Music, Words, and Nationalism. National Anthems and Songs in the Modern Era

Abstract

In the nineteenth century, national anthems became a growing necessity for many territories which defended their borders, fought for their independence or were immersed in a process of national construction. Some of these anthems were originally songs with which the people were identified. This is the case of two of the most famous, both born in the eighteenth century: the British “God save the King/Queen” and the French “La Marseillaise”. The popularity of these two anthems in the nineteenth century turns them into models, provided with different meanings: “God save the King”, a solemn song linked to the crown, will be an aesthetic-symbolic reference for some anthems in homage style. The Marseillaise, meanwhile, with a lively rhythm of march associated with war, will represent the model of revolutionary and patriotic song that will be adopted by some nations, but also will be assumed by liberal and socialist movements in Europe. In this chapter we will make a comparative analysis of these songs through the study of some of the musical topics which define their style and which help determine their meaning at a specific time and place. So that it can then be ascertained to what extent the emotional content of the music itself reinforces that symbolic meaning.