DOMINIC LAWSON: England’s downbeat anthem implies you will find a single fight Wales are positive to gain tomorrow

We now know just one outcome of the Environment Cup match tomorrow amongst England and Wales. When the gamers line up right before kick-off at 7pm GMT, the Welsh football group (and their supporters in Qatar’s Ahmad bin Ali stadium) will achieve a devastating victory towards their English rivals … in the fight of the national anthems.

Which is not merely mainly because Wales is a nation that prides by itself on its choirs, due to the fact the English also have a wonderful choral tradition.

The level is that our cousins across the Bristol Channel have an complete stonker of a melody for their anthem, Land Of My Fathers — sung routinely at nationwide sporting events given that 1905, and composed in 1856 by a gentleman with the beautifully Welsh name of James James (his father, Evan James, provided the lyrics).

When the players line up just before kick-off at 7pm GMT, the Welsh soccer staff (and their supporters in Qatar’s Ahmad bin Ali stadium) will achieve a devastating victory in opposition to their English rivals … in the struggle of the countrywide anthems. Gareth Bale is pictured previously mentioned in the match in opposition to Iran

When this was staying thundered out in advance of the begin of Wales’s very first match in Qatar versus the U.S., it produced a world-wide impression. A single viewer in the States, even though supporting his possess group, tweeted that the Welsh really should be declared the ‘winner of the Planet Cup of Nationwide Anthems’.

Singability

Essentially, some several years in the past, a team of English and German musicologists drew up a league desk of what they termed ‘singability’ amid all countrywide anthems. A single of their criteria was the extent to which unaffiliated listeners joined in spontaneously.

The champion anthem turned out to be that of our historic rivals and reigning soccer world champions, the French: La Marseillaise came best. It is, without a doubt, a belter — even though the words and phrases in the chorus (‘Let an impure blood drinking water our furrows’) are perhaps very best not taken virtually.

And which anthem arrived next? Certainly: the Welsh.

Meanwhile, to no one’s surprise, the British anthem — then, God Help you save The Queen — languished in following to very last location. This was stated by 1 of the musicologists associated in the task, Dr Alisun Pawley: ‘The tune is created in a way that doesn’t invite large upper body voice singing for most people’s voices, and it lacks a actual hook or climax where individuals really feel compelled to be a part of in or belt it out.’

So now you know.

Shouldn’t the English, like several other nations, have one particular which sends tingles up the spines, not just of our possess people, but of all individuals listening or watching, throughout the world? In reality, does our Countrywide Anthem even send out tingles up the spines of more than a pretty small minority of the English? No. Harry Kane is pictured over in the England match from the US

But the phrases are also uninspiring. You really don’t have to be a republican to regret the point that what we call the National Anthem does not celebrate the nation at all, but whoever takes place to be the monarch — in contrast to Land Of My Fathers, which celebrates Wales, its landscape, and its language.

Though the late Queen was alive, the British Nationwide Anthem at the very least evoked the fervent want on the aspect of most of her persons that she remained balanced and on the throne. But it merely won’t have that emotion now, right after a gap of 70 many years, that it is when once again God Preserve The King.

In point, even when his mom was alive, the anthem was not well-liked. The polling organisation YouGov, at the top of the celebrations of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012, asked contributors to ‘declare your views on the Nationwide Anthem’.

Though 70 per cent of the respondents indicated that they have been in favour of the monarchy, YouGov also claimed that ‘an frustrating selection of you informed us that you did not like the Nationwide Anthem’.

It would, obviously, be doable for the Nationwide Anthem nonetheless to be so named — although it has no position in legislation — but to use a distinctive a person for sporting situations wherever an England group is actively playing.

In fact, even when his mother was alive, the anthem was not preferred. The polling organisation YouGov, at the top of the celebrations of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012, questioned individuals to ‘declare your sights on the Nationwide Anthem’. The Queen and Prince William are pictured over through the Diamond Jubilee in 2012

On St George’s Working day in 2010, the Commonwealth Video games Council for England polled the general public to ask which of God Help you save The Queen, Jerusalem and Land Of Hope And Glory must be utilized as the official anthem for Workforce England. Jerusalem secured an absolute vast majority (52 for each cent of the vote).

It is indeed immensely preferred. Practically far too substantially so, in a way. I will not imagine I have been to a wedding or a funeral in new decades in which it was not on the purchase of support. The tunes, by Sir Hubert Parry, is unquestionably inspirational. But the text of William Blake, bawled out so unreflectively, are bizarre, at minimum as a national anthem.

Difficult

As lots of have observed over the decades, Blake asks 4 queries — and the remedy to just about every one particular of them is ‘no’.

For illustration, Christ in no way established foot in England and the Lamb of God under no circumstances frolicked all over in the West Country.

And some literary critics have prompt that ‘the Dim Satanic Mills’ ended up in fact Blake’s way of describing the cathedrals of the Set up Church, of which he was not an admirer. Besides, it is odd to have a national anthem by the identify of the cash of another nation.

A more suited substitute countrywide anthem is I Vow To Thee My Nation, with its excellent concept by Gustav Holst (which he at first made use of in his most popular get the job done, The Planets suite, to evoke mighty Jupiter). Even though it may be a minor difficult for the King, as it was picked out by his 1st wife, Diana, for their wedding, and was sung at her funeral.

The terms, by Cecil Spring-Rice, could possibly also vex the secular spirit of the age, as they link the excellent of patriotism to the notion of Christian spiritual salvation. On the other hand, contrary to Rule, Britannia! or Land Of Hope And Glory, equally of which are also gloriously singable as pure melody, I Vow To Thee My Nation, although created in its recent form in the course of Earth War I, is free of bombast or imperial grandiosity. In official settings, it is connected with Remembrance Working day products and services across the Commonwealth.

The idea that the English have a sort of anthem envy, seeking longingly at what the Welsh and the Scots (Flower Of Scotland) have to give, was wittily set out by the satirical track-writers, Michael Flanders and Donald Swann, who made a series of gems in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Most effective identified for The Hippopotamus Track (‘Mud, Mud, Wonderful Mud’), just one of their fewer celebrated quantities was A Track Of Patriotic Prejudice.

Introducing it, Flanders noticed: ‘I never know if you have at any time assumed of this, but England has not genuinely bought a national song. I necessarily mean just for England. All the others, they have bought music about their countries, you know, the Scots … and the Welsh and the Irish, you’ve got songs stating how marvellous they are and building impolite remarks about the English in their own language.’

Intelligent

And then they belt out their possess recommendation, which (and don’t forget, this was intended to be satirical) does what it statements the other nations of the United Kingdom do to the English in their anthems.

‘The English, the English, the English are very best I would not give tuppence for all of the rest!

‘The rottenest bits of these islands of ours, we have left in the hands of 3 unfriendly powers.

‘Examine the Irishman, Welshman or Scot you are going to discover he’s a stinker, as probable as not.’

By distinction, as Flanders and Swann go on to sing: ‘The English are moral, the English are very good and clever and modest and misunderstood.’ They also give satirical vent to the strategy that, in sport, only the English play in the correct spirit:

‘And all the planet over, each nation’s the exact same they have only no idea of playing the activity.

‘They argue with umpires, they cheer when they’ve received and they practise beforehand, which ruins the enjoyment!’

But there is a critical place, when it comes to the anthems we sing at fantastic countrywide sporting situations. Should not the English, like quite a few other nations, have one particular which sends tingles up the spines, not just of our personal men and women, but of all those people listening or looking at, across the world?

In point, does our Nationwide Anthem even send tingles up the spines of far more than a really small minority of the English?

No. As so several of those YouGov responders, variously, told the pollster, our National Anthem is ‘dull’, ‘depressing’, ‘downbeat’, ‘a dirge’.

Meanwhile, tomorrow night, we English will enjoy the Welsh crew and supporters thunder out ‘Gwlad! Gwlad!’ and know they are the winners, what ever the consequence of the match.