"Semper Fidelis", written in 1888 by
John Philip Sousa
John Philip Sousa ( ; November 6, 1854 – March 6, 1932) was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era known primarily for American military marches. He is known as "The March King" or the "American March King", to dis ...
(The March King), is regarded as the official
march
March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March ...
of the
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
. This piece was one of two composed in response to a request from
United States President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
Chester Arthur
Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 21st president of the United States from 1881 to 1885. He previously served as the 20th vice president under President James A ...
for a new piece to be associated with the United States President. The words
Semper Fidelis are Latin for "Always Faithful." The piece was created for a wind band in addition to a percussion section. There is a very prominent drum solo in the middle of the piece which includes a skillful dynamic change. It features staccato notes and sharp tonguing.
History
There does not exist an original
general order documenting the proclamation of ''Semper Fidelis'' as the official march of the Marines. According to accounts summarized in the CD
liner notes
Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes.
Origin
Liner notes are desc ...
,
[ Sousa is regarded by historians as honest and on many occasions noted that the march was named the official march of the Marine Corps. However, a flood destroyed many Marine Corps records, even those documenting Sousa's rank as leader of the United States Marine Corps Band; an order designating it as an official march could have been lost.][ President Arthur felt that '']Hail to the Chief
"Hail to the Chief" is the personal anthem of the president of the United States, adapted by James Sanderson from an original Scottish Gaelic melody.
The song's playing accompanies the appearance of the president of the United States at many ...
'' was undignified and requested a new presidential composition. Sousa began performing ''Presidential Polonaise
The polonaise (, ; pl, polonez ) is a dance of Polish origin, one of the five Polish national dances in time. Its name is French for "Polish" adjective feminine/"Polish woman"/"girl". The original Polish name of the dance is Chodzony, meani ...
'' (1886) and later ''Semper Fidelis'', although Arthur predeceased the latter. Neither displaced ''Hail to the Chief'' as the song most closely associated with the United States President.Marine Corps Base Quantico
Marine Corps Base Quantico (commonly abbreviated MCB Quantico) is a United States Marine Corps installation located near Triangle, Virginia, covering nearly of southern Prince William County, Virginia, northern Stafford County, and southeas ...
)." However, no Marines were stationed at Quantico until May 14, 1917 and he wrote the song in 1888. This could be explained by a misquote or by Marine maneuvers or exercises at Quantico.[
]
Instrumentation
*2 flutes
* piccolo
*2 oboe
The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range.
...
s
* cor anglais
*2 clarinets
*2 bassoons
*4 horns
*2 trumpet
The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
s
*3 trombone
The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...
s
*tuba
The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...
*timpani
Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally ...
* bass drum
* snare drum
*violin
The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...
s I and II
*viola
; german: Bratsche
, alt=Viola shown from the front and the side
, image=Bratsche.jpg
, caption=
, background=string
, hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71
, hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow
, range=
, related=
*Violin family ...
s
*cello
The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G ...
s
*double bass
The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar i ...
es
See also
* List of marches by John Philip Sousa
John Philip Sousa was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era known primarily for American military marches. He composed 136 marches from 1873 until his death in 1932. He derived few of his marches from his other musical ...
Notes
External links
*
{{Authority control
1888 compositions
American military marches
American patriotic songs
Concert band pieces
Sousa marches
United States Marine Corps lore and symbols