Marcha Real
Encyclopedia
is the national anthem
of Spain. It is one of the few national anthems in the world to have no official lyrics (together with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo
and San Marino
).
The anthem, one of the oldest in the world, was composed by Frederick the Great of Prussia.(This march was used in Holland as bugle call, almost 100 years before he was born) The melody was first printed in a document dated 1761 and entitled Libro de Ordenanza de los toques militares de la Infantería Española (The Spanish Infantry's Book of Military Bugle
and Fife
Calls), by Manuel de Espinosa. Here it is entitled ("March of the Grenadiers"), although no composer's name is given.
In 1770, King Charles III
declared the to be the official "Honour March" for the Sovereigns and the Royal Family, as it was played at public and ceremonial events, and because it was always played at public events attended by the royal family, Spaniards soon came to regard the as their national anthem and called it the , or "Royal March".
Under the Second Spanish Republic
(1931–1939), replaced as the national anthem of Spain. At the conclusion of the Civil War
, however, Francisco Franco
restored as the country's national anthem, under its old title of .
There is a short version without the repetitions that is used depending on the occasion when the anthem is performed. The long one is kept for the King, while the short must be performed to the Prime Minister, the Prince, or in sport.
There are also three official performances by a symphony orchestra, a military band, and an organ, written by Francisco Grau Vegara
and requested by the Government of Spain. All in all, there are six different official adaptations. They all were recorded by the Spanish National Orchestra and the Royal Band as an official recording and released on compact disc
for a limited period of time.
s (~ €
781,316) to avoid future legal problems. Until it expires, the copyright belongs to the Spanish Ministry of Culture, and collecting societies charge copyright fees, which has led to criticism.
As a result, many different harmonizations are performed to avoid paying. Nonetheless, the rights to the 1997 Francisco Grau
revision were transferred to the government at no charge, although they were not placed in the public domain.
's reign and another during General Franco's dictatorship; however, none of them was ever made official. The national anthem has been played without words since 1978, when the lyrics that had been approved by General Francisco Franco were abandoned.
" at Anfield
in 2007, the President of the Spanish Olympic Committee
, Alejandro Blanco, said he felt inspired to seek lyrics to La Marcha Real ahead of Madrid's bid to host the 2016 Olympic Games
. Politicians, including the PM
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
, steered clear of the issue in order not to alienate some Basques, Catalans, or Galicians who tend to identify with their own regions rather than with the Spanish state. A number of the autonomous communities of Spain
have their own anthems
. An open competition for the lyrics resulted in 7,000 entries. On January 16, 2008, just five days after presenting the competition winner to the public, the Spanish Olympic Committee withdrew the proposal after widespread public criticism due to the lyrics' supposed nationalist tone.
s of the Spanish Armed Forces
and the Cuerpo Nacional de Policia and civilian Marching band
s and Concert band
s play an A-major version of the anthem adapted for wind bands.
The bugle call "To the Colors" in Spain is the version played by Bugle bands in Spanish churches in religious occasions and processions organized by civil groups and the parishes. Various versions adapted for the drum and the bugle are used, even though brass instruments play the anthem as well. But in some bugle bands, the B flat version of the anthem (the official one, adapted for the bugle) is played.
Being the National Anthem, and in honor of the King and Queen of Spain, it's a common practice for all to stand once it is played. Even though it is also played in church events, respect for the King and Queen (and the Royal Family as well) is required by everyone in attendance.
National anthem
A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a nation's government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people.- History :Anthems rose to prominence...
of Spain. It is one of the few national anthems in the world to have no official lyrics (together with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo
Europe (anthem)
Europe is the national anthem of the Republic of Kosovo. It was composed by Mendi Mengjiqi. The anthem has no lyrics. It was adopted on 11 June 2008. It was chosen because it contained no references to any specific ethnic group...
and San Marino
Inno Nazionale della Repubblica
The Inno Nazionale is the national anthem of the Republic of San Marino. It was written by Federico Consolo, a Sammarinese violinist and composer, and adopted as the national anthem in 1894. This national anthem is one of the few without lyrics, and is therefore called simply Inno Nazionale...
).
The anthem, one of the oldest in the world, was composed by Frederick the Great of Prussia.(This march was used in Holland as bugle call, almost 100 years before he was born) The melody was first printed in a document dated 1761 and entitled Libro de Ordenanza de los toques militares de la Infantería Española (The Spanish Infantry's Book of Military Bugle
Bugle (instrument)
The bugle is one of the simplest brass instruments, having no valves or other pitch-altering devices. All pitch control is done by varying the player's embouchure, since the bugle has no other mechanism for controlling pitch. Consequently, the bugle is limited to notes within the harmonic series...
and Fife
Fife (musical instrument)
A fife is a small, high-pitched, transverse flute that is similar to the piccolo, but louder and shriller due to its narrower bore. The fife originated in medieval Europe and is often used in military and marching bands. Someone who plays the fife is called a fifer...
Calls), by Manuel de Espinosa. Here it is entitled ("March of the Grenadiers"), although no composer's name is given.
In 1770, King Charles III
Charles III of Spain
Charles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. He was the eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, the Princess Elisabeth Farnese...
declared the to be the official "Honour March" for the Sovereigns and the Royal Family, as it was played at public and ceremonial events, and because it was always played at public events attended by the royal family, Spaniards soon came to regard the as their national anthem and called it the , or "Royal March".
Under the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
(1931–1939), replaced as the national anthem of Spain. At the conclusion of the Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, however, Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
restored as the country's national anthem, under its old title of .
Current version
The current official version, as described in Royal Decree 1560/1997, is a sixteen-bar long phrase, divided in two sections, each one is made up of four repeated bars (AABB form). Tempo is set to ♩= 76 and key to B flat.There is a short version without the repetitions that is used depending on the occasion when the anthem is performed. The long one is kept for the King, while the short must be performed to the Prime Minister, the Prince, or in sport.
There are also three official performances by a symphony orchestra, a military band, and an organ, written by Francisco Grau Vegara
Francisco Grau
Francisco Grau Vegara is a Spanish musician, composer and General in the Spanish Armed Forces.Having started playing instruments in his hometown's band at the age of seven, he went on to compose more than 700 pieces and since 12 October 1997, he has been the official author of the Spanish National...
and requested by the Government of Spain. All in all, there are six different official adaptations. They all were recorded by the Spanish National Orchestra and the Royal Band as an official recording and released on compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
for a limited period of time.
Copyright issues
As the harmonization of the Marcha Real was written by Bartolomé Pérez Casas in the early 1900s, the copyright has not yet expired. The government bought it from Pérez Casas' estate in 1997 for 130,000,000 pesetaSpanish peseta
The peseta was the currency of Spain between 1869 and 2002. Along with the French franc, it was also a de facto currency used in Andorra .- Etymology :...
s (~ €
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
781,316) to avoid future legal problems. Until it expires, the copyright belongs to the Spanish Ministry of Culture, and collecting societies charge copyright fees, which has led to criticism.
As a result, many different harmonizations are performed to avoid paying. Nonetheless, the rights to the 1997 Francisco Grau
Francisco Grau
Francisco Grau Vegara is a Spanish musician, composer and General in the Spanish Armed Forces.Having started playing instruments in his hometown's band at the age of seven, he went on to compose more than 700 pieces and since 12 October 1997, he has been the official author of the Spanish National...
revision were transferred to the government at no charge, although they were not placed in the public domain.
Lyrics
Though the has no lyrics, words have been written and used for it in the past. One version was used during Alfonso XIIIAlfonso XIII of Spain
Alfonso XIII was King of Spain from 1886 until 1931. His mother, Maria Christina of Austria, was appointed regent during his minority...
's reign and another during General Franco's dictatorship; however, none of them was ever made official. The national anthem has been played without words since 1978, when the lyrics that had been approved by General Francisco Franco were abandoned.
Lyric competition
After witnessing a rendition of "You'll Never Walk AloneYou'll Never Walk Alone (song)
"You'll Never Walk Alone" is a show tune from the 1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel.In the musical, in the second act, Nettie Fowler, the cousin of the female protagonist Julie Jordan, sings "You'll Never Walk Alone" to comfort and encourage Julie when her husband, Billy Bigelow, the...
" at Anfield
Anfield
Anfield is an association football stadium in the district of Anfield, Liverpool, England, with a seating capacity of 45,522. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892 and was originally the home of Everton F.C. from 1884 to 1892, before they moved to Goodison Park...
in 2007, the President of the Spanish Olympic Committee
Spanish Olympic Committee
The Spanish Olympic Committee is responsible for Spain's participation in the Olympic Games. It was formed on January 11, 1924 in Barcelona.-Presidents:* 1912-1921 Gonzalo de Figueroa y Torres, Marqués de Villamejor...
, Alejandro Blanco, said he felt inspired to seek lyrics to La Marcha Real ahead of Madrid's bid to host the 2016 Olympic Games
2016 Summer Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, are a major international multi-sport event to be celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games, as governed by the International Olympic Committee...
. Politicians, including the PM
Prime Minister of Spain
The President of the Government of Spain , sometimes known in English as the Prime Minister of Spain, is the head of Government of Spain. The current office is established under the Constitution of 1978...
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is a member of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party . He was elected for two terms as Prime Minister of Spain, in the 2004 and 2008 general elections. On 2 April 2011 he announced he will not stand for re-election in 2012...
, steered clear of the issue in order not to alienate some Basques, Catalans, or Galicians who tend to identify with their own regions rather than with the Spanish state. A number of the autonomous communities of Spain
Autonomous communities of Spain
An autonomous community In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian .*Galician .*Basque . The second article of the constitution recognizes the rights of "nationalities and regions" to self-government and declares the "indissoluble unity of the Spanish nation".Political power in Spain is...
have their own anthems
Anthems of the autonomous communities of Spain
Several of the 17 autonomous communities of the Kingdom of Spain, plus the 2 autonomous cities, have their own anthems, ranging from quasi-national anthems of the historical nationalities to regional anthems and songs, with some virtually unknown even in their own communities. Below is a list of...
. An open competition for the lyrics resulted in 7,000 entries. On January 16, 2008, just five days after presenting the competition winner to the public, the Spanish Olympic Committee withdrew the proposal after widespread public criticism due to the lyrics' supposed nationalist tone.
Interpretation and etiquette
Military bandMilitary band
A military band originally was a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the title of Bandmaster or Director of Music...
s of the Spanish Armed Forces
Spanish Armed Forces
The Spanish Armed Forces are the military forces of the Kingdom of Spain. The Spanish Armed Forces are a modern military force charged with defending the Kingdom's integrity and sovereignty...
and the Cuerpo Nacional de Policia and civilian Marching band
Marching band
Marching band is a physical activity in which a group of instrumental musicians generally perform outdoors and incorporate some type of marching with their musical performance. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwinds, and percussion instruments...
s and Concert band
Concert band
A concert band, also called wind band, symphonic band, symphonic winds, wind orchestra, wind symphony, wind ensemble, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of several members of the woodwind instrument family, brass instrument family, and percussion instrument family.A...
s play an A-major version of the anthem adapted for wind bands.
The bugle call "To the Colors" in Spain is the version played by Bugle bands in Spanish churches in religious occasions and processions organized by civil groups and the parishes. Various versions adapted for the drum and the bugle are used, even though brass instruments play the anthem as well. But in some bugle bands, the B flat version of the anthem (the official one, adapted for the bugle) is played.
Being the National Anthem, and in honor of the King and Queen of Spain, it's a common practice for all to stand once it is played. Even though it is also played in church events, respect for the King and Queen (and the Royal Family as well) is required by everyone in attendance.
Sheet music
External links
- The National Anthem (Prime Minister's Office site)
- Streaming audio, lyrics and information about the Marcha Real
- 2008 Spanish National Anthem Lyrics in English and in Spanish
- MIDI File
- MP3 version by the US Navy Band
- UNAMU - The "Union Nacional de Antiguos Oficiales y Suboficiales de las Milicias Universitarias" has a website about the anthem, with a complete instrumental version.
- English translation of the proposed new lyrics