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Contributor: Brian Anthony. Lesson ID: 11094
What makes us stand, sing, and even cry when we hear our national anthem? What is the underlying message? Listen to, and learn from, patriotic songs of different countries to understand their appeal!
You've surely been to a holiday parade before, or attended a sporting event when they played the national anthem or other patriotic songs. Our national songs can be so powerful. Just watch this video of Chris Botti's Emotional National Anthem on Trumpet, retrieved from ABC.
What caused the player to cry? Admit it, you got a little misty-eyed, too!
But then, so did this guy: North Korean player cries during national anthem:
What makes patriotic music so powerful?
Patriotic music is not meant to be listened to privately on your MP3 player or while you are doing your homework.
It is the music of the community. We usually listen to it together as a shared experience. That is one of the things that makes it so potent. Patriotic music has a big and emotional message: "We are all in this together!"
Browse this list of Patriotic Song Lyrics, from ScoutSongs.com. Which one is your favorite? Select one song, then search for an audio clip of that song on YouTube or elsewhere.
Reflect and write:
Now go back and listen to the song again. As you do, make notes on these questions:
Share and discuss your answers with your parent or teacher. Ask them this question: "What is your favorite patriotic song and why?"
Now that you have an idea of what your favorite patriotic song is, move on to the Got It? section to learn more about this type of music.
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