled Banner".
9.  A look at the tedious job of "saving" the original Star-Spangled Banner at the Smithsonian.  If you ever are in Washington D.C., go see this one National Treasure.
6.  This English song provided the melodic foundation for over 85 American patriotic songs between 1793 and 1820.  It was originally composed for a group of British gentlemen who met every other week in the winter for a formal concert, a dinner, and a social time during which the members entertained each other by singing catches, glees, and amusing songs.  Written in 1776 in England, this is a "glee"*; the first part sung by a soloist, the last part repeated with all joining in.
8. When, in 1931, Congress passed the resolution naming the "Star Spangled Banner" as our national anthem, they could not agree on any specific arrangement (including rhythms, tempi, instrumentation, and how to sing it).  Therefore, Americans are free to interpret the Anthem's performance as they wish.  And so we have -- with good, bad and outstanding results.  
*"Glee" : A glee is a song where the first part  is sung by a soloist;  the last part would be repeated with all the company joining in the refrain.  The refrain would often be sung in parts to highlight the number of voices participating.

Familiar tunes such as "Yankee Doodle" and "The Anacreontic Song" were often parodied by others.  Beginning in 1793 new songs set to this melody began to appear in America, including an extremely popular one in 1798 in praise of our second president:  "Adams And Liberty".  This and over 85 other new sets of words to the same melody followed on broadsides, newspapers, songsters and in songbooks over the coming decades.  Sometimes a new song's intended melody was listed as "Anacreon in Heavens," but not always--the distinctive structure of the lyrics made the intended melody obvious.
A lawyer, who was also a fine amateur poet, wrote at least two sets of words meant for "Anacreon in Heaven": one in 1805, "When the warrior returns from the battle afar" (in praise of Stephen Decatur and the other heroes of the Tripolitan War) and one in 1814, "The Defense of Fort McHenry".   That lawyer was Francis Scott Key.