Pedal or Lever Harp

The Star-Spangled Banner arranged by Sylvia Woods

Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon 5 star rating
  • Sheet Music
  • $5.95
  • PDF Download
  • $5.95
  

For lever or pedal harp.

This sheet music includes two harp arrangements by Sylvia Woods of the national anthem of the United States, The Star-Spangled Banner.

Key of C: The first version, in the key of C, can be played on lever or pedal harp. If your lever harp is tuned to the key of C, this is the version you should play. There are 3 G# lever changes during the piece, and one F# is pre-set. This requires a range of 3-1/2 octaves from C up to G. It will fit on 26-string harps with a C as the lowest string, if you play everything up an octave.

Key of B-flat: The second arrangement, in the key of B-flat, is for lever harps tuned to flats or pedal harps. B-flat is the key that is most commonly used when the song is sung. There are 3 F# lever changes during the piece, and one E-natural is pre-set. This arrangement requires a range of a little more than 3 octaves from F up to G. It will fit on 26-string harps with a C as the lowest string, if you play everything up an octave.

Both arrangements are for intermediate players, and include fingerings, lyrics, and chord symbols. Although only one verse of this song is normally sung, all 4 verses of Francis Scott Key's original poem are included. Each arrangement is 2-pages long, for a total of 4 pages of music.

Francis Scott Key wrote the poem Defence of Fort M'Henry the day after he witnessed the bombardment of the Baltimore, Maryland fort by British ships on September 13, 1814. The poem was then set to a popular melody composed in the 1760s by an Englishman, John Stafford Smith. A broadside version of this new song was printed on September 17th, and it was quickly reprinted in newspapers and magazines. In 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed a congressional resolution making The Star-Spangled Banner the national anthem of the United States. The original 15-star, 15-stripe "Star-Spangled Banner" that flew above the fort and inspired Key's poem is now on display at the Smithsonian Institution.

Click on the "Audio Tracks" button above to listen to the music.

We are selling this music in two formats:
  • Sheet Music, which we will mail to you
  • PDF files, to be downloaded to your computer.
Please order the version you prefer.

Click on the blue titles below to see a sample of the first few lines of music.

Reviews

Write a review

Pure Americana
By Alice Grove
Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon Review star icon
The pastor of my church was a military chaplain when he served in the US Army. He scheduled a special Memorial Day service and I played this along with Sylvia's "America Medley." " Both are easy to play and flow nicely. I inserted a figure eight glissando between the two arrangements.

Customers Also Bought