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American Legion March

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https://digital.library.illinois.edu/items/99150c70-e466-0135-4ad8-0050569601ca-d
No Copyright - United States (RightsStatements.org)

The organization that has made the Item available believes that the Item is in the Public Domain under the laws of the United States, but a determination was not made as to its copyright status under the copyright laws of other countries. The Item may not be in the Public Domain under the laws of other countries. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more information.

Descriptive Information

Title
American Legion March
Composer
Pryor, Arthur  
Publisher
Jos. W. Stern & Co.  
Place of Publication
New York (N.Y.)  
Year of Publication
1919  
Date of Copyright
1919-11-25
Physical Description
1 score, piano solo ([2], 3-5, [1] p.)
Comment
  • The founding of the American Legion in the spring of 1919 produced a flurry of musical celebrations, first in dedications and later with eponymous compositions. Pryor's title competed with pieces by Klickmann, Sousa, and many others, but Pryor was relatively quick off the mark, and he strategically introduced his composition with a timely premiere and a well-publicized competition for lyricists. Despite that, however, his march received only a modest number of performances and, in 1920, was quickly eclipsed by similar titles composed by James Shearer and Carl D. Vandersloot. When Edward B. Marks acquired the copyright in 1924, he renamed the music "Arthur Pryor's American Legion"; in that form, it has been anthologized, performed, and recorded intermittently down to the present.
  • Jos. W. Stern & Co.
  • 102-104 W. 38th St.
Historical Note
  • The American Legion was founded in March, 1919, in Paris, with the American launch occurring two months later in St. Louis. The first national conference took place in November, in Minneapolis, and it was evidently for that that Pryor wrote his march. E. M. Wickes reported that simultaneous premieres in New York and Minneapolis were given on Armistice Day, but in actuality the march had been played a few days earlier by Louis Hurt's theatre band in Minneapolis and Pryor's own band at the Capitol Theatre, New York.
  • Pryor arranged for the Newspaper Enterprise Association to syndicate publication in hundreds of newspapers, in which entries were solicited for a $100 prize offered by the Capitol Theatre for the best set of lyrics. The contest closed on November 21, but no announcement of the winner has been found.
  • This is the second of two printings of the first edition, distinguished by back covers. In the second edition the music was re-engraved to occupy only two pages. This printing postdates April 5, 1920, based on the music advertised on the back cover.
  • An advertisement in the Philadelphia Inquirer on November 16, 1919, lists a music roll by this title but without giving the composer. It is possible, then that this roll was of James Shearer's composition, which had been copyrighted on November 4. There were no recordings at the time, but Pryor's march has since been recorded and performed several times. A recent arrangement for symphonic wind ensemble by Bertrand Moren is still available.
Musical Note
Pryor's jaunty, syncopated march in duple meter follows the standard form, with a trio in the subdominant and a bridge that leads to the final repeat. The introduction quotes "The Star-Spangled Banner," "Yankee Doodle," and "Dixie," with the bridge developing the last two quotations further. The first strain also briefly quotes the refrain from "Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here," and in the bridge a three-note motive is texted "Home Again," which may be another quotation, as yet unidentified.
Dedication
Dedication
Subject - Topic
  • World War, 1914-1918  
  • Songs and music  
  • Popular music  
  • American Legion  
  • Songs and music  
  • Marches (Piano)  
Subject - Geographic
United States  
Subject - Temporal
1911-1920  
Musical Genre
March
Repository
Newberry Library
Rights
NoC-US
Rights Description
The organization that has made the Item available believes that the Item is in the Public Domain under the laws of the United States, but a determination was not made as to its copyright status under the copyright laws of other countries. The Item may not be in the Public Domain under the laws of other countries. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more information.
Artist
Starmer [William and Frederick]  
Cover Description
  • Photograph of Arthur Pryor, moon and stars behind and around his head, with publicity icon, BL. Blue on white; signed BR.
  • Below composer’s name: Musical Director / Capitol Theatre / New York City
  • BL, with icon: Can also be had for your phonograph or player piano
Back Cover Description
Top: Song Successes from the Quaint Musical Comedy "Little Miss Charity". Center: Sample, embedded in illustration of a young woman holding a rose, in silhouette: That Certain Something (© 1919 03 16). Bottom: list of ten titles, including: Step Inside (© 1920 04 05).
Interior Description
  • p. [2]: Text advertisement and list of titles: Stern Edition of Teaching and Educational Albums for the Piano.
  • p. 3, above title: Public Performance Permitted Without Fee or License
  • Plate numbers: pp. 3-5, BL: 8861-3
Performance Medium
Piano solo.  
Original Location
Box 163
Local Identifier
nda163_070
Collection Title
James Francis Driscoll Collection of American Sheet Music
Collection
World War I Sheet Music from the James Francis Driscoll Collection of American Sheet Music
TitleAmerican Legion March
ComposerPryor, Arthur  
PublisherJos. W. Stern & Co.  
Place of PublicationNew York (N.Y.)  
Year of Publication1919  
Date of Copyright1919-11-25
Physical Description1 score, piano solo ([2], 3-5, [1] p.)
Comment
  • The founding of the American Legion in the spring of 1919 produced a flurry of musical celebrations, first in dedications and later with eponymous compositions. Pryor's title competed with pieces by Klickmann, Sousa, and many others, but Pryor was relatively quick off the mark, and he strategically introduced his composition with a timely premiere and a well-publicized competition for lyricists. Despite that, however, his march received only a modest number of performances and, in 1920, was quickly eclipsed by similar titles composed by James Shearer and Carl D. Vandersloot. When Edward B. Marks acquired the copyright in 1924, he renamed the music "Arthur Pryor's American Legion"; in that form, it has been anthologized, performed, and recorded intermittently down to the present.
  • Jos. W. Stern & Co.
  • 102-104 W. 38th St.
Historical Note
  • The American Legion was founded in March, 1919, in Paris, with the American launch occurring two months later in St. Louis. The first national conference took place in November, in Minneapolis, and it was evidently for that that Pryor wrote his march. E. M. Wickes reported that simultaneous premieres in New York and Minneapolis were given on Armistice Day, but in actuality the march had been played a few days earlier by Louis Hurt's theatre band in Minneapolis and Pryor's own band at the Capitol Theatre, New York.
  • Pryor arranged for the Newspaper Enterprise Association to syndicate publication in hundreds of newspapers, in which entries were solicited for a $100 prize offered by the Capitol Theatre for the best set of lyrics. The contest closed on November 21, but no announcement of the winner has been found.
  • This is the second of two printings of the first edition, distinguished by back covers. In the second edition the music was re-engraved to occupy only two pages. This printing postdates April 5, 1920, based on the music advertised on the back cover.
  • An advertisement in the Philadelphia Inquirer on November 16, 1919, lists a music roll by this title but without giving the composer. It is possible, then that this roll was of James Shearer's composition, which had been copyrighted on November 4. There were no recordings at the time, but Pryor's march has since been recorded and performed several times. A recent arrangement for symphonic wind ensemble by Bertrand Moren is still available.
Musical NotePryor's jaunty, syncopated march in duple meter follows the standard form, with a trio in the subdominant and a bridge that leads to the final repeat. The introduction quotes "The Star-Spangled Banner," "Yankee Doodle," and "Dixie," with the bridge developing the last two quotations further. The first strain also briefly quotes the refrain from "Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here," and in the bridge a three-note motive is texted "Home Again," which may be another quotation, as yet unidentified.
DedicationDedication
Subject - Topic
  • World War, 1914-1918  
  • Songs and music  
  • Popular music  
  • American Legion  
  • Songs and music  
  • Marches (Piano)  
Subject - GeographicUnited States  
Subject - Temporal1911-1920  
Musical GenreMarch
RepositoryNewberry Library
RightsNoC-US
Rights DescriptionThe organization that has made the Item available believes that the Item is in the Public Domain under the laws of the United States, but a determination was not made as to its copyright status under the copyright laws of other countries. The Item may not be in the Public Domain under the laws of other countries. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more information.
ArtistStarmer [William and Frederick]  
Cover Description
  • Photograph of Arthur Pryor, moon and stars behind and around his head, with publicity icon, BL. Blue on white; signed BR.
  • Below composer’s name: Musical Director / Capitol Theatre / New York City
  • BL, with icon: Can also be had for your phonograph or player piano
Back Cover DescriptionTop: Song Successes from the Quaint Musical Comedy "Little Miss Charity". Center: Sample, embedded in illustration of a young woman holding a rose, in silhouette: That Certain Something (© 1919 03 16). Bottom: list of ten titles, including: Step Inside (© 1920 04 05).
Interior Description
  • p. [2]: Text advertisement and list of titles: Stern Edition of Teaching and Educational Albums for the Piano.
  • p. 3, above title: Public Performance Permitted Without Fee or License
  • Plate numbers: pp. 3-5, BL: 8861-3
Performance MediumPiano solo.  
Original LocationBox 163
Local Identifiernda163_070
Collection TitleJames Francis Driscoll Collection of American Sheet Music
CollectionWorld War I Sheet Music from the James Francis Driscoll Collection of American Sheet Music

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