"Hail, Pennsylvania!" () is a song written by Edgar M. Dilley (Class of 1897) as a submission to a University of Pennsylvania alumni committee-sponsored contest to write a song to the tune of "God Save the Tsar!", the national anthem of Imperial Russia, by Alexei Fyodorovich Lvov. Dilley was awarded $25 for creating it. It served as the state song of Pennsylvania until 1990 and now serves as the municipal anthem of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
History
Dilley was an assistant director with the University of Pennsylvania Glee Club at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. The piece was first performed by his group at its annual concert at the Academy of Music in 1895.
References
Further reading
- Cheney, Edward Potts. History of the University of Pennsylvania, 1740-1940. (1940.)
- George Nitzsche - Pennsylvania in Song and Music: Origin of Some of the Classics - Franklin Field Illustrated Volume 25: Number 3 October 19, 1940
External links
- Hear the song, as performed by The University of Pennsylvania Band
- University of Pennsylvania Archives
- The Practical Pennsylvanian