Inland Northwest Musicians Patriotic Concerts 2026

Composed by Aaron Copland, Fanfare for the Common Man was commissioned by the conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony, Eugene Goossens in 1942. During this period of time, the United States put all of their efforts toward preparing for World War II. Goossens commissioned 17 other composers to write fanfares  to contribute to the war efforts by inspiring and energizing the American people. Copland, known for his  skill in combining classic American folk songs with modern orchestral arrangements, has composed many notable pieces including The Lincoln Portrait, Appalachian Spring, and several ballets and plays. Copland considered many titles for this piece, including fanfare for the Spirit of Democracy and Fanfare for the Four Freedoms (Based off the same Four Freedoms speech from Roosevelt). He eventually decided on Fanfare for a common man because

"It was the common man, after all, who was doing all the dirty work in the war and the army. He deserved a fanfare."

"The Stars and Stripes Forever" is an American patriotic march written and composed by John Philip Sousa in 1896.  In his 1928 autobiography, Marching Along, Sousa wrote that he composed the march on Christmas Day, 1896. Sousa was on board an ocean liner on his way home from a vacation with his wife in Europe and had just learned of the recent death of David Blakely, the manager of the Sousa Band. He composed the march in his head and committed the notes to paper on arrival in the United States. It was first performed at the Philadelphia Academy of Music on May 14, 1897, and was immediately greeted with enthusiasm. Following an Act of Congress in 1987, it was officially adopted as the national march of the United States of America. Historically, in show business and particularly in theater and the circus, this piece is called the "disaster march" In the early 20th century, when it was common for theaters and circuses to have house bands, this march was a traditional code signaling a life-threatening emergency It subtly notified personnel of emergency situations and ideally allowed them to organize the audience's exit without causing the chaos and panic that an overt declaration might.  "The Stars and Stripes Forever" follows the standard U.S. military march form—of repeated phrasing of different melodies performed in sections called strains: a Sousa legacy. Performances vary according to the arrangements of individual band directors or orchestrators, especially regarding tempo and the number and sequence of strains employed.

"America", also known as "My Country, 'Tis of Thee", is an American patriotic song whose lyrics were written by Samuel Francis Smith. The song served as one of the de facto national anthems of the United States (along with songs like "Hail, Columbia") before the adoption of "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the official U.S. national anthem in 1931. The melody is adapted from the de facto national anthem of the United Kingdom, "God Save the King".  Henry Carey is one of several persons attributed as composer of God Save the King. Samuel Francis Smith wrote the lyrics to "America" in 1831 while a student at the Andover Theological Seminary in Andover, Massachusetts. The use of the same melody as the British royal anthem is a contrafactum, for it reworks this symbol of British monarchy to make a statement about American democracy. Composer Lowell Mason had requested that Smith translate or provide new lyrics for a collection of German songs, among them one written to this melody. Smith gave Mason the lyrics he had written, and the song was first performed in public on July 4, 1831, at a children's Independence Day celebration at Park Street Church in Boston. The first publication of "America" was in 1832. 

"This Is My Country" was composed in 1940 by the popular songwriters Don Raye and Al Jacobs. Raye, who was born Donald MacRae Wilhoite, Jr. was born March 16, 1909, in Washington, D.C. and Jacobs was born on January 22, 1903, in San Francisco, California. Wilhoite changed his name to Don Raye when he went into vaudeville. A talented dancer, Raye shifted his focus from hoofing to composing as he began to write songs for his routine. Raye's name became linked with an array of fellow songwriters and musicians, including Sammy Cahn and Saul Chaplin, who, like Raye collaborated with the alto saxophonist Jimmie Lunceford, leader of one of the swing era's finest orchestras. Al Jacobs' daughter, Joann, recently wrote, "Dad ran into Don Raye who said he was in the process of writing a patriotic song and would he like to write the music. So the words came first for sure, and then my dad wrote the music. I believe the song was written in New York . . ." Jacobs and Raye wrote their song in 1940 and, as a result of a January 7, 1942, recording session for Decca Records, the group Fred Waring and His Pennsylvanians popularized it. Over the years a number of other recordings of the tune were made, for example, by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Tennessee Ernie Ford, and Pattie Labelle.