© 2025 Hawaiʻi Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Just 10% of HPR listeners donate to fund HPR’s work. Help us to raise this number to 15%, 20% or even higher — ask a friend to join you in keeping HPR strong. Take action now.

Gene Scheer's 'American Anthem'

Gene Scheer
/
Gene Scheer

Composer Gene Scheer believes his "American Anthem" is a great patriotic song -- and he tells us why he thinks so as Weekend Edition Sunday begins a monthly series called "What's In a Song."

"American Anthem" premiered at the Smithsonian Institution's unveiling ceremony for the restored "Star-Spangled Banner" flag in 1999. Mezzo soprano Denyce Graves sang it during the ceremony, which was attended by President and Mrs. Clinton. The song has also been performed sung at the past two presidential inaugurations.

Features in the "What's In a Song" series are produced by Taki Telonidis and Hal Cannon of the Western Folklife Center in Elko, Nev.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

More from Hawai‘i Public Radio