Alternative National Anthems

I do believe Hail Columbia was the most likely alternate US anthem; I think it was the most popular one when there wasn't an official one.
 

Goldstein

Banned
The problem with alternate Spanish anthems is that there are very few examples to choose. Even the Himno de Riego was polemic during the Second Republic, for being very lame as an anthem. I've even heard, but I cannot check it, that during the First Republic they were about to give up and consider to keep the Marcha Real, go figure.

The Trágala could have been an option, being a constitutional popular song, but its popularity faded away after the end of the Civil War, that's why this awful version is the only one I can find in youtube...

Finally, it's a shame that Albeniz's Asturias (leyenda) doesn't fit well with the martial, simple sounds expeted from an anthem, because it's the best Spanish patriotic song ever made.
 

nova2010

Banned
The problem with alternate Spanish anthems is that there are very few examples to choose. Even the Himno de Riego was polemic during the Second Republic, for being very lame as an anthem. I've even heard, but I cannot check it, that during the First Republic they were about to give up and consider to keep the Marcha Real, go figure.

The Trágala could have been an option, being a constitutional popular song, but its popularity faded away after the end of the Civil War, that's why this awful version is the only one I can find in youtube...

Finally, it's a shame that Albeniz's Asturias (leyenda) doesn't fit well with the martial, simple sounds expeted from an anthem, because it's the best Spanish patriotic song ever made.

Why then your government doesn't make an open competicion to composers in order to make an enterly new song to choose for national anthem and to keep Marcha Real as Royal anthem? Spain i think has many composers and a long music tradition.

Gracias
 
The Trágala could have been an option, being a constitutional popular song, but its popularity faded away after the end of the Civil War, that's why this awful version is the only one I can find in youtube...
But it would be frickin' awesome to sing prior to a World Cup match. :D

(The chorus literally says "Swallow it, dog"... beat that, Haka)

Finally, it's a shame that Albeniz's Asturias (leyenda) doesn't fit well with the martial, simple sounds expeted from an anthem, because it's the best Spanish patriotic song ever made.
Besides, all orchestral versions sound lame. That piece only works in the original piano or the guitar.

Why then your government doesn't make an open competicion to composers in order to make an enterly new song to choose for national anthem and to keep Marcha Real as Royal anthem? Spain i think has many composers and a long music tradition.

They did that a few years ago. The competition was about writing new words for the Marcha Real, since it currently is the world's only anthem without them. -There used to be, but they're now associated with Franco's dictature. The competition failed because the winner was amazingly lame and talked about friendship and happiness. Sorry, but I like my anthems like my women: aggressive, dominant and talking about watering our fields with the blood of our enemies. If we can't have that, just shouting LO LO LOLO LOLOLOLO prior to each football match is fine enough.

If you ask me, I'd take the awesome DDR anthem music, write spanish words for it and call it a day. It's not like the DDR is going to complain...
 

Goldstein

Banned
Why then your government doesn't make an open competicion to composers in order to make an enterly new song to choose for national anthem and to keep Marcha Real as Royal anthem? Spain i think has many composers and a long music tradition.

Gracias

It's a very good question. I guess the classical Spanish music doesn't translate well into an anthem, and the political couplets of the 19th century just happened to be very lame. Maybe there's a kick-ass Spanish anthem in some ATL, but it would involve a composition that doesn't exist IOTL.

Today I think it's a bit too late to rearrange it. Some years ago, there was a state-sponsored competition to put lyrics to the Marcha Real, but it failed because they were bland. The same problems can apply to the anthem itself.

The old political couplets, asking for the blood of tyrants and bastards, and hence perfect for an anthem, are not politically correct today. The Himno de Riego is too linked to the Republic to use it for now, and it sucks anyway. Pasodoble as a genre, unfairly, is too linked to the Francoist dictatorship, specially that one about the flag, that was very popular within Falangist circles. Finally, a modern composition would probabily be a boring piece about democracy and diversity straight out of a Teletubbies episode (those are fine values, but not for an anthem). So lets keep thigs as they are: there's nothing funnier than watching a patriotic bunch loudly humming the Marcha real like the hum were actual lyrics. :D

Besides, all orchestral versions sound lame. That piece only works in the original piano or the guitar...

Amen to that. The guitar version is very close to be sexually arousing.
 
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