[MR] movement to change the anthem

[blaise at scadian.net]

On Mon, Sep 17, 2001 at 05:31:54PM -0400, Jack Warren wrote:
> There is a reason they won't choose 'America, The Beautiful' it is set
> to the tune of 'God Save the King/Queen' the U.K.'s national anthem.

No, that's "America" (first line "My country, 'tis of thee").  "America,
The Beautiful" (first line "O beautiful for spacious skies") is a
completely different song.

> Interesting that this thread comes up every time patriotism kicks up a
> notch. BTW, the Brits don't take offense to 'The Star Spangled Banner'
> they as well think it is typical of American determination. It earned
> Francis Scott Key his freedom....

But given that it spans an octave and a fifth, with a single leap of an
octave and a third, it really is too difficult for untrained voices.
America The Beautiful, which only ranges over an octave and a second, is
much more reasonable.

Blaise
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