The Stars and Stripes Forever for kids: what to hear

“The Stars and Stripes Forever” is a march by John Philip Sousa. It lasts about three and a half minutes, and it is the national march of the United States. It is also a clear lesson in how a march is built, with a piccolo solo that children wait for.

Quick facts

• Composer: John Philip Sousa, who lived from 1854 to 1932
• Written: Christmas Day, 1896
• Length: about 3 and a half minutes
• Played by: a concert band or a marching band. Orchestras play it too.
• Title: the “stars and stripes” are the American flag

How he wrote it

Sousa was on a ship sailing home from Europe. He had just learned that the manager of his band had died. He walked the deck, and a tune began to play in his head. He said that it played over and over for the whole voyage. He did not write down a note until he reached land, and then he wrote it out complete.

How a march is built

Most American marches follow the same plan. Listen for five sections.

Section	What happens	What to listen for
Introduction	Four quick bars	The whole band, loud. It says, “Get ready.”
First strain	The first tune, played twice	Bold and bouncy
Second strain	The second tune, played twice	Soft the first time and loud the second
Trio	The big tune	The music drops to soft and sounds calmer. This is the tune people hum.
Break strain	A fight	Trombones and tubas crash downward. Band players call it the dogfight.

After the break strain, the trio comes back two more times. Each time something is added.

• The second time: the piccolos play a fast, twittering solo high above the tune.
• The last time: the piccolos keep going, and the trombones add a bold tune of their own underneath. Three tunes play at once.

The piccolo solo

A piccolo is a tiny flute. It plays the highest notes in the band. In this march, the piccolo players often stand up for their solo. It is a short, hard, famous solo, and band students practice it for years. Read the flute for kids.

Three tunes, three regions

Sousa gave the last section a meaning. He said that the main tune stood for the North, the piccolo part for the South, and the trombone tune for the West. All three fit together.

The march king

Sousa led the United States Marine Band for 12 years and then toured the world with a band of his own. He wrote more than 130 marches. The sousaphone, the big tuba that wraps around a marching player, was made to his plan and carries his name. Read John Philip Sousa for kids.

In 1987, the United States Congress named this piece the national march.

A secret signal

Circus bands once had a rule about this march. They never played it during a show unless something had gone wrong. If the band struck it up, the workers knew there was an emergency and moved the crowd to the exits.

Things to do together

• March. Step on the beat: left, right, left, right. A march has two beats in a bar, one for each foot.
• Change with the sections. March in place for the first strain. March in a circle for the second. Tiptoe for the trio, and stomp for the break strain.
• Be the piccolo. Wiggle your fingers high in the air when the piccolo solo starts.
• Hold up fingers. One finger for the tune alone, two when the piccolo joins, and three when the trombones come in.
• Make a band. Hand out pots, shakers, and a kazoo, and play along.

Questions to ask

• How do you know when the trio starts?
• Which is louder, the piccolo or the trombones?
• Why is a march good for walking?

Words to know

• March: music with a strong, steady beat for walking in step
• Strain: one section of a march
• Trio: the calmer middle section, with the main tune
• Piccolo: a small, high flute

Print and play

For the small flute with the famous solo, read the piccolo for kids. Find the band instruments on the instrument families listening chart. For more marches and summer music, read classical music for the Fourth of July. For the difference between the two kinds of group, read band vs orchestra. More guides are listed in classical music listening guides for kids.