This Day in History November 6, 1854

Tweet

Today is the anniversary of the birthday of this musician.  Recognize him?  You may or may not.  His name was John Philip Sousa, and he was born on this day in 1854.  He is sometimes called the March King, and we owe him a debt of gratitude for many of our American  marches.

He was the son of an American trombonist in Washington D.C.  His musical training began at the age of six, and he was exposed to military bands and their music.  He is best known for his 136 marches even though he wrote over 300 pieces of music.  He is best remembered as the leader of his own group the Sousa Band from 1892 until shortly before his death in 1932.

Here is a rare 1890 recording of his band:


And probably his best-known march:


There is a wealth of information out there on the web about him, but here is the site I used:
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/john-philip-sousa-is-born