John Philip Sousa

John Philip Sousa (November 6, 1854 – March 6, 1932) was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era known primarily for US military marches. He is known as "The March King" (or the "American March King" to distinguish him from his British counterpart Kenneth J. Alford). Among Sousa's best-known marches are "The Stars and Stripes Forever" (national march of the US), "Semper Fidelis" (official march of the United States Marine Corps), "The Liberty Bell", "The Thunderer", and "The Washington Post".

Sousa began his career playing violin and studying music theory and composition under John Esputa and George Felix Benkert.

In 1868, Sousa's father enlisted him in the United States Marine Band as an apprentice. Sousa left the band in 1875, and over the next five years, he performed as a violinist and learned to conduct. In 1880, Sousa rejoined the Marine Band and served there for 12 years as director. In 1892, he left the Marine Band and organized the civilian Sousa Band. From 1880 until his death, Sousa focused exclusively on conducting and writing music. He aided in the development of the sousaphone, a form of marching tuba based on the helicon.

Upon the US joining World War I, Sousa was awarded a wartime commission of lieutenant to lead the Naval Reserve Band in Illinois. He thereafter returned to conduct the Sousa Band until his death in 1932. In the 1920s, Sousa was promoted to the permanent rank of lieutenant commander in the naval reserve.

Early life, family and education

John Philip Sousa was born in Washington, D.C., the third of 10 children of João António de Sousa (John Anthony Sousa) (September 22, 1824 – April 27, 1892), who was born in Spain to Portuguese parents, and his wife Maria Elisabeth Trinkaus (May 20, 1826 – August 25, 1908), who was German, from Bavaria. Sousa began his music education under the tutelage of John Esputa Sr., who taught him solfeggio. This was short-lived due to the teacher's frequent bad temper.

Sousa's real music education began in 1861 or 1862 as a pupil of John Esputa Jr., the son of his previous teacher under whom Sousa studied violin, piano, flute, several brass instruments, and singing. Esputa shared his father's bad temper, and the relationship between teacher and pupil was often strained, but Sousa progressed very rapidly and was also found to have perfect pitch. During this period, Sousa wrote his first composition, "An Album Leaf", but Esputa dismissed it as "bread and cheese", and the composition was subsequently lost.

Sousa's father was a trombonist in the Marine Band. He enlisted his son in the United States Marine Corps as an apprentice at age 13 to keep him from joining a circus band. That same year, Sousa began studying music under George Felix Benkert. Because Sousa was enlisted under a minority enlistment, he would not be discharged until his 21st birthday.

Career

In 1868, Sousa enlisted in the Marine Corps at age 13 as an apprentice musician (his rank listed as "boy").

Sousa returned to the Marine Band as its head in 1880 and remained as its conductor until 1892. During this period, he led the Marine Band through its development into the country's premier military band. He led "The President's Own" band under five presidents from Rutherford B. Hayes to Benjamin Harrison. Sousa's band played at the inaugural balls of James A. Garfield in 1881 and Benjamin Harrison in 1889.

In July 1892, Sousa requested a discharge from the Marine Corps to pursue a financially promising civilian career as a band leader. Sousa organized The Sousa Band the year that he left the Marine Band, and it toured from 1892 to 1931 and performed at 15,623 concerts, both in the United States and internationally, including at the World Exposition in Paris and at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Jascha Gurewich, an early popularizer of the saxophone in the concert hall, was soloist for Sousa's band in the early 1920s. In Paris, the Sousa Band marched through the streets to the Arc de Triomphe, one of only eight parades that the band marched in during its 40 years.

Sousa was commissioned as a lieutenant in the Naval Reserve on May 31, 1917, shortly after the United States declared war on Germany and entered World War I. He was 62 years old, the mandatory retirement age for Navy officers. During the war, Sousa led the Navy Band at the Great Lakes Naval Station near Chicago, and he donated all of his naval salary except a token $1 per month to the Sailors' and Marines' Relief Fund.

Sousa was discharged from active duty after the end of the war in November 1918 and returned to conducting his own band. In the early 1920s, Sousa was promoted to lieutenant commander in the Naval Reserve but did not return to active duty. He frequently wore his Navy uniform during performances for the remainder of his life.

On July 15, 1881, Sousa was initiated into Freemasonry by Hiram Lodge No. 10 (Now Hiram-Takoma Lodge No. 10) in Washington, D.C., where he remained an active member until his death in 1932. Among other Masonic honors, Sousa was named the Honorary Band Leader of the Temple Band of Almas Shriners, the DC-based Chapter of Shriners International. A number of his compositions were for the organization, including the "Nobles of the Mystic Shrine" March.

In his later years, Sousa lived in Sands Point, New York. On March 6, 1932, he died of heart failure at age 77 in his room at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel in Reading, Pennsylvania. Sousa had conducted a rehearsal of "The Stars and Stripes Forever" the day before with the Ringgold Band as its guest conductor. Sousa is buried at Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C. Every year on November 6, the Marine Band performs Semper Fidelis at Sousa's grave. His house Wildbank has been designated as a National Historic Landmark, although it remains a private home and is not open to the public.

One of Sousa's great-grandsons, John Philip Sousa IV, works as a political activist for the Republican Party.

Honors Sousa was decorated with the palms of the Order of Public Instruction of Portugal and the Order of Academic Palms of France. He also received the Royal Victorian Medal from King Edward VII of the United Kingdom in December 1901 for conducting a private birthday concert for Queen Alexandra.

In 1922, Sousa accepted the invitation of the national chapter to become an honorary member of Kappa Kappa Psi, the national honorary band fraternity. In 1932, he was initiated as an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, a national fraternity for men in music, by the fraternity's Alpha Xi chapter at the University of Illinois.

The World War II Liberty ship was named in Sousa's honor. The Marine Band possesses the ship's bell, using it in performances of the "Liberty Bell March".

In 1952, 20th Century Fox honored Sousa in their Technicolor feature film Stars and Stripes Forever with Clifton Webb portraying him. It was loosely based on Sousa's memoirs Marching Along.

In 1987, an act of Congress named "The Stars and Stripes Forever" as the national march of the United States.

In 2012, a crater on the planet Mercury was named in Sousa's honor. He was posthumously enshrined in the Hall of Fame for Great Americans in 1976.

Marches

Sousa wrote over 130 marches, published by Harry Coleman of Philadelphia, Carl Fischer Music, the John Church Company, and the Sam Fox Publishing Company, the last association beginning in 1917 and continuing until his death. Some of his more well-known marches include: "Review" (1873) (Sousa's first published march) "The Gladiator March" (1886) "Semper Fidelis" (1888) (Official March of the United States Marine Corps) "The Washington Post" (1889) "The Thunderer" (1889) "The Loyal Legion March" (1890) "High School Cadets" (1890) "The Liberty Bell" (1893) (later used as the credits theme for Monty Python's Flying Circus TV series) "Manhattan Beach March" (1893) "King Cotton" (1895) "Stars and Stripes Forever" (1896) (National March of the United States) "El Capitan" (1896) "Hands Across the Sea" (1899) "Hail to the Spirit of Liberty" March (1900) "The Invincible Eagle" (1901) (dedicated to Pan-American Buffalo Exposition) (Interim United States Space Force Anthem) "Imperial Edward" March (1902) Dedicated to King Edward VII of the United Kingdom "Fairest of the Fair" (1908) "Glory of the Yankee Navy" (1909) "Columbia's Pride" (1914) "U.S. Field Artillery" (1917) (modified version "The Army Goes Rolling Along" is the official song of the U.S. Army) "Anchor & Star" (1918) Dedicated "To the U.S. Navy" "Who's Who in Navy Blue" (1920) (composed at the request of the United States Naval Academy class of 1920 and dedicated to Tamanend, a bronze reproduction of the figurehead of that occupies a key place at the Academy) "The Gallant Seventh" (1922) "The Dauntless Battalion" (1922) Dedicated "To Col. Hyatt, the Faculty and Cadets of the Pennsylvania Military College" (Now Widener University in Chester, PA) "Nobles of the Mystic Shrine" (1923) "The Black Horse Troop" (1924) (written in honor of Troop A, 107th Cavalry, Ohio National Guard). "Pride of the Wolverines" (1926) "The Minnesota March" (1927) Dedicated to "The faculty and students of the University of Minnesota" "New Mexico March" (1928) "Salvation Army March" (1930) (dedicated to the Salvation Army's 50th anniversary in the U.S.)

Sousa wrote marches for several U.S. universities, including the University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, University of Nebraska, Kansas State University, Marquette University, Pennsylvania Military College (Widener University), and the University of Michigan.

Operettas

Sousa wrote many notable operettas, including: Désirée (1883), libretto by Edward M. Taber El Capitan (1896), libretto by Charles Klein The Charlatan (1898), also known as The Mystical Miss, book by Charles Klein and lyrics by Sousa Chris and the Wonderful Lamp (1899), libretto by Glen MacDonough

Marches and waltzes have been derived from many of these stage-works. Sousa also composed the music for six operettas that were either unfinished or not produced: The Devils' Deputy, Florine, The Irish Dragoon, Katherine, The Victory, and The Wolf.

In addition, Sousa wrote a march based on themes from Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera The Mikado, the elegant overture Our Flirtations, several musical suites, etc. He frequently added Sullivan opera overtures or other Sullivan pieces to his concerts.

Hobbies, writing and recording

Sousa ranked as one of the all-time great trapshooters and was enshrined in the Trapshooting Hall of Fame. He organized the first national trapshooting organization, a forerunner to today's Amateur Trapshooting Association (ATA). He also wrote numerous articles about trapshooting.

In 1905, Sousa published Pipetown Sandy, which includes a satirical poem titled "The Feast of the Monkeys". In 1920, he wrote a 40,000-word story entitled "The Transit of Venus". Sousa also wrote the booklet "A manual for trumpet and drum", published by the Ludwig Drum Company with advice for playing drums and trumpet. An early version of the trumpet solo to "Semper Fidelis" was included in this volume.

The marching brass bass or sousaphone is a modified helicon created in 1893 by Philadelphia instrument maker J. W. Pepper at Sousa's request, using several of his suggestions in its design. Sousa wanted a tuba that could sound upward and over the band whether its player was seated or marching. C.G. Conn recreated the instrument in 1898 and this was the model that Sousa preferred to use.

Sousa held a very low opinion of the emerging recording industry. He derided recordings as "canned music", a reference to the early wax cylinder records that came in can-like cylindrical cardboard boxes. He argued to a congressional hearing in 1906:

Sousa's antipathy to recording was such that he rarely conducted his band when it was being recorded. Nevertheless, the band made numerous recordings, the earliest being issued on cylinders by several companies, followed by many recordings on discs by the Berliner Gramophone Company and its successor, the Victor Talking Machine Company (later RCA Victor). The Berliner recordings were conducted by Henry Higgins (one of Sousa's cornet soloists) and Arthur Pryor (Sousa's trombone soloist and assistant conductor). Sousa claimed that he had "never been in the gramophone company's office in my life".

Sousa conducted a few of the Victor recordings but most were conducted by Pryor, Herbert L. Clarke, Edwin H. Clarke, Walter B. Rogers (who had also been a cornet soloist with Sousa), Rosario Bourdon, Josef Pasternack, or Nathaniel Shilkret.

Sousa refused to appear on radio broadcasts for many years, but relented beginning with a 1929 nationwide broadcast.

The John Philip Sousa Foundation provides awards, scholarships, and projects such as The Sudler Trophy, The Sudler Shield, The Sudler Silver Scroll, The Sudler Flag of Honor, The Historic Roll of Honor, The Sudler Cup, The Hawkins Scholarship, National Young Artists, The National Community Band, and The Junior Honor Band Project. He won many honorable awards across his lifetime.

George Balanchine's "Stars and Stripes" In 1958, the New York City Ballet premiered George Balanchine's ballet Stars and Stripes, set to "Corcoran Cadets," "Thunder and Gladiator," "Rifle Regiment," Liberty Bell, "El Capitan," and The Stars and Stripes Forever, all orchestrated by Hershy Kay.