HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY
Have been the browsing online for the independence day stuff and stumbled upon this wonderful music blog from Gaurdian newspapers UK. It was surprisng and wonderful as well as shocking that My Indian National Anthem was not in the top 10 (Quite naturally everybody loves to see their National anthem in at the Top). Don't miss the Comments section of the blog.
One of the most euphoric pieces of classical music I've ever heard. Banks of trumpets play crescendos to false endings - for five minutes. But somehow it works.
A wonderful anthem that sounds like it was written for a stroll along the Seine. It really needs Jacques Brel. Which is probably not what composer Rabindranath Tagore had in mind.
Written when the country was part of the USSR, it sounds like the music that plays in James Bond films when a Russian spy is about to cut off Bond's manhood. It doesn't try to soar, but frighten, and it's all the better for it.
A trip into the heart of the souk, albeit a menacing one. The melody is so unusual that most Mauritanian's can't sing along to it, so pretend it doesn't have any words.
Dominica: Isle of Beauty, Isle of Splendour
A simple, spiralling melody stuck on repeat for 47 seconds, but there's such movement and elegance to it. Don't confuse with the Dominican Republic's, which is wretched.
US Virgin Isles: Virgin Islands March
It's Mary Poppins! One of the few anthems to literally pull out all the bells and whistles. This should be a soundtrack to a kid's film.
Senegal: Strum Your Koras, Strike Your Balafons
How can an anthem that name checks two local instruments in its title - a harp and a xylophone - be any less than brilliant? It's really two tunes - the first twinkles, the second strolls. But both are amazing.
Nigeria: Arise O Compatriots, Nigeria's Call Obey
Written in 1978 by the Nigerian Police Band, this should be an awful march. Fortunately it features relentless afrobeat percussion, which makes any tune outstanding.
Adopted last year, when Nepal's House of Representatives threw out the old, western-style anthem. This folk melody on strings and hand drums sounds like slowed-down bhangra. Shame it's probably unplayable by brass, so unlikely to be heard outside Nepal.
Japan: May Your Reign Last Forever
Solemn. So much so, it'll have you thinking of everyone you've lost for its duration. Rarely does an anthem carry such weight.
