La Marseillaise
La Marseillaise (The Song from Marseille) is the national anthem of France. The song, originally titled Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du Rhin (War Song for the Army of the Rhine) was written and composed by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle in 1792. The French National Convention adopted it as the Republic's anthem in 1795. The name La Marseillaise stems from the fact that the piece was sung on the streets by volunteers from Marseille.
The song is the first example of the "European march" anthem-style. The anthem's evocative melody and lyrics have led to its widespread use as a song of revolution and its incorporation into many pieces of classical and popular music. Hector Berlioz arranged La Marseillaise for soprano, chorus and orchestra; and Franz Liszt wrote a piano transcription. The work has been quoted by many composers including Gioachino Rossini, Robert Schumann, Richard Wagner, Giuseppe Verdi, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Claude Debussy, Edward Elgar, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Dmitri Shostakovich, and The Beatles.
Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle (1760 - 1836), was a French army officer of the Revolutionary Wars. He is known for writing the words and music of the Chant de guerre pour l'armée du Rhin, which would later be known as La Marseillaise and become the French national anthem.
Tutorials
Sheetmusic
Book: National Anthems of the World --->
National Anthems of the World
(click image)
