Recognizing American Patriotic Music through "Yankee Doodle" & "America the Beautiful"

Recognizing American Patriotic Music through "Yankee Doodle" & "America the Beautiful"

Patriotic music encourages feelings of national unity. They can come in the form of national songs, hymns and even military themes. Below are two examples of popular patriotic songs in the US.

"Yankee Doodle"

Who among us have not heard of this song? It s not only a popular children's song, it is also one of America's patriotic songs. As a matter of fact, it is the state song of Connecticut.

The problem with the song is that despite its popularity, there are those who scrutinize it for the way it made fun of American troops. Thus, this song still became a part of American patriotism.

We can trace the origin of this song to old English folk music. It emerged prior to the American Revolution. It is how the British mocked American soldiers. This is how the term "yankee" came about as a negative term for the Americans. For "doodle", the term implies "simpleton" or "fool".

With regards to its inclusion in the American Revolution, when the Americans or "Yankees" began taking the British into the Revolution, they were also able to take command over this song. They started singing it proudly as a way to taunt English soldiers.

"America the Beautiful"

This is an American folk song that is often referred to as the national hymn of the US. This piece was adapted from Katharine Lee Bates, a Wellsely College English professor. She wrote in the year 1893 during her trip to Colorado. It mentions the beauty of the country she is traveling to. According to her, she got her inspiration from her visit to Pike's Peak.

The original version of this piece, only had four verses. After a while, they expanded it to eight verses and revised the lyrics. It was used by The Congregationalist to commemorate Independence Day in the year 1895. It was Samuel Ward, a New Jersey composer who gave music to the poem. A combination of both the poem and the music was first heard in 1910.

Though there was talk that "America the Beautiful" may replace "The Star Spangled Banner", there's no indication that this would even happen - nor if it is even considered. Still, the song projects the physical beauty and breadth of the United States.

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