The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Henry wrote:

Mr Grumpy wrote:My moose is the shop, and my neighbor is currently borrowing my dog sled, or I'd have gone to get this.

And our national anthem is Oh...eh Canada, when sung properly you can barely hear the eh.

At least, it's singable. The melody of ours is an English drinking song, "To Anacreon in Heaven," by one John Stafford Smith. I guess it's easier to sing the high notes after you've had a few....

The trick is not to start it too high...

I always preferred the Sousa / Damrosch arrangement for Band: Bb on one side, Ab on the other...

(Just need to clarify WHICH version is being played... EVERY time. )

The trouble with Ab is that the sopranos can't reach the low Ab, and baritones and basses would strain for the high Eb. It's even worse in Bb for the men: that high F is a stretch! Trained voices might have no problems, but what about the rest of us? (Falsetto-land! Octave shift! Or as we used to say in orchestra, "When in doubt, leave it out.")