The Washington Post (march)

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"The Washington Post" is a patriotic march composed by John Philip Sousa in 1889. Since then, it has remained as one of his most popular marches throughout the United States and many countries abroad.

1 History
2 Composition
3 Title
4 Uses in pop culture
5 External links

[edit] History

In 1889 owners of The Washington Post newspaper requested the then-current leader of the Marine Band to compose a march for the newspaper's essay contest awards ceremony. Sousa obliged, and it was first performed on June 15, 1889 at the ceremony, and was an instant hit. Many have argued that this march brought the once-average newspaper instant fame and attention. It led to a British journalist dubbing him "The March King." Sousa is honored in the Washington Post building for his contribution to the newspaper and his country.

[edit] Composition

This recognizable march is written in standard form: IAABBCCDCDC. Written in 6/8 meter, it is suited as an accompaniment to the two-step, a new dance introduced in its time.

The first strain of the march (above) is famous and familiar to many. The march is played in a stately march tempo (110-120 beats/m; rarely over).

March enthusiasts have argued that the trio sections's mellow and moving phrases are amongst Sousa's most musical. Six sudden eighth notes move the melody along, and its unusually calm breakstrain is a simple adaptation of the trio melody. It then moves on to the first trio repeat, where the low brass begins an even more mellow countermelody.

[edit] Title

"The Washington Post" is one of Sousa's most played works. It is performed widely by concert and marching bands alike; it is considered to be an essential piece for band literature.

The title of the piece appears variously in recordings, programs, etc. as The Washington Post, The Washington Post March, or simply as Washington Post. The correct name of the piece is, in fact, The Washington Post. The original sheet music is headed

The Washington Post.
March.

Title as shown in sheet music

on two separate lines with a period after each line. The original handwritten Sousa manuscript shows a similar format, and the cover of the sheet music as shown above, is an artistic rendering of a newspaper page headed "The Washington Post," with the words "March by John Philip Sousa" appearing separately at the bottom. All of this indicates that Sousa and his publishers thought of the title as being The Washington Post, with "March" as simply being a description.

[edit] Uses in pop culture

The march has been used many times in popular media. A few examples:

The Stars and Stripes Forever, a Hollywood film about John Philip Sousa's life featured the tune prominently.
The mid-1960s TV ads for a collection of soldier action figures called "Tigers" featured a jingle which put words to the middle section of the march, singing "Machinegun Mike has a combat kit" and so on.
The Wind and The Lion (1975) a U.S. Marine band plays the march as they enter the Morrocan Sultan's castle after it was seized by an armed contingent of marines seeking the return of kidnapped Americans.
Animal House (1978), the marching band plays the march during the Homecoming Parade near the end of the movie, while being misdirected into a blind alley.
Back to the Future (1985), during the Mayoral elections of that movie's time periods
Dumb and Dumberer (2003), during the Thanksgiving Day Parade towards the end of the movie featuring the star characters.
A 2004 Hyundai commercial (where a marching band playing this piece follows a Hyundai around).
The M*A*S*H film (1970), during the football game
In an episode of The Brady Bunch where Jan is practicing for Cheerleading in the backyard, this march is playing.
This music is used in the movie Grease (1978).
In Assassins, the 1991 musical by Stephen Sondheim, the opening notes are used repeatedly by the witnesses of the attempted assassination of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the song "How I Saved Roosevelt" (the number begins with a rendition of Sousa's El Capitan, pieces of which can also be heard throughout it).