Tom's Thoughts on the National Anthem
We're just a few weeks from the start of the baseball season, and a return to the daily singing of the national anthem at major league baseball games across the united states. Folks, the national anthem isn't meant for self-aggrandizement. This isn't your opportunity to show off, ornament, mutilate or spindle the song. That's why they say, "Please rise to honor America with the singing of the national anthem." Not you. America.
Sing it swiftly. To Anacreon in Heaven, the tune on which it's based, was a drinking song. The Star Spangled Banner honors a glorious turning of the tide in the war of 1812, in which Fort McHenry in Baltimore survived a night-long bombardment by the British Navy. It was written on the back of an envelope by the lawyer Francis Scott Key to celebrate the great victory. The desperation is almost palpable in the verses, but it should not be sung as a dirge. It's an excited desperation. It's almost bordering on fervor. Don't slow it down.
Don't let the kids sing it. I don't care how much they love to sing and watch American Idol, they can't sing it til they hit 15. Sorry. Just the way it's gotta be. There's an exception here for youth choirs, but I'll get into that later.
Know The Words. This one is really requires no explanation. Get it right, or don't bother.
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