Iranian Anthem Composer, Ruhollah Khaleqi, on Stamp

On July 11, 2011, Iran issued a stamp on musician and composer Ruhollah Khaleqi known for his composition of Iran’s former national anthem "O, Iran". The stamp, printed in commemoration of the musician, was unveiled during a ceremony held on the side section of Iran’s National Orchestra performance in the presence of Iranian tar virtuoso Hossein Alizadeh.Khaleqi was brought up in a family of music lovers. He was a student of celebrated composer and musician Ali-Naqi Vaziri.His other credits include several books on music under the titles “History of Iranian Music” and “A View on Iranian Music.”

Rūhollāh Khāleqi (1906, Kerman, Iran – November 12, 1965, Salzburg, Austria) , also spelled as Khaleghi, was a prominent Iranian musician, composer, conductor and author. Ruhollah Khāleghi was born in Mahan, a small town near Kerman, in a musically minded family. He first became acquainted with the tar, but later started to learn to play the violin. As soon as Ali-Naqi Vaziri established his School of Music, Khāleghi left school and joined Vaziri's school, where he studied for eight years. Soon he became his master's assistant and was placed in charge of teaching music theory. He later continued his education and obtained a B.A. degree in Persian Language and Literature from the University of Tehran.

In 1944 Khāleghi established the National Music Society and in 1949, thanks to the efforts of this great artist, the School of National Music was founded. After his first journey to the former U.S.S.R. in 1955, he became involved in the Iran-Soviet Society and was selected as a member of its Board of Directors.

He also began to serve as the director of the Payām-e-Novin Magazine. His work, The History of Persian Music, which was published in two volumes, took shape during these years. His other published works include: Harmony of Western Music, Theory of Eastern Music, and Theory of Persian Music.

For many years Khāleghi worked as a musical advisor for Radio Iran and was one of the founders of the program known as Gol'hā (Flowers). He also conducted the Gol'hā Orchestra, for which he composed many pieces and revised the original compositions of his contemporaries as well as older masters, such as Āref and Sheydā. Although revised, the compositions retained all their original characteristics.

Khāleghi's compositions are not limited to what he wrote for Gol'hā. In addition to such masterpieces as Mey-e Nāb (Pure Wine), Āh-e Sahar (Sigh at Dawn), Hālā Cherā (Why Now?), and Chang-e Rudaki (Rudaki's Harp), he composed many other lyrical pieces and hymns, which were mostly patriotic. These include such works as Ey Iran (see Gholām-Hossein Banān) and the Hymn for Azarbaijan. Khāleghi established The National Music Society and Persian National Music Conservatory in 1949 in Tehran.

He died in 1965 in Salzburg, Austria and was buried in Zahir o-dowleh cemetery, Darband, Tehran.

China Anthem Composer, Ni Er, on Postcard

Nie Er (February 14, 1912 — July 17, 1935), was a Chinese composer. He is known for composing the national anthem of the People's Republic of China, the March of the Volunteers. In numerous Shanghai magazines he went by the English name "George Njal".

Nie Er's ancestors were from Yuxi, Yunnan, in southwest China. He was born in Kunming, Yunnan. From an early age Nie Er displayed an interest in music. From 1918 he studied at the Kunming Normal School's Associated Primary School. In his spare time, he learnt to play traditional instruments such as the dizi, erhu, sanxian, and yueqin, and became the conductor of the school's Children's Orchestra. In 1922 he entered the Private Qiushi Primary School (Senior Section), and in 1925 entered Yunnan Provincial Number One Combined Middle School.

In 1927 Nie Er graduated from Yunnan Provincial Number One Combined Middle School, and entered Yunnan Provincial Number One Normal School. At school, he participated in the Book Club, and organised the "Nine-Nine Music Society", which performed within the school and outside. During this time, he learnt to play the violin and the piano.

In June 1931, Nie Er entered the "Mingyue Musical Drama Society" as a violinist. In July 1932 he published A Short Treatise on Chinese Song and Dance, in which he criticised the Drama Society's president, Li Jinhui, as a result of which he was forced to leave the society. Prior to joining the Lianhua Film Studio on November 1932, he took part in shaping the Bright Moonlight Song and Dance Troupe. He later joined the musical group of the "Friends of the Soviet Union Society". He also organised the "Chinese Contemporary Music Research Group", which participated in the Leftist Dramatist's Union. In 1933, Nie Er joined the Communist Party of China.

In April 1934, Nie Er joined the Baak Doi record company and managed the musical section. In the same year he founded the Pathé National Orchestra. This was a prolific year for Nie Er in terms of musical output. In early 1935, he composed the March of the Volunteers. In January 1935 Nie Er became the director of the musical department of Lianhua Number Two Studio.

On July 17, 1935, he drowned while swimming in Japan, at the age of 23. He might have been en route to the Soviet Union, passing through Japan to receive training, sent by the Chinese Communist Party. Some suspect that he was killed by Japanese right-wing radicals. Others suspect that he was killed by Chinese Nationalists, as he was in Japan to flee from them. However, as he disappeared while swimming with his friends, killing him was difficult, and swimming in mid-July is a bit early there, so he most likely drowned. He was found by the local rescue team the following day. According to them and the police, the condition from his body was not different from that of ordinary drowned bodies.

Nie Er wrote a total of 37 pieces in his life, all in the two years before his death. A significant proportion of these songs reflected working class life and struggles. He often collaborated with lyricist Tian Han.

Galician Anthem Composer and Lyricist on a Special FDC Cancel

Pascual Veiga Iglesias ( April 9 of 1842 - Madrid , July 12 of 1906 ) was a musician, musical director, organist and composer of the National Anthem of Galicia.

Veiga started his musical studies as a child in the choir of the Cathedral Mindoniense. At thirteen he began to teach music theory and harmony in the chapel of the cathedral. In 1964 he moved to La Coruña and served as organist of the Church of Our Lady of the Field. In 1865 he was appointed vice president of Section Music Society Youth Fraternity. His dedication to music led him to win a prize in 1877 with the Glee Club Bragantino. He left year later, and founded the Glee Club Corunna. In 1880 he was invited by the Society of Floral Games of Pontevedra , and premiered his most emblematic work, the Alborada Gallega. Two years later he founded El Nuevo Orfeon, which soon became known as el Orfeon Echo, and that continues today. In 1889 he founded the Choral Society called Corunna Number 4, a group that won the gold medal and the Academic Palms during the Universal Exhibition of Paris of 1889. In 1896 he was living in Madrid, where he works as director of the Centro Galego Matritense Choir and at the same time developing the teaching at the National Conservatory of Music. He was also organist at the Church of St. Dominic of Betanzos and Collegiate A Coruña.

He died in 1906 in Madrid, and in 1912 his remains were transferred to Mondoñedo to be buried in a mausoleum dedicated by his admirers and friends. Six months after his death, the Galician Center Gran Teatro of Havana premiered ' The Pin , poem by Eduardo Pondal put in music by Veiga, who later was considered the anthem of Galicia.

Above is a FDC with a special cancel featuring the Galician anthem composer Pascual Veiga and lyricist Eduardo Pondal

The Anthem of Taiwan on Metered FDC

This is the First Day Cover of 2011 ROCUPEX Taipei Stamps Exhibition Meter Stamp from Formosa (Taiwan), Republic of China. The 2011 ROCUPEX Taipei Stamps Exhibition commemorates the 100th anniversary of the Republic (Oct 07-12,2011). This FDC, issued on October 7, 2011 features the image of National Anthem of the Republic of China. This cover is a design error with 2 wrong Chinese characters in the National Anthem of the meter stamp. The special meter shows the score of the National anthem. The anthem lyrics in traditional Chinese script is seen on the cachet. This FDC has a face value of 25 new Taiwan dollar.

Liberian Anthem Lyrics on an Unissued Souvenir Sheet

Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the west coast of Africa, bordered by Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Côte d'Ivoire. Liberia, which means "Land of the Free", was founded as an independent nation by free-born and formerly enslaved African Americans. Recently it has witnessed two civil wars, the Liberian Civil War (1989–1996), and the Second Liberian Civil War (1999–2003), that have displaced hundreds of thousands and destroyed its economy.

The national anthem of Liberia, "All Hail, Liberia Hail" was composed by Olmstead Luca in 1869. The words to the anthem of this second oldest independent African nation were written by the nation's third president, Daniel Bashiel Warner, and adopted upon independence in 1847. Presumably, the anthem first had a different melody, as the current music was written in 1860.

Above is an unissued souvenir sheet featuring the Liberian anthem lyrics.

Rota- Anthem of the Polish National-Territorial Region

The Polish National-Territorial Region (Polish: Polski Kraj Narodowo-Terytorialny) was an autonomous region in Lithuania, self-proclaimed by the local Poles on 6 September 1990. The region included areas surrounding Vilnius, capital of Lithuania, where Poles formed the majority (60–90%). This Eastern part of Lithuania had been part of Poland (from 1922) before being attached to Lithuania under the Mutual Assistance Treaty with the Soviet Union in 1939.

The autonomy region with capital in Naujoji Vilnia included 4,930 km² and population of 215,000 (66% of them Poles). The Polish autonomous movement was related to the Yedinstvo movement and had tacit support from Moscow (thus, when following the Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania the Soviets applied a blockade against Lithuania, the areas of Eastern Lithuania with significant minority population were mostly spared of the blockade, with the aim of gaining minorities' support for Moscow). In the region, the Polish Red-and-White flags were used as official flag and Rota was used as an anthem in the region.

Rota's lyrics were written in 1908 by Maria Konopnicka. The music was composed two years later by Feliks Nowowiejski. Konopnicka's poem came into being as a protest against the German Empire's oppression and suppression of Polish culture in German-occupied western Poland — lands that from the late 18th century after the Partitions of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to 1918 were under Prussian — and later, German — rule.

Rota was first sung publicly during a patriotic demonstration in Kraków on July 15, 1910, held to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Polish-Lithuanian victory over the Teutonic Knights at the Battle of Grunwald. The anthem quickly became popular across partitioned Poland. Until 1918, Rota served as the anthem of the Polish Scouting movement. After Poland regained independence in 1918, Rota, in 1927, found itself under consideration for a time as a possible Polish national anthem.

The Lithuanian government declared the formation of the Polish autonomous district in Lithuania unconstitutional. After the August Coup of the Soviet hardliners had failed, the Lithuanian parliament suspended on 3 September 1991 the democratically elected local councils that had sought autonomy or secession from Lithuania, thus abolishing the anthem.

Above is a FDC of the composer of Rota, Feliks Nowowiejski, issued by Poland in 2010

The New National Anthem of Libya

Libya, Libya, Libya (also known as Ya Beladi, "Oh my country!"), composed by Mohammed Abdel Wahab, is the new national anthem of Libya. He also composed the music for the anthems of Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates. The anthem was used until the monarchy was abolished in a coup by Moammar Qadaffi in 1969, when it was replaced with a new anthem. It was originally the national anthem from independence in 1951 until 1969 when King Idris I was overthrown by a Coup d'état led by Muammar al-Gaddafi. Gaddafi adopted the Egyptian marching song Allahu Akbar (God is Greatest) as the national anthem of the newly proclaimed Libyan Arab Republic. The anthem was a Muslim call to prayer and a statement of faith composed by Abdalla Shams El-Din and lyrics written by Mahmoud El-Sherif.

During the 2011 Libyan civil war, Libya, Libya, Libya was declared the new national anthem and restored by the transitional government.

Above is a first day cover of the Libyan anthem composer Mohammed Abdel Wahab issued by Egypt.

The Rising Sun of Argentina as Described in the First Version of its Anthem

It is still unknown who designed the coat of arms, but it is often mentioned that there were three men: Alvear, Monteagudo and Vieytes, but it is known that a few years before, President Bernardino Rivadavia asked the Peruvian Antonio Isidoro Castro to create an Argentine coat of arms, but the two schemes were never found. The coat of arms is a figure, in which we find the following symbols: At the top is the famous sun symbol of Argentina, the gold-yellowed Sun of May, also found on the Flag of Argentina. The rising sun symbolizes the rising of Argentina, as described in the first version of the Argentine National Anthem: it says "Se levanta a la faz de la tierra una nueva y gloriosa nación," meaning "A new and glorious nation rises to the surface of earth." It must be noticed how the verb "rise" (and so in Spanish) can be used to describe the motion of the Sun.

Kazach Anthem Composers- Mukan Tulebayev, Eugeny Brusilovsky and Latif Khamidi on Stamps and Postcard

The national anthem of the Republic of Kazakhstan or National Anthem of the Republic of Kazakhstan was the title of the old national anthem of Kazakhstan, when it was adopted as the anthem from 1992 to early 2006. Upon independence in December 1991, the melody of the Kazakh SSR anthem, composed by Mukan Tulebayev, Eugeny Brusilovsky and Latif Khamidi, was retained; and new lyrics were adopted in 1992, written by Muzafar Alimbayev, Kadyr Myrzaliyev, Tumanbai Moldagaliyev and Zhadyra Daribayeva.

On January 7, 2006, "My Kazakhstan", written in 1956, was adopted as the new anthem, with modified lyrics.

We are a valiant people, sons of honor,
And all we've sacrificed to gain our freedom.
Emerging from malicious grip of fate, from hell of fire,
We scored a victory of glory and success.

Chorus:
Soar high up in the sky, oh, eagle of freedom,
Call up to harmony, agreement and accord!
For hero's might and strength is in the nation,
Just as the unity is nation's razing sword.

While honoring our mothers and respecting
The cream of cream of our rising nation
We welcomed all ill-starred and struck by ruin...
Our homeland, the steppe, a sacred cradle
Of friendship and accord
Gave all a shelter and a hearty refuge.

Chorus:

We've overcome the hardships
Let the past serve bitter lesson
But ahead we face a radiant future.
We bequeath our sacred legacy implying our mother tongue
And sovereignty and valour and traditions
So dearly cherished by our forefathers
As true mandate to future generations.

Dobri Hristov and the Bulgarian National Anthem

Mila Rodino ("Dear Motherland") is based on the music and text of the song Gorda Stara Planina ("Stately Stara Planina") composed by a 22-year old student, Tsvetan Radoslavov, as he left home to fight in the Serbo-Bulgarian War in 1885. Stara Planina is the traditional Bulgarian name of the Balkan mountains, extending 560 km from East Serbia, through central Bulgaria to the Black Sea. Radoslavov was born in Svishtov in 1863, and he later graduated in philosophy in Leipzig. His original song, Gorda Stara Planina was adapted by the composer Dobri Hristov in 1905 and became the national anthem of Bulgaria in 1963, replacing the previous anthem, "Balgariyo Mila" (Dear Bulgaria) composed by Georgi Zlatev-Tscherkin, Svetoslav Obretenov and Georgi Dimitri. Radoslavov was also a well-known scientist in Bulgaria and despite invitations to work in Vienna, Leipzig and Prague, he returned to Bulgaria to teach European and ancient languages, psychology, ethics and logic at the Third High School for Boys in Sofia.

Incidentally, Dobri Hristov (1875-1941) was one of the most important Bulgarian composers of the 20th century. Born in Varna, Bulgaria, he graduated from the Prague Conservatory in 1903 (the director at the time was none other than Antonín Dvořák). Hristov wrote orchestral and choral works using elements of Bulgarian folklore. The text of the anthem has been changed on several occasions, most recently in 1990. Bulgaria also has a Royal anthem composed by Emanuil Manolov, and the lyrics by Major General Georgi Agura.

Above is a stamp of Dobri Hristov issued by Bulgaria in 1975 to celebrate the centennial of his birth.

Macedonian Anthem Composer,Todor Skalovski, on Stamp

Todor Skalovski (born 21 January 1909, Tetovo, Ottoman Empire – died 1 July 2004, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia) was a famous Macedonian composer, chorus and orchestra conductor.

He was the founder of the First Macedonian State Symphony Orchestra, (1945. - 1948) and was editor in chief of Radio Skopje and chief conductor Radioorkestra (1948 - 1954). He directed and conducted the Skopje Opera, since 1954 and later became the director and conductor of the Philharmonic Republic of Macedonia. His compositions were mostly vocal works. Other works include October Cantata II, Suite Baltepe, Macedonian Oro, 2 rhapsodies, Zalez, The size ANIJA (on John Kukuzela), Prispivna song. He is best known as the composer of the Macedonian anthem "Denes Nad Makedonija".

Above is a stamp of Macedonian composers born in 1909. Todor Skalovski is the composer on the left. The stamp was issued in 2009.

Naphtali Herz Imber, Israeli Anthem Lyricist

Naphtali Herz Imber was a Jewish poet and Zionist who wrote the lyrics of Hatikvah, the national anthem of the State of Israel.

Naphtali was born in Złoczów (now Zolochiv, Ukraine), a town in Galicia, Austrian Empire. He began writing poetry at the age of 10 and several years later received an award from Emperor Franz Joseph for a poem on the centenary of Bukovina's joining to the Austrian Empire. In his youth he traveled in Hungary, Serbia, and Romania.

In 1882 Imber moved to Palestine as a secretary of Sir Laurence Oliphant. In 1886 in Jerusalem he published his first book of poems entitled Morning Star. One of the book's poems was Tikvateinu ("Our Hope"); its very first version was written yet in 1877 in Iaşi, Romania. This poem soon became the lyrics of the Zionist anthem and later the Israeli national anthem Hatikvah.

In 1887 he returned to Europe and lived in London; then traveled again, visited India and finally moved to the Unites States in 1892. Imber made a mockery of the serious and had a sardonic vulgar wit. He also translated the Omar Khayyam into Hebrew. He died in New York in 1909 from the effects of chronic alcoholism; in 1953 was re-interred in Jerusalem.