Classical Notes: July 4, 2011 Archive

Stars, stripes, boom, crashes.

Posted at 6:00 AM on July 4, 2011 by Daniel Gilliam

All day July 4th we'll hear music from the United States, celebrating our native composers with seminal works composed within the 50 states, from Leroy Anderson to William Bolcom to traditional spirituals. Then at 8pm, Bill Morelock and Lynn Warfel share stunning movie scores from Oklahoma, Field of Dreams, 1776, Saving Private Ryan and much more on Roll Credits.

The whole day leads up to musical fireworks, and regardless of where you are watching them tonight, Classical MPR has the soundtrack. Handel, Sousa, Joplin, Elmer Bernstein, George Cohan, Tchaikovsky and Leonard Bernstein make the mix at 10pm. Crank up the FM or computer speakers and enjoy the colors and sounds of July 4th!

P.s. Test your American music knowledge on our Facebook page. Quizzes to stiumlate the mind all week (and no cheating!).