Many people know the tale: In 1814 Francis Scott Key witnessed the British bombardment of Fort McHenry and the heroism of America's defenders; seeing the American flag still flying at first light inspired him to pen his famous lyric. What people don't know, however, is how a topical broadside ballad rose to become the nation's anthem and today's magnet for controversy. In O Say Can You Hear? Mark Clague brilliantly weaves together the stories of the song and nation it represents. The book examines the origins of both words and music, alternate lyrics and translations and the song's use in sports, at times of war and for political protest. It shows how the song's meaning reflects-and is reflected by-the United States' quest to become a more perfect union. From victory song to hymn of sacrifice and object of protest, the story of Key's song is the story of America itself.

Many people know the tale: In 1814 Francis Scott Key witnessed the British bombardment of Fort McHenry and the heroism of America’s defenders; seeing the American flag still flying at first light inspired him to pen his famous lyric. What people don’t know, however, is how a topical broadside ballad rose to become the nation’s anthem and today’s magnet for controversy. In O Say Can You Hear? Mark Clague brilliantly weaves together the stories of the song and nation it represents. The book examines the origins of both words and music, alternate lyrics and translations and the song’s use in sports, at times of war and for political protest. It shows how the song’s meaning reflects—and is reflected by—the United States’ quest to become a more perfect union. From victory song to hymn of sacrifice and object of protest, the story of Key’s song is the story of America itself.

Increasingly, the availability of entrepreneurship education is becoming a factor in college choice as fine arts students demand training that helps them create an arts-based career after graduation. For too long, the arts academy has ignored the long-term career outcomes of its graduates and has only recently begun to meaningfully address how students can earn a living as working artists and arts entrepreneurs. Written to address this challenge, Disciplining the Arts explores the policy, programming, and curricular issues in the emerging field of arts entrepreneurship. By articulating the need, purpose and outcomes for arts entrepreneurship education, listening to graduates and identifying models, this essay collection begins an important conversation on preparing students for arts self-employment.

In Rethinking American Music, Tara Browner and Thomas L. Riis curate essays that offer an eclectic survey of current music scholarship. Ranging from Tin Pan Alley to Thelonious Monk to hip hop, the contributors go beyond repertory and biography to explore four critical yet overlooked areas: the impact of performance; patronage's role in creating music and finding a place to play it; personal identity; and the ways cultural and ethnographic circumstances determine the music that emerges from the creative process. Many of the articles also look at how a piece of music becomes initially popular and then exerts a lasting influence in the larger global culture. The result is an insightful state-of-the-field examination that doubles as an engaging short course on our complex, multifaceted musical heritage. Contributors: Karen Ahlquist, Amy C. Beal, Mark Clagu,. Esther R. Crookshank, Todd Decker, Jennifer DeLapp-Birkett, Joshua S. Duchan, Mark Katz, Jeffrey Magee, Sterling E. Murray, Guthrie P. Ramsey Jr., David Warren Steel, Jeffrey Taylor, and Mark Tucker

Alton Augustus Adams, Sr., was a musician, writer, hotelier, and the first black bandmaster of the United States Navy. Born in the Virgin Islands in 1889, Adams joined the U.S. military in 1917. Although naval policy at the time restricted blacks to menial jobs, Adams and his all-black ensemble provided a bridge between the local population and their all-white naval administrators. His memoirs, edited by Mark Clague, with a foreword by Samuel Floyd, Jr., reveal an inspired activist who believed music could change the world, mitigate racism, and bring prosperity to his island home.

Increasingly, the availability of entrepreneurship education is becoming a factor in college choice as fine arts students demand training that helps them create an arts-based career after graduation. For too long, the arts academy has ignored the long-term career outcomes of its graduates and has only recently begun to meaningfully address how students can earn a living as working artists and arts entrepreneurs. Written to address this challenge, Disciplining the Arts explores the policy, programming, and curricular issues in the emerging field of arts entrepreneurship. By articulating the need, purpose and outcomes for arts entrepreneurship education, listening to graduates and identifying models, this essay collection begins an important conversation on preparing students for arts self-employment.