Who Are the Brave performed at the 2008 Pentagon 9/11 Memorial Service
| Who are the Brave
is one my earliest works co-written with
lyricist J. Paul Williams. When we first put it to
paper, neither of us could have ever envisioned that
this anthem would have such an impact. It is the anthem that almost never happened. On his first visit to my home, Paul showed me this amazing testament to courage and I immediately set out putting it to music. I had just purchased my first computer and I was excited to try composing using a midi keyboard and newly-released engraving software. I worked deep into the night crafting the work and was approaching the final chords when suddenly a little bomb icon appeared on the computer screen. Very much a novice at computers in those days, I felt almost certain that the little cartoon bomb on my monitor could not be a good sign. As it turned out, the entire piece was lost. Gone in an instant! Since I had been trying to actually compose directly onto the computer, I had no notes or sketches of my work. I was devastated because I had felt strongly about what I had written. Typically I have an uncanny memory for music and details of my compositions, but for some reason I could not seem to remember a phrase of what I had written. Desperately I grabbed a scorebook and a pencil and composed a new, and hopefully improved, Who Are the Brave. Paul recounts his memories of composing the text: In 1992, Audrey Snyder (at that time with Warner Brothers) asked me to write a lyric that might work for men’s chorus. I penned the text in only 30 minutes. A long-time friend, whose life was a profile in personal bravery, was my inspiration. That friend, Charles Ray Poor, is the bravest person I have ever known. He contracted polio when he was six. After having a healthy body and legs in his early childhood, he has spent the remaining years in a wheelchair. When we first met, Charles was 14 and I was 12. He was the "Good Willy” poster boy for Goodwill Industries. Charles has spent his entire life helping others and is well loved and respected. When he rolls into a room, the whole place lights up. He completed his college work with a doctorate in psychology and subsequently served the at the Texas Rehabilitation and Research Institute in Houston and as Director of Counseling at the First Baptist Church in that city. He has always lived his life in the spirit of service; he and others like him are the very heart of this text. Notable performances of this work include a performance by the Texas A&M Singing Cadets at the January 2001 opening dedication ceremony of the Bush Library at Texas A&M. Director David Kipp reported that Who Are the Brave is one of the two songs that President George H.W. Bush always requests by name. (The other is God Bless America.) The celebrated Mormon Tabernacle Choir has featured the anthem in its Memorial and Veteran’s Day broadcasts, creatively integrating video backgrounds depicting the text and its meaning. Who Are the Brave was also presented at the 40th anniversary commemoration of the Normandy Invasion on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France. Perhaps one of the most moving uses of all was at the September 2008 unveiling of the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. After a stirring speech by the president, the anthem was broadcast around the world. This spectacular performance by "The President’s Own" United States Air Force Band and the members of the armed forces choirs is one of my most treasured moments as a composer. To have my music used for such an honorable endeavor fills me with great gratitude. To those whose lives are living chronicles of courage, to those many who serve freedom’s cause selflessly without regard to risk or danger, to those citizens who face the challenges of a troubled society and choose the right instead of the easy, to those who speak for the ones who have no voice, to those who serve the poor, to those who treasure liberty and to those who live their lives with quiet integrity, we dedicate this anthem. |
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