John Philip Sousa
John Philip Sousa was an American composer and conductor (1854–1932), best known for military marches such as “The Stars and Stripes Forever.”
March (music): A musical genre with a strong, regular pulse, historically used to accompany marching. The march is the genre Sousa refined into a defining form of American popular music.
The Stars and Stripes Forever: A 1896 march by Sousa that became the official national march of the United States. This celebrated march became the signature work of Sousa’s patriotic repertory.
United States Marine Band: The United States’ oldest continuously active professional musical organization, founded in 1798. Sousa served as its director from 1880 to 1892 and built its concert reputation.
Public domain: Creative works not protected by copyright, or whose copyright protection has expired. Sousa’s advocacy for composers helped shape debates that produced modern music copyright law.
Herbert L. Clarke: An American cornetist, composer, and conductor renowned for his virtuoso brass playing. Clarke became a celebrated soloist with Sousa’s band and exemplified its concert virtuosity.
March form: A musical structure commonly built from repeated strains, contrasting sections, and a trio. Its strain-and-trio pattern organizes many of Sousa’s best-known marches.
The Washington Post March: A march Sousa composed in 1889 for an awards ceremony sponsored by The Washington Post. Its popularity helped establish Sousa as a leading composer of marches.
Washington, D.C.: The capital city of the United States, where Sousa was born and began his musical career. Sousa’s early musical life and Marine Band career were rooted in the capital.
Copyright Act of 1909: A United States federal law that revised copyright rules and established mechanical licensing for musical compositions. Sousa testified in support of stronger protection for composers during the law’s development.
Arthur Pryor: An American trombonist, composer, and bandleader who performed with Sousa’s band. Pryor’s trombone solos were a major attraction in Sousa Band concerts.