Anthem
An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short sacred choral work and still more particularly to a specific form of liturgical music. In this sense, its use began in English-speaking churches; it uses English language words, in contrast to the originally Roman Catholic 'motet' which sets a Latin text.
Etymology
Anthem is derived from the Greek ἀντίφωνα via Old English antefn. Both words originally referred to antiphons, a call-and-response style of the singing. The adjectival form is "anthemic".History
Anthems were originally a form of liturgical music. In the Church of England, the rubric appoints them to follow the third collect at morning and evening prayer. Several anthems are included in the British coronation service. The words are selected from Holy Scripture or in some cases from the Liturgy and the music is generally more elaborate and varied than that of psalm or hymn tunes. Being written for a trained choir rather than the congregation, the Anglican anthem is analogous to the motet of the Catholic and Lutheran Churches but represents an essentially English musical form. Anthems may be described as "verse", "full", or "full with verse", depending on whether they are intended for soloists, the full choir, or both. Another way of describing an anthem is that it is a piece of music written specifically to fit a certain accompanying text, and it is often difficult to make any other text fit that same melodic arrangement. It also often changes melody and/or meter, frequently multiple times within a single song, and is sung straight through from start to finish, without repeating the melody for following verses like a normal song. An example of an anthem with multiple meter shifts, fuguing, and repeated sections is "Claremont", or "Vital Spark of Heav'nly Flame". Another well known example is William Billing's "Easter Anthem", also known as "The Lord Is Risen Indeed!" after the opening lines. This anthem is still one of the more popular songs in the Sacred Harp tune book.The anthem developed as a replacement for the Catholic "votive antiphon" commonly sung as an appendix to the main office to the Blessed Virgin Mary or other saints.
Notable composers of liturgical anthems: historic context
During the Elizabethan period, notable anthems were composed by Thomas Tallis, William Byrd, Tye, and Farrant but they were not mentioned in the Book of Common Prayer until 1662 when the famous rubric "In quires and places where they sing here followeth the Anthem" first appears. Early anthems tended to be simple and homophonic in texture, so that the words could be clearly heard. During the 17th century, notable anthems were composed by Orlando Gibbons, Henry Purcell, and John Blow, with the verse anthem becoming the dominant musical form of the Restoration. In the 18th century, famed anthems were composed by Croft, Boyce, James Kent, James Nares, Benjamin Cooke, and Samuel Arnold. In the 19th century, Samuel Sebastian Wesley wrote anthems influenced by contemporary oratorio which stretch to several movements and last twenty minutes or longer. Later in the century, Charles Villiers Stanford used symphonic techniques to produce a more concise and unified structure. Many anthems have been written since then, generally by specialists in organ music rather than composers, and often in a conservative style. Major composers have usually written anthems in response to commissions and for special occasions: for instance Edward Elgar's 1912 "Great is the Lord" and 1914 "Give unto the Lord" ; Benjamin Britten's 1943 "Rejoice in the Lamb" ; and, on a much smaller scale, Ralph Vaughan Williams's 1952 "O Taste and See" written for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. With the relaxation of the rule, in England at least, that anthems should only be in English, the repertoire has been greatly enhanced by the addition of many works from the Latin repertoire.Types
The word "anthem" is commonly used to describe any celebratory song or composition for a distinct group, as in national anthems. Further, some songs are artistically styled as anthems, whether or not they are used as such, including Marilyn Manson's "Irresponsible Hate Anthem", Silverchair's "Anthem for the Year 2000", and Toto's "Child's Anthem".National anthem
A national anthem is generally a patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions, and struggles of a country's people, recognized either by that state's government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. The countries of Latin America, Central Asia, and Europe tend towards more ornate and operatic pieces, while those in the Middle East, Oceania, Africa, and the Caribbean use a simpler fanfare. Some countries that are devolved into multiple constituent states have their own official musical compositions for them ; their constituencies' songs are sometimes referred to as national anthems even though they are not sovereign states.Flag anthem
A flag anthem is generally a patriotic musical composition that extols and praises a flag, typically one of a country, in which case it is sometimes called a national flag anthem. It is often either sung or performed during or immediately before the raising or lowering of a flag during a ceremony. Most countries use their respective national anthems or some other patriotic song for this purpose. However, some countries, particularly in South America, use a separate flag anthem for such purposes. Not all countries have flag anthems. Some used them in the past but no longer do so, such as Iran, China, and South Africa. Flag anthems can be officially codified in law, or unofficially recognized by custom and convention. In some countries, the flag anthem may be just another song, and in others, it may be an official symbol of the state akin to a second national anthem, such as in Taiwan.Sports anthem
Many pop songs are used as sports anthems, notably including Queen's "We Are the Champions" and "We Will Rock You", and some sporting events have their own anthems, most notably including UEFA Champions League.Corporate anthem
Since the 20th century, corporations' senior management have written and performed corporate anthems in an attempt to motivate workers and explain company values. They are most often screened during private conferences, intended only to be heard by workers and sometimes company sponsors.In 1937, IBM released a collection of 100 "happy songs" for IBM corporate gatherings. Each song borrowed tunes from existing music, with lyrics altered to fit the goals and personages of IBM. For example, an ode to IBM president Thomas J. Watson was sung to the tune of Auld Lang Syne:
T. J. Watson - you're our leader fine, the greatest in the land,In 1971, Japanese jazz singer the Polydor Orchestra performed the "Song of Fujitsu". The song, intended as a karaoke sing-along, failed to entice employees because not many of them could read sheet music.
We sing your praises from our hearts - we're here to shake your hand.
You're I. B. M.'s bright guiding star throughout the hemispheres,
No matter what the future brings, we all will persevere.
During a conference in January 1984, Apple screened "We Are Apple " to celebrate the rollout of Macintosh 128K. It was screened during a corporate presentation, intended to be viewed only by authorized Apple dealers and retailers.
In 2003, the University of Warwick reported the lack of efficacy and potential for ridicule:
While sing-along marching songs, as used by Wal Mart, induce positive feeling and happiness, so help control employee behaviour, songs are also used subversively to provide resistance to work. In fact, many ‘official’ songs are received with cynicism by employees, or even result in embarrassment.On February 24, 2005, at Seattle Convention Center's Starbucks Licensed Stores Awards, Starbucks senior management surprised the audience by coming out in "rock 'n' roll costumes" with inflatable instruments to perform a parody of Jefferson Starship’s 1985 "We Built This City", as "We Built This Starbucks". When the audience failed to dance, the emcee "berated them", and the employees "half-heartedly got up and just stood there". Although footage of the event is presumed to be lost, a recording was uploaded to YouTube in 2018, which alleged that a souvenir CD with the MP3 was gifted to attendees.
Although songs or music can help branding and team building, a number of company songs, especially those in the style of Gospel anthems, such as ‘Ahh Fujitsu’, inspire dysfunction amongst employees...
Without control over the placement and timing of anthems, company music runs the risk of ridicule. For example, KPMG's anthemic, but now cringe worthy, ‘Vision of Global strategy’ was copied in mp3 format by employees, remixed, and distributed on the net.
Shared anthems
Although anthems are used to distinguish states and territories, there are instances of shared anthems. "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" became a pan-African liberation anthem and was later adopted as the national anthem of five countries in Africa including Zambia, Tanzania, Namibia and Zimbabwe after independence. Zimbabwe and Namibia have since adopted new national anthems. Since 1997, the South African national anthem has been a hybrid song combining new English lyrics with extracts of "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" and the former state anthem "Die Stem van Suid-Afrika".For North and South Korea, the folk song "Arirang" is considered a shared anthem for both countries. For example, it was played when the two Koreas marched together during the 2018 Winter Olympics.
"Hymn to Liberty" is the longest national anthem in the world by length of text. In 1865, the first three stanzas and later the first two officially became the national anthem of Greece and later also that of the Republic of Cyprus.
"Forged from the Love of Liberty" was composed as the national anthem for the short-lived West Indies Federation and was adopted by Trinidad and Tobago when it became independent in 1962.
"Esta É a Nossa Pátria Amada" is the national anthem of Guinea-Bissau and was also the national anthem of Cape Verde until 1996.
"Oben am jungen Rhein", the national anthem of Liechtenstein, is set to the tune of "God Save the King/Queen". Other anthems that have used the same melody include "Heil dir im Siegerkranz", "Kongesangen", "My Country, 'Tis of Thee", "Rufst du, mein Vaterland", "E Ola Ke Alii Ke Akua", and "The Prayer of Russians".
The Estonian anthem "Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm" is set to a melody composed in 1848 by Fredrik Pacius which is also that of the national anthem of Finland: "Maamme". It is also considered to be the ethnic anthem for the Livonian people with lyrics "Min izāmō, min sindimō".
"Hey, Slavs" is dedicated to Slavic peoples. Its first lyrics were written in 1834 under the title "Hey, Slovaks" by Samuel Tomášik and it has since served as the ethnic anthem of the Pan-Slavic movement, the organizational anthem of the Sokol physical education and political movement, the national anthem of Yugoslavia and the transitional anthem of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. The song is also considered to be the second, unofficial anthem of the Slovaks. Its melody is based on Mazurek Dąbrowskiego, which has also been the anthem of Poland since 1926, but the Yugoslav variation is much slower and more accentuated.
Between 1991 and 1994 "Deșteaptă-te, române!" was the national anthem of both Romania and Moldova, but in the case of the latter it was replaced by the current Moldovan national anthem, "Limba noastră". Between 1975 and 1977, the national anthem of Romania "E scris pe tricolor Unire" shared the same melody as the national anthem of Albania "Himni i Flamurit", which is the melody of a Romanian patriotic song "Pe-al nostru steag e scris Unire".
The modern national anthem of Germany, "Das Lied der Deutschen", uses the same tune as the 19th- and early 20th-century Austro-Hungarian imperial anthem "Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser".
The "Hymn of the Soviet Union", was used until its dissolution in 1991, and was given new words and adopted by the Russian Federation in 2000 to replace an instrumental national anthem that had been introduced in 1990.
"Bro Gozh ma Zadoù", the regional anthem of Brittany and, "Bro Goth Agan Tasow", the Cornish regional anthem, are sung to the same tune as that of the Welsh de-facto national anthem "Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau", with similar words.