The Sea Chanters (officially the United States Navy Band Sea Chanters) are a component unit of the

United States Navy Band The United States Navy Band, based at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., has served as the official musical organization of the U.S. Navy since 1925. The U.S. Navy Band serves the ceremonial needs at the seat of U.S. government, pe ...

. Activated in 1956 by order of Admiral

Arleigh Burke Arleigh Albert Burke (October 19, 1901 – January 1, 1996) was an Admiral (United States), admiral of the United States Navy who distinguished himself during World War II and the Korean War, and who served as Chief of Naval Operations during th ...

, the unit is a mixed chorus principally charged with "perpetuating songs of the sea".

History

In 1956, Lt. Harold Fultz, then the U.S. Navy Band's assistant leader, organized a group from the United States Navy School of Music to sing chanteys and patriotic songs for the State of the Nation dinner. Admiral Arleigh Burke, then

chief of naval operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the highest-ranking officer of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an Admiral (United States), admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the United States Secretary ...

, transferred the ensemble to the Navy Band, named them the Sea Chanters and tasked what was at the time the all-male chorus with "perpetuating the songs of the sea". In 1980, the group added women to their ranks for the first time. In subsequent years, the group would perform on "

Larry King Live ''Larry King Live'' is an American television talk show broadcast by CNN from June 3, 1985 to December 16, 2010. Hosted by Larry King, it was the network's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly. Ma ...

", "

CBS This Morning ''CBS This Morning'' (''CTM'') is an American morning television program that aired on CBS from November 30, 1987 to October 29, 1999, and again from January 9, 2012 to September 6, 2021. On November 1, 1999, the original incarnation was repla ...

", and at the premier of ''

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

''. They have also appeared with

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an American singer, actor, and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, from 1943 until 1987 ...

Marian Anderson Marian Anderson (February 27, 1897April 8, 1993) was an American contralto. She performed a wide range of music, from opera to spirituals. Anderson performed with renowned orchestras in major concert and recital venues throughout the United S ...

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (born Kenneth Donald Rogers) (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particul ...

, and

Lionel Richie Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. (born June 20, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He rose to fame in the 1970s as a songwriter and the co-lead singer of the Motown group Commodores; writing and recor ...

. The Sea Chanters' 2016 performance of the Egyptian song “Feha Haga Helwa”, sung on the occasion of the official visit of Gen. Mahmoud Hegazy to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, was popularly received by Egyptian social media users who viewed it "thousands" of times and commented on its "almost perfect Arabic".

September 11 memorial service

On 14 September 2011, the Sea Chanters performed the "

Battle Hymn of the Republic The "Battle Hymn of the Republic" is an American patriotic music, American patriotic song written by the abolitionist writer Julia Ward Howe during the American Civil War. Howe adapted her song from the soldiers' song "John Brown's Body" in N ...

" at the national memorial service for the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

at the

Washington National Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in the City and Episcopal Diocese of Washington, commonly known as Washington National Cathedral or National Cathedral, is a cathedral of the Episcopal Church. The cathedral is located in Wa ...

, immediately following the eulogy by

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

. Prior to the memorial service,

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

officials debated the wisdom of following Bush's speech with the "Battle Hymn of the Republic" due to both the song's length, at five stanzas, and its lyrics which were "unabashedly militant", describing the "fateful lightning" of a "terrible, swift sword". Later, some officials of the

Administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...

cited the performance by the Sea Chanters as an "awakening" of a need for war.

Organization

During most of the year, the Sea Chanters are posted to the

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

area to support state and Navy events, however, embark on a three-week United States tour annually. As of 2018, a majority of its 23 members held university degrees in music and are selected to the ensemble through a process of competitive audition. In addition to its repertoire of sea chanteys and traditional naval songs and ballads, the Sea Chanters also perform patriotic, operatic, and contemporary music.

Notable members

Rockwell Blake Rockwell Blake (born January 10, 1951) is an American operatic tenor, particularly known for his roles in Rossini operas. He was the first winner of the Richard Tucker Award. Biography Born and raised in Plattsburgh, NY, Blake was the son of a ...

References

External links