Dallas-Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Our
national anthem, unplugged
By
Where's the bombast?
As American gymnasts and swimmers
have hopped on and off the gold-medal stand at the Olympic games,
you may have noticed the subdued, delicate version of The Star-Spangled
Banner being used this year.
Most notably, you have to strain to
hear the quiet strings playing the melody that goes with "And the rockets'
red glare."
Is this a political statement?
Did someone deliberately downplay the natural bombast of the music? Was it an
attempt to present a kinder, gentler
The answer is a simple no.
The International Olympic
Committee chose the anthem recordings for each of the 200-plus nations, though
each country had the right of final approval.
Slovakian-born composer
In light of this already
completed project, the committee asked Breiner to update the collection for the
2004 Olympics. And the U.S. Olympic Committee accepted
Breiner's arrangement, apparently without objection.
"The larger countries, like
the
Though Breiner paid attention to
the words that go with each anthem, he says the music was his main guide --
hence the soft setting of the phrase that Americans usually connect with
rockets and bombs.
"The music should have
contrast," Breiner says. "It's not just about glories of war. There
should be contemplation, too."
The melody of The
Star-Spangled Banner, incidentally, originated as a drinking song in
18th-century
Breiner's
arrangement of The Star-Spangled Banner is available in Volume VI of National
Anthems of the World on the
Published
also in:
Argus
|
The A gentler anthem A suave phrase from the brass instruments
echoed through the Olympic hall, followed by a passionate line in the
strings. As the whole orchestra joined
for the cymbal-crashing finale, gymnastics gold medalist Carly
Patterson sang along: "O'er the land of the
free and the home of the brave." The gentle, almost poetic
recording of "The Star-Spangled Banner" you've been hearing at this
year's Olympic Games is not your average martial rendition of our national
anthem. For the first time in the history of the Games, all the anthems have been arranged and conducted by the same person, an effort
that has brought an unusual level of uniformity to the medals ceremonies.
The arranger, Slovak-born
Canadian composer "We have tons of
arrangements that all sound the same, and they are
march-like and very strong and powerful," he said of "The
Star-Spangled Banner." "I had the feeling, with the "Maybe it somehow is
reasonable, with the current atmosphere, that we can
look at the States as not only a fighting bully but also as a country with
heart." But at least one critic, Breiner, a 47-year-old classically trained conductor, pianist
and composer, said his "Star-Spangled Banner" was not a statement
on current world politics. The American anthem was the first one he arranged,
nearly a decade ago. He began the project in 1995,
long before anyone conceived of using them for the Olympics, for a six-CD set
called "The Complete National Anthems of the World" for When the Olympic Committee found
out about the project it approached Breiner about using more than 200 of
them for the Games. But the composer's work had only begun. Because of
geographic and political shifts, anthems had to be reworked
and re-recorded. He spent the last year preparing nearly 100 new recordings,
conducting the 90-piece Slovak Radio Symphony. New countries like "First they decided they
will have a new anthem ... and we went to the studio and recorded it," Breiner said. "And then they
decided to keep the old one." Each country's Olympic committee
had to approve its anthem's arrangement, and some found the tempo too slow or
fast or the version too short. Some anthems were too long and
had to be shortened to comply with the Olympics' guideline stating they
should last no longer than 80 seconds. The full
anthem of "Some South American
anthems are like little operas, with an overture, an aria, a chorus and grand
finale," Breiner said
with a laugh. "If you had to stand through that at the Olympics it would
be quite an ordeal." He said some anthems are unusual
or even humorous. "The Some had to be
reworked at the request of the committees, Breiner said, like his own country's "O Canada." "They disapproved of my
first version, which was more romantic and poetic," he said. "For
some reason they didn't like it. So I did a funky, jazzy version, and they
approved that one." Miscommunication was sometimes a
problem during the project, Breiner
said: Someone in Unfortunately only 10 percent to 15 percent of the anthems he has
prepared will be heard, Breiner
said, because so few of the participating countries will win any medals, much
less gold medals. Breiner said that a new seven-CD set of more than 300 anthems is scheduled for release after the Olympics, the
brainchild of Naxos Records founder Breiner, formerly a TV and radio celebrity in Though Breiner said he'd received more than
100 complimentary e-mails on "The Star-Spangled Banner," one
American music teacher wrote that he was deeply offended at the liberties Breiner has taken with the anthem. "There is no standard for
the anthem, so how could I change it?" Breiner said. Though it's true he has
altered accompanying harmonies and added inner voices to the orchestration,
he added, "everybody recognizes it's the anthem." UMKC Conservatory composer "Why do we always have to
hear the same rendition every time?" he said. The tears that well up
when the anthem plays have nothing to do with the martial quality of the
piece," he added. "It has to do with connecting with these people on
the podium." To reach |
The Baltimore Sun, August
25, 2004
Why clash over the less-martial anthem?
This Games' rendition is
perfectly reasonable
|
|
|
By
Sun Music Critic
Originally published
Before anyone launches Swift Boats for the True Spirit of
the National Anthem, let's get one thing clear: The
subdued arrangement of The Star-Spangled Banner being heard in
I guess it's just another sign of these testy times that
some folks are stirring up a little tempest about the fact that the rockets
have not been glaring reddish enough, the bombs not bursting in air
bombastically enough to celebrate our athletic prowess appropriately.
An unsigned writer at the Wall Street Journal wonders if
"the tears welling up in
Probably won't be long before
every chest-thumping, butt-kicking, jingoistic talk-radio/cable-news host in
the country declares that this whole sinister musical crime is specifically the
work of the flimsy French.
Actually, the trail leads to those horrid hotbeds of
anti-American diabolism -
It turns out that The Star-Spangled Banner and anthems for
every other country entered in the Olympics were arranged and conducted by a
Slovakian-born Canadian, Peter Breiner, and played by the Slovak Radio Symphony
Orchestra.
Breiner and that ensemble recorded more than 200 anthems of
the world for a multi-volume series released on the
The Olympic Committee decided to use those recordings for
all anthem-drenched moments at the 2004 games, rather than live performances,
as in the past. It's one way to assure a certain
musical continuity; previously, each nation submitted its own preferred
arrangement. But a lot of nations have come and gone
since Breiner's initial anthem project, while others have changed their
anthems, so he spent the last year arranging and recording all the new items.
He also did some rearranging, because each country's own
Olympic Committee had the right of approval over the arrangement being used. No objection from
And,
for anyone prone to conspiratorial theories, please note that the version of
our national anthem submitted by Breiner is the same one he produced nearly a
decade ago, before he could have ever known he would be involved in the 2004
Olympics.
Given the often atrocious
renditions The Star-Spangled Banner is subject to by professionals and amateurs
alike, it's curious that this very respectful orchestration should arouse any
sniping at all. Then again, there's a precedent of sorts.
Orchestral parts for
Breiner's particular choice of chords - precisely at the
spot where the "weepy strings" get to the explosive-laden passage -
no doubt accounts for the squirming by the carpers. His unexpected harmonic
twist gives the music a darker, sadder edge.
There are "tons of arrangements that all sound the
same, and they are march-like and very strong and powerful," Breiner told
the Kansas City Star. "I had the feeling, with the
The Fort Worth Star Telegram quoted him in an elaboration
on that thought: "The music should have contrast. It's
not just about glories of war. There should be contemplation, too."
Sounds perfectly reasonable to me.
Breiner has treated the music - which, lest we forget, started out as a silly
British drinking song - with great respect and appreciation for its expressive
possibilities.
When that line rises to its highest point (the point where
most people stop singing or drop awkwardly to an octave below), the words about
rockets and bombs certainly suggest a peak of drama, but not necessarily of
volume. The main emphasis, surely, is not firepower, but the realization that
"our flag was still there."
Breiner's subtle treatment of those measures, with the
unexpected tinge of bittersweetness in the harmony,
strikes my ears as fittingly poetic and rather touching, especially considering
things that have been bursting in air all too recently. And
for those demanding a militaristic flourish with their anthem, Breiner includes
enough brass and cymbal crashes elsewhere in the arrangement.
If his tempo is on the deliberate side, he's
hardly the first interpreter to take that approach. Jaunty or leisurely, the
music remains fundamentally the same, with the same collective memory behind
it.
Finally, if anyone is still convinced there is malevolence
behind this kinder gentler Star-Spangled Banner, consider what some folks are
saying about Breiner's arrangement of his own country's anthem.
Reporting on the ceremony when gymnast
For
Published also in:
Northwest Herald
Wall Street Journal,
O SAY DID YOU
The Washington Post,
August 26, 2004
Changing Our
Tune
By
A "Europe-friendly version of the anthem," designed
"to play down the notion of the
|
"What should I think?" Breiner asks, perplexed.
"I wrote it in 1994." That would be before 9/11, before
Those recordings caught the attention of Olympics organizers, who asked Breiner to supply the anthems for all the medal ceremonies (many of which will never be heard, given how few countries take home gold).
Getting them all ready in time for the Olympics was a
scramble, requiring approval from all nations, and in some cases, rewrites and
revisions. But Breiner's version of the
On purely musical grounds, however, it's
easy to see why fast-on-the-draw cultural critics might find fodder for
partisan speculation. Particularly subject to comment was Breiner's setting of
the music accompanying the words "and the rockets' red glare, the bombs
bursting in air." Breiner went for contrast, setting some of the most
martial lines of
He uses, at first, violins and violas, high in their register, delicately played, ethereal in effect. It sounds tender and distant, even a bit sentimental. Then he brings in the cellos, adding a bit of depth, and a few woodwinds, giving it a pastoral flavor.
"I just followed my guts there," said Breiner in a
telephone interview from
He's right, from a composer's point
of view. In opera, the most horrifying revelations may be set to chillingly
sweet, almost whispered musical lines. But Breiner
wasn't writing opera. He was orchestrating a tune that has a dual existence, as
commonly shared patriotic icon and pure musical
Therein lies the problem. Are
national symbols open to interpretation? And if so,
where is the line between interpretation and desecration? The debate is
familiar when the symbol is the flag -- and it's a
perennial Republican favorite to attempt writing the line into the Constitution.
With the national anthem, the situation is a bit messier. It's
clear that, say, screeching it as
But there's been considerable
latitude for rethinking it musically, especially in popular contexts. The solo,
R&B-inflected style, heard at innumerable ballgames, has
become so filled with extraneous ornamentation, elision, slides and
other egregious foofaraw, that one can hardly find
the anthem through the trees.
Some states have laws governing how it is
performed. In Michigan, for instance, a 1931 law made it illegal to
perform the anthem "except as an entire and separate composition or number
and without embellishments of national or other melodies," which,
technically, makes it illegal to perform Puccini's "Madama
Butterfly," which uses a portion of the anthem as a tag line (to suggest
the ugly side of Yankee imperialism). In 1944, a version of the anthem reharmonized and orchestrated by
"Let him change it just once and we'll grab him," a
At the federal level, things are murkier. "The Star-Spangled Banner" didn't become the official national anthem until 1931. In 1971, a House joint resolution was introduced to bring some standardization to the anthem, setting down the words, the music and the harmonies, giving recommendations as to the best keys for singing (G, A-flat or A), and some vague guidelines about how "strange and bizarre harmonization should be certainly avoided." It did allow, however, for considerable discretion (" . . . it is recognized that reasonable latitude must be allowed" and "the purpose of the performance and the available instruments will sometimes suggest different contrapuntal realizations of the basic harmonies.")
That resolution never became law, and in general, musical groups rely on versions of the anthem so old that in many cases no one is quite sure about their provenance. Tradition, and taste, are the primary guidelines. The tendency to stick with the familiar is so strong that when Breiner's version started getting exposure at the Olympics, one group of music professionals that cares about this sort of thing -- the Major Orchestra Librarians' Association -- saw a flurry of curiosity among its members.
"We're often looking for other options," says
Breiner's version sounds novel to most ears, especially those
familiar with brass band arrangements. But its most
striking moment -- the tender rocket and bomb music -- is no innovation.
There is, in fact, a tradition of what might
be called the "girlie" approach to the national anthem.
Although Breiner says he had no particular political message
in mind when he set "The Star-Spangled Banner," there's
precedent (in the writings of composers such as
Put another way, his harmony is about nuance, about saying things obliquely rather than bluntly, and weakening the fundamental pull of basic chords in favor of more local variation and possibility. He may not have intended it, but he did, in fact, write blue-state music.
"It just sort of loses momentum and doesn't build to a climax," he says. "It isn't exultant and victorious and thankful and it seems uncertain in its statement." This is, perhaps, red-state musical thinking.
Breiner has been compiling a list of reactions, taken from letters and postings on musical Web sites. Response, he says, is mixed, but mostly positive. "I think it's lovely," wrote a New Yorker. "Very thoughtful, soothing and solemn," she says, and in marked contrast to the American reputation for being loud, arrogant "and idiotically happy."
But there is dissent. "As a
musician, teacher and citizen of the
Timothy Key Price, a composer who claims descent from
None of this argument, however, can compare with the furor
that Breiner has sparked in
At issue, for the Canadians, was the brisk tempo and the jazzy blue notes with which Breiner filled out his arrangement. For some, this was tarting it up too much; for others, it was a refreshing breather from the diffident and dour Canadian national temperament. This was, says Breiner with weary amusement, his God-given 15 minutes.
"The media was crazy and it hasn't stopped since," he says. "It was a little overwhelming."
That description may apply to the entire project. Breiner has had to deal with new countries with new anthems, with countries that changed their anthems, with countries that didn't like the original version and demanded new ones. Most of the feedback was entirely unmusical and mostly unhelpful to a professional composer.
"I wrote back and said, 'that's a problem,' " says Breiner. "Your anthem is in 3/4 time, and it will never be a march because it is probably a mazurka, or some other dance in 3/4."
New Zealanders, he says, also were not pleased with his
version. So Breiner asked them to send him a recorded
version they approved of, which they did, and which turned out, in the end, to
be originally by
Perhaps the greatest irony of the whole project is that most national anthems are lousy music. Much of what is considered "sacred" music -- religiously or patriotically -- has vulgar origins. Some of the most revered Christian hymns were originally secular love songs. The music of "The Star-Spangled Banner" began life as a drinking song, and has no particular artistic merit. Nor, for that matter, does "O Canada."
But feelings run strong, and these
feelings encapsulate some of the most elemental conflicts of democracy. A
large, diverse, heterogeneous society, like the United States, needs generally
held principles; but should it demand that symbols, too, be universally
respected? Or does artistic freedom -- the license to
mess with things like the flag and anthem -- trump the need for collective
patriotic worship? It is an argument far older than the national anthem, an
argument as old as
|
|
|
|
|
Published also in: NBC Sports The Post and Courier Brainerd Dispatch The The Northwest Herald |
|
THE |
O SAY DID YOU
SEATTLE
POST-INTELLIGENCER, August 28, 2004
Subdued version of "The Star-Spangled Banner"
played at Olympics
As
American winners have hopped on and off the gold-medal stand at the Olympic games, you may have noticed the subdued, delicate version of
"The Star-Spangled Banner" being used this year.
Most
notably, you have to strain to hear the quiet strings playing the melody that goes
with "And the rockets' red glare." Did someone deliberately downplay
the natural bombast of the music? Was it an attempt to present a kinder,
gentler
The
International Olympic Committee chose the anthem recordings for each of the
200-plus nations, though each country had the right of final approval. This
version was arranged and recorded in the 1990s by
Slovakian-born composer
|
Monday morning answers Who arranged the rendition of
national anthem at Olympics? |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I have been so moved by the beautiful rendition of our
national anthem during the medal ceremonies at the Olympics. Can you tell me the name of the orchestra that recorded it and the name
of the arranger? -
Credit for the arrangement goes to pianist, composer and
conductor
In fact, he gets credit for all 204 anthems commissioned
for the summer Olympics in
Not everyone likes his "Star-Spangled Banner"
arrangement. Some critics have called it slow, plodding and lacking in energy.
But
such is the nature of music. It’s all about taste, and
everyone’s is different.
I
contacted Breiner in
"Music should not leave people indifferent," he
said. "If it stirs emotions, it fully served its most important purpose.
And if those emotions are positive, it’s heavenly."
Breiner is one of the most prolific musicians in the world.
He’s done music for specials and miniseries on HBO, the Discovery Channel, the
Most recently, Breiner performed at the
If you like his "Star-Spangled Banner" so much,
you might like the other 203 anthems as well. They’re
available on a six-disc set, the "Complete National Anthems of the
World."
The
Slovak orchestra
performs anthems
By
A: It's a 90-member orchestra working under the direction of Peter Breiner, a Canadian composer, conductor and pianist, who was given the immense job of recording the anthems of the 204 participating countries.
Breiner arranged, conducted and recorded the anthems.
He has said that some anthems had to be re-recorded several times. Some anthems were modified by their countries. Other versions had to be shortened to meet the Olympics' needs.
Each anthem had to be approved by representatives from the corresponding country.
Breiner's arrangements of national anthems were used in the 2002 World Cup.
He also conducted versions of 200 anthems on a six-CD set called "Complete National Anthems of the World." The Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra performed the music.
An updated edition of that set, featuring more than 300 anthems in their current versions, is supposed to be released early next year.
Meanwhile, if you're curious about how a particular country's national anthem goes, check out www.thenationalanthems.com. You'll need to have a sound card on your computer, of course.
Keep Politics Off
Olympic Podium
By Mike Hume
I’m tired of spin. I’m
tired of politics. I’m tired of gray areas. Just once
during this election year I wanted something concrete.
I thought I had found that in the Olympics, but
seemingly, just like everything else in this crazy election year, the games in
To me it seems the Olympics are a gold mine for a journalist. Every day, world class athletes turn in awe inspiring performances and in doing so, shed light on hundreds of human interest stories worthy of the Hallmark Hall of Fame. But apparently that’s not enough. Apparently we have to read something into everything, either because the media is overambitious or because the public demands it. We can’t take pleasure in the simplicity of the Games anymore. Swifter, Higher, Stronger doesn’t cut it anymore. Now we need Juicier, Murkier, and More Controversial.
Returning medals, doping, rooting against the U.S. men’s basketball team, linking the impressive run of the Iraqi soccer team to the Bush administration, the toning down of the anthem, the global view of American athletes — those are the headlines that dominated the morning editions and the news shows. And oh, by the way our athletes won 103 medals.
But instead of focusing on what could have been the
103 greatest moments in these athletes’ lives, we’ve been focusing on the
International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) asking
Now tell me, why should
That’s sports. You lose, even if it’s a bad call, you shake hands and move on. Not so in politics, where the same trivial minutiae gets repeated endlessly, news cycle after news cycle.
Instead of talking about the wonderful performances of
But this political emphasis doesn’t just come from
the media. The Bush Campaign has launched a controversial ad taking credit for
the participation of
Couldn’t we just be happy for this underdog team that they managed to side step the strife and bring glory to a country that could really use some good news? Apparently not. We have to talk politics.
Even on the medal podium, we have to talk politics. Maureen Dowd wrote last week that she believed our anthem was toned down so as not to offend international sensibilities concerning perceived American global dominance, writing: “Even America’s warlike anthem has been transformed from blaring horns to peaceful, soothing strings.”
A great observation, and maybe it would be a valid
point had it not been composed in 1994 by Slovakian composer
Last Thursday night the announcers on NBC repeatedly claimed that the boos raining down on the finalists in the men’s 200m
were directed at the Americans. Maybe. But I’m sure they probably had a lot more to do with the
fact that hometown Greek hero
Just stop. All of you. Once, just once every four years can we please just let sports be sports? Can’t we let applause just be support and not a political statement? Have we reached a point that we can’t take pleasure in the simplicity of athletic competition, but instead have to infuse a healthy dose of political intrigue? Must we read something into everything?
These athletes are not members of the Bush administration. The
Do we really think that when 19-year-old Michael Phelps, who lives with his
Mother in Baltimore and has trained with countless early mornings of laps and
conditioning, steps onto the medal platform to accept one of his eight medals
he’s thinking “Man, this rendition of the Star Spangled Banner seems
artificially toned down. I’m really glad they didn’t
add that extra Viola and a third French horn, though. Then the world would
really hate
They’re athletes. Period. They’re kids. Period. Let them enjoy what they’ve earned.
I’m not naïve enough to think that politics plays no part in the Olympics, and clearly issues outside of sports have intertwined themselves with athletics, but will it kill the us to forgo political commentary for 16 days?
Now that everything is over, and all the medals have been handed out, feel free to analyze however you wish. But when the games are going on, they should belong to those playing them.