by Ben Hogwood

On the 250th anniversary of American independence, Arcana marks the occasion with two related fanfares. The first, well known and loved, is Aaron Copland‘s Fanfare for the Common Man, the powerhouse piece for brass and percussion that also ends his Symphony no.3:

In response, however, you might not yet know this significant piece with which Joan Tower announced her arrival on the orchestral stage, the Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman:

Finally I wanted to add a personal favourite by one of the founding fathers of American music, William Billings. The eighteenth century composer wrote a large number of hymns, and here is one of the pick – to the tune Africa:

Published post no.2,937 – Saturday 4 July 2026