Well it’s that time of year. A time when even non-football fans like me are about to devote an evening to the biggest game of the year: The Super Bowl. Everything about the game is super-sized from the commercials to the half time entertainment. And occasionally there is a somewhat interesting football game being played.
The huge production that is the Super Bowl even affects the National Anthem. And that’s the subject of today’s blog. Because of the grand stage that is the Super Bowl, even the National Anthem is something the NFL feels warrants a big name musical star. A practice followed by other major sports. This year, Christina Aguilera will step up to the microphone.
I’m probably in the minority, but I’m not looking forward to it. Nothing against her, but I’m not a fan of any one singing it. I’m a band/orchestra man myself.
Don’t get me wrong, there have been some great performances; one that comes to mind was Jennifer Hudson in 2009. Not only did she do a beautiful job with a challenging piece of music, it was her first public appearance since the murder of her mother, brother and nephew. It was very inspiring.
But all things being equal I’d rather have, say, the Marine Corps Band, or a symphony orchestra perform the anthem as an instrumental piece. For me it just sounds better. I know when I’ve been to the Syracuse Symphony’s performance at the state fairgrounds for the 4th of July nothing quite sounds like it. And what makes it even better is hearing everyone singing along.
I’ve enjoyed big sporting events when they choose a chorus from a military academy or other military organization perform. To their credit, the NFL had those folks a few years back. Perhaps one of the cutest renditions of the National Anthem comes at one of NASCAR’s races. Children of the drivers and crewmembers gather on pit road and all sing the anthem. It’s quite adorable, especially when you see the drivers jockeying for position to get a video or photo of their child.
Well I had my say, what do you think. What’s your preference for the National Anthem? I’ve provided a link to the NFL’s Super Bowl web site and a list of every game and the performance of the National Anthem. Do you have a favorite from the past? Who/how would you like it performed.
