The national anthem of the USA arranged for full orchestra. There are also versions for Brass Quintet & String Orchestra in my stores.


"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the Defence of Fort M'Henry, a poem written on September 14, 1814, by the then 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by British ships of the Royal Navy in Baltimore Harbor during the Battle of Baltimore in the War of 1812. Key was inspired by the large U.S. flag, with 15 stars and 15 stripes, known as the Star-Spangled Banner, flying triumphantly above the fort during the U.S. victory.

The poem was set to the tune of a popular British song written by John Stafford Smith for the Anacreontic Society, a men's social club in London. "To Anacreon in Heaven" (or "The Anacreontic Song"), with various lyrics, was already popular in the United States. Set to Key's poem and renamed "The Star-Spangled Banner", it soon became a well-known U.S. patriotic song. With a range of 19 semitones, it is known for being very difficult to sing. Although the poem has four stanzas, only the first is commonly sung today.

"The Star-Spangled Banner" was recognized for official use by the United States Navy in 1889, and by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson in 1916, and was made the national anthem by a congressional resolution on March 3, 1931 (46 Stat. 1508, codified at 36 U.S.C. § 301), which was signed by President Herbert Hoover.

Before 1931, other songs served as the hymns of U.S. officialdom. "Hail, Columbia" served this purpose at official functions for most of the 19th century. "My Country, 'Tis of Thee", whose melody is identical to "God Save the Queen", the United Kingdom's national anthem, also served as a de facto national anthem. Following the War of 1812 and subsequent U.S. wars, other songs emerged to compete for popularity at public events, among them "America the Beautiful", which itself was being considered before 1931, as a candidate to become the national anthem of the United States.

John Stafford Smith (30 March 1750 ? 21 September 1836) was a British composer, church organist, and early musicologist. He was one of the first serious collectors of manuscripts of works by Johann Sebastian Bach.

Stafford Smith is best known for writing the music for "The Anacreontic Song", which became the tune for the US patriotic song "The Star-Spangled Banner" following the War of 1812, and in 1931 was adopted as the national anthem of the United States.

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?Évocations? is a suite for Piano solo, impressionistic, contemplative much in the trail of Satie, Debussy or Mompou. Intimist and suitable for aesthetic pleasure. This is a series of works that will lead you into an exotic journey to far away places. Just letyourself be drift away to a better place where the sounds will healyour soul.

These Evocations range all degrees of difficulty, from very easy to more challenging ones. Therefore, are suitable for the classrom, recitals or family gatherings and parties.

Evocation I ? The Harvest

The harvest in Alentejo, Portugal, occurs when the fields become tanned and a soft, warm wind coming from the south blows. It is the time of the year when you grab your hat made of straw and you let yourself be sunk ina sea of rye.

Evocation II ? The Sepia photograph

Memories. They can be happy, bittersweet or painful... Sometimes nostalgia gets the better out of us. And then we are dragged into the past, into a suspended, slow and hypnotic time. Old sepia colored pictures in a drawer orscattered around our bed.

Evocation III ? The dead soldier

The battle is over. Amournful wife, the weeping children. An everlasting pain shutteringour heart. And the hope that wherever he is, he is in peace now. And we are all proud of him. Thank you for serving our country.

Evocation IV ? The composer

The tragedy of the blank page. An everlasting winter in our soul. Snow is falling, thepath is difficult to trail. Being an artist involves an incommensurable amount of suffering because we have to give it all. And even giving it all it isn't enough, and we feel drained and exhausted in the end.

Evocation V ? The Glowing Sun

The blond hair and the most radiant smile one could ever imagine. She is a glowing sun, like an everlasting shine in the sky. She doesn't walk, she floats with extreme elegance across the street, and in the corner, she doesn't turn ? she spins and swirls with heavenly grace.

Evocation VI ? The Far

Longing. Eternally. I hope you've read my letters. I hope you've heard my calls. I opened my heart to you. Why do you take so long? Why can't I hear your voice? Why do you keep me waiting here. Here, so close, yet... so far... alone... forever...

Evocation VII ? The Queen of Spades

The dark lady is the strongest in the deck. Mystical, fantastic, she wanders like a shadow in your world. Across the garden, carrying a sickle, she's just waiting to chop a head on the next turn.

Evocation VIII ? The Poem

A book, a sonnet. Fourteen verses with rigorous metric, with a defined purpose. A parlor game, a riddle. Can you guess what's hidden inside these wondrous sounds?

Evocation IX ? The Thinker

A desk loaded with books. The glasses. A mind always working, methodic, cold, rigorous. Numbers, hidden relationships, an everlasting connection with the abstraction.

Evocation X ? The Island of the Hydrangeas.

A paradise on earth, smooth rain, narrow and sinuous roads. Walking, then biking, then driving around. An adventure in one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Evocation XI ? The Near

When you're here everything will be beautiful. I can see it already in my head, the endless, passionate love, a tender sweet kiss that will last forever. Your lips on mine, while holding hands, in the bench, in the garden, under the tree. You are the one.

Evocation XII ?Saffron rice

The rice is golden like your hair and your class. The sweet taste of nobility, the craft ofwisdom, the delicacy of experience. Maturity is what time brings, it is not a curse, it is a gift that we should embrace and respect.