America First and Forever

Historic March Series — 2 min. 49 seconds

Composed by: Hermes Zimmerman

Adapted by Bill Camphouse

Zimmerman’s composition, America! First and Forever, is best described as a patriotic anthem originally written and published in 1918 for voice and piano in sheet music format;  the typical way of marketing printed music for a growing number of music consumers.   He composed and harmonized the melody, wrote the lyrics and cast the piece in two verses followed by a refrain.  It was dedicated to the National Security League, an organization of prominent individuals in business and other professions whose mission was to promote America’s role as a global leader early in the 20th Century.  At a time when a new-found sense of nationalism swept across the country as the United States became involved in World War One, songwriter/lyricist Zimmerman expressed a positive vision for America with the closing line of his text, reading, “America, the friend of nations, the friend of all humanity”. The printed dedication on the title page of my setting reads, in part, “Honoring the Village of New Philadelphia and its founder “Free Frank” McWorter” on becoming part of the United States National Park Service in 2023.

Printed Complete Score and Parts (B24001)           $87.50
Printed Large Full Score (B24001LGPFS)              $26.00
Printed Letter Size Full Score (B24001PFS)          $22.00
Complete Score and Parts Download (B24001DL)        $65.00
Large Full Score Download (B24001LGFS)              $22.00
Letter Size Full Score Download (B24001FS)          $18.00