John Philip Sousa
John Philip Sousa
John Philip Sousazɐ]; November 6, 1854 – March 6, 1932) was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era, known primarily for American military and patriotic marches. Because of his mastery of march composition, he is known as "The March King", or the "American March King" due to his British counterpart Kenneth J. Alford also being known by the former nickname. Among his best-known marches are "The Stars and Stripes Forever", "Semper Fidelis", "The Liberty Bell", "The Thunderer" and...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionMusician
Date of Birth6 November 1854
CountryUnited States of America
I am happy now, to recall that I was not only his son but his companion, and whenever there was a hunting expedition or any other pleasure, I was always with him.
The red and white and starry blue Is freedom's shield and hope.
The office of President is a great one; to every true American it seems the greatest on earth. And to me, as I was engaged in weaving a background of music for the pageantry of it, there came a deeper realization of the effect of that office on the man.
To the average mind popular music would mean compositions vulgarly conceived and commonplace in their treatment. That is absolutely false.
No nation as young as America can be expected to become immediately a power in the arts.
I think that the quality of all bands is steadily improving and it is a pleasant thought to me that perhaps the efforts of Sousa's Band have quickened that interest and improved that quality.
Composers are the only people who can hear good music above bad sounds.