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Battle Hymn of the Republic
Lyrics by Julia Ward Howe; music by William Steffe (setting Peter J. Wilhousky; arr. James Neilson)
General Info
Year: 1861 / 1945
Duration: c. 4:30
Difficulty: IV (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Hymn
Publisher: Carl Fischer
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $95.00 | Score Only (print) - $12.00
For further availability information, see Discussion tab, above.
Instrumentation
Condensed Score
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III-IV
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Bass Saxophone
B-flat Cornet I-II-III-IV (I double Flugehorn; III-IV doubling Trumpet)
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani
Percussion, including:
- Bass Drum
- Snare Drum
SSATTBB choir with piano accompaniment
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
William Steffe (1830–1890) collected and edited a camp-meeting song with the traditional Glory Hallelujah refrain, in about 1856. It opened with "Say, brothers, will you meet us / on Canaan's happy shore?" The tune became widely known. Early in the American Civil War, this tune was used to create the Union army marching song John Brown's Body, which begins with the lyrics "John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave, but his soul goes marching on."
In November 1861, Julia Ward Howe, having heard this version, used the tune as the basis of her new verse, later known as Battle Hymn of the Republic, also known as Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory outside of the United States. Howe's more famous lyrics were written in November 1861 and first published in The Atlantic Monthly in February 1862. The song links the judgment of the wicked at the end of time (New Testament, Rev. 19) with the American Civil War. Since that time, it has become an extremely popular and well-known American patriotic song.
- Program Note from Wikipedia
Media
- Audio CD: U.S. Army Band
State Ratings
None discovered thus far.
Performances
To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project
- University of Florida (Gainesville) Wind Symphony (David Waybright, conductor) - 23 February 2023
- United States Army Field Band (Ft. Meade, Md.) (Jim R. Keene, conductor) - 16 December 2015 (2015 Midwest Clinic)
- West Point Band (Mack Wilberg, conductor; Mormon Tabernacle Choir) – 4 July 2015
Works for Winds by This Composer
- Battle Hymn of the Republic (arr. Althouse and Williams) (1861/1997)
- Battle Hymn of the Republic (arr. Ployhar) (1861/1971)
- Battle Hymn of the Republic (setting Wilhousky; arr. Neilson) (1861/1994)
- The Battle Hymn of the Republic (arr. Dragon) (1861/1961)
- The Battle Hymn of the Republic (arr. Smith) (1861/1982/1997)
- The Battle Hymn of the Republic (arr. Zaninelli) (1861/1998)
Resources
- Battle Hymn of the Republic, Wikipedia. Accessed 1 August 2021
- Steffe, W; Wilhousky, P; Nielson, J.; Howe, J. (1945). Battle Hymn of the Republic [score]. Carl Fischer: New York.