Week 5 - National Anthem

National Anthem Project !

1) Print out the lyrics -- You'll have a copy of the lyrics as we go through them - make notes!

2) You can watch the step by step video of me going hrough the lines if you want to review them. It's just as we did for the Pledge. MAKE NOTES on your paper.

3) Watch the many models that I love and have posted here. There are vidoes from tutorials, from past students, and from some amazing Deaf performers at the Super Bowl. You can even search for models on your own. Just be aware of what you're looking at. We're looking for idiomatic translations.

4) PRACTICE -- Don't just WATCH. You have to get your hands up to see how it's going to go. I've posted some of my favorite versions here and on anthem practice day I like you all to go through it several times with different versions so you can get a feel for the different paces and prosodies. Some versions are fast paced instrumental only versions, ranging all the way up to Whitney and Marvin Gaye (my favorite).

5) It's important that you think about SPEAKER STYLE. You will all get to pick your own version of the anthem. If you have a favorite artist, or if you just want to try something funky and different, we want to be sure to KNOW how your version is different. What is the music like? Country, rock, punk? Is the singer doing something unique? Does your Deaf audience have access to that?

1) Lyrics:

Oh, say can you see by the dawn’s early light

What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?

Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,

O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?

And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,

Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

2) Step by Step Review

And the back story -- it will help you create a picture!

3) Cue the MANY models -- there are quite a few but remember that they're short!

When you watch them, MAKE NOTES about different signs you like - they're all here for a reason. Watch for the nuances of each, and watch them at slower speeds if that helps you catch what they're doing.

ALSO NOTE questions you have about signs -- bring those to class next week. The more specific the better (name of video and time marker).

Noah is Deaf, you can see great face for prosody and grammar. Love the placement of his sun on one side (his right) and how it rises and sets and creates light on the flag placed on his left. We also get the boats in his version!

His eyes really tell a story, you can see that he SEES this flag. He uses the palm of his hand to show the "4 finger CL" stripes. He has square ramparts to look over - and one handed "bombs", but what I love most is the "KNOW" for flag was still there.

Terrylene, Deaf actress Anthem (no audio) -- she role shifts a lot of her anthem, crawling up over those ramparts, nudging her friend to see if he sees the flag. And she really SEES those rockets traveling through the air, coming in from behind her!

Rosa Lee (Deaf performer) - I love her "we" (we all looked at each other). Great space, mouth morphemes, lots of smoke after the bombs. The land, country change free... home of the people together brave..

Candace Jones (Deaf teacher) - a pretty quick version, notice her space (sun and flag). She has red and white stripes, love how she PUTs the flag on the flagpole and her "Stubborn continue" for the flag waving through the night, her transition between one handed and two handed flag waving; but not a fan of the R "rocket"

I like the way her flag raises and lowers while still waving. Her face and eyes SEE the flag. She has a "People Free" (and then a lot of other stuff to end).

Starts at :43

She uses the eye gaze at her hands for her dawn's early light, and she has "debris" after the rockets.

Robert goes through his own tutorial to explain his choices. This is his walkthrough

Robert's Anthem - no sound, but captioned. Great "clearing" of the fog to reveal the flag. People free, Army brave.

You can't use two people in your version... but this is fun. They take on actions that would happen on land and sea.

For fun and history - 1955 - But it seems much older than that. What similarities and differences can you see?

4) Practice with the different versions:

This is a PLAYLIST - not just one song!

Have fun trying to interpret with the different versions. You never know what you'll run into. You may have to sign faster if you're interpreting for the marching band or stretch things out if you have a "diva".

Deaf Models at the Superbowl

Wawa! He feels it in his body!

Wawa's America the Beautiful, because, why not?

2020 - Christine Sun Kim. The version has some strange jumps but they would pan away from her for some reason. This is a full body version! Her "free" and "brave" come from her TOES!

2018 Alexandria Wailes - a member of the Deaf West Theatre troupe interprets for Pink! I like her flow, but it's her ending that I really like. Free (unjoined), and Brave is "in us".

2017 - Kriston Lee Pumphrey - This video will play on YouTube if you click "Watch on Youtube". He "looks back" for last night, and I really like the "patience continue" for "through". Nice clasping of the heart before his "brave".

Troy Kotsur Superbowl 2023

2015 - Treshelle Edmond - I like her two handed version of Hail and Pride while the other hand waves the flag. Treshelle was in Spring Awakening and interpreted for Idina Menzel of Broadway fame.

2022 - Sandra Mae Frank - I love all of her choices - the only thing to hate is the dude who keeps bobbing his head in front of her camera.

5) Unique speaker style:

A little bit about speaker style

Torri does Hendrix.mp4

Torri Ryder - From TLC Interpreting is well known for her version of Hendrix's anthem. I asked her to do this for me on video years ago!

Melisa

She makes it cute - something I never thought we'd say about the National Anthem.

Jessica

Oh say! She masters that speaker style! Definitely one of my favorite musical versions.

Heather

Heather struggled with her Pledge, so she wanted to NAIL her Anthem, and she did! She does the rock version and we know it.

Ashley

Electric guitar version (no words) - how do you let people know this isn't your regular anthem?

Rie

This version has about a minute lead in for set up, My favorite part is that she can't seem to bear to look at the perilous fight. But she's also able to wave that flag and sign other things.

Susen?

This was just me playing around in class to lighten the mood - Marvin Gaye's version makes me dance every time. This isn't rehearsed - so there aren't "cool things" about it, but a bit of funk...