Charles A. Zimmermann (1861 – 16 January 1916) was an American composer of

marches In medieval Europe, a march or mark was, in broad terms, any kind of borderland, as opposed to a national "heartland". More specifically, a march was a border between realms or a neutral buffer zone under joint control of two states in which diff ...

and popular music. A graduate of the

Peabody Conservatory of Music The Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University is a private conservatory and preparatory school in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1857 and opened in 1866 by merchant/financier and philanthropist George Peabody (1795–1869) ...

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, he was appointed bandmaster at the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

in 1887 at the age of 26. He served as the academy's bandmaster until his death from a brain hemorrhage in 1916. He is buried at the Naval Academy cemetery. Zimmermann composed his most famous march, "

Anchors Aweigh "Anchors Aweigh" is the fight song of the United States Naval Academy and unofficial march song of the United States Navy. It was composed in 1906 by Charles A. Zimmermann with lyrics by Alfred Hart Miles. When he composed "Anchors Aweigh", Zim ...

", in 1906 when he was a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in the United States Navy. The lyrics were written by Alfred Hart Miles, a midshipman. The march was intended from the beginning to serve as a rousing tune for football games. The familiar strain is actually the trio (third movement) of the larger work. Zimmermann also composed numerous songs for the 1902 stage play '' The Wizard of Oz''.

List of compositions

*with Frank Keesee: **Only You (Sir Dashemoff Daily) *with Mr. Hollister: **When the Heart is Sad (Sir Dashemoff Daily) *with Vincent Bryan: **Marching Thro' Georgia (Scarecrow and Tin Woodman) **Sitting Bull (Scarecrow) **Football (Scarecrow and Tin Woodman) **Marching Through Port Arthur (Scarecrow and Tin Woodman)

Bibliography

*Holsinger, M. Paul, ed. (1999). ''War and American Popular Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia''. Westport: Greenwood Press. * Ravitch, Diane, ed. (2000). ''The American Reader''. New York: Harper Collins.

External links

Biography
a
www.usna.edu

US Navy page: "Anchors Aweigh"
* 1861 births 1916 deaths American people of German descent American male composers American composers Zimmermann, Charles Peabody Institute alumni Place of birth missing {{US-composer-19thC-stub