Politics Aside, the National Anthem Poses a Variety of Issues for Broadcasters A virtually unsingable song makes an A1's job harder By Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Friday, August 24, 2018 - 11:22 am
Print This Story
Story Highlights
It doesn't matter whether you stand or kneel (or where you stand on taking a knee), the national anthem, an audio element that is part of virtually every sports event, gets its share of nonpolitical abuse, too. There are the truly bad renditions: the one by former Black Eyed Pea Fergie at this year's NBA All Star Weekend event, described in one tweet as Amy Winehouse doing a Britney Spears impersonation, is the most recent, and then there's what many consider the all-time worst interpretation, by Roseanne Barr at a 1990 San Diego Padres game. Whitney Houston's version before the 1991 Super Bowl is one of the most well-regarded.
Bill Stanley, who created Stanley Sound in 1987 to supply sports venues with recordings of organ music and sound effects, says he has seen The Star-Spangled Banner performed thousands of times, which is to say he has heard it all.
To Sing the Impossible Note
As a musician, he says, it is readily apparent to me when an inexperienced singer commences The Star-Spangled Banner' in a pitch that's too high, which usually leads to disaster later on when the tune's range becomes, well, terrifying. Knowing this impossible note is on the way can immediately distress an amateur and provoke a wobbly performance right away. I've heard dozens of singers just go ahead and make an ugly change of keys right in the middle of the song.
Whitney Houston's performance at the 1991 Super Bowl is considered one of the best renditions of The Star-Spangled Banner.
The impossible note is the high fifth occurring on the lyrics rocket's red glare, a full octave and a half from the song's lowest note. It's the one that causes most singers to stumble, often because they start the song in too high a key. However, because of the song's range, many vocalists also find it difficult to project the early stanzas in a key low enough to make the Impossible Note attainable. However, when a singer does hit The Note on pitch and with sufficient volume, it can send a stadium crowd into a frenzy as a reward. (The National Association for Music Education recommends the song be sung in the key of B-flat, with its high-F note accessible to most voices.)
Fergie notwithstanding, the NHL and the NFL tend to choose better vocalists, on average, than baseball, says Stanley: Until baseball teams engage a more limited field of competent, reliable performers during the regular season, including them in a broadcast would amount to a troubling nightly roll of the dice.
The earliest documented performance of the national anthem at a baseball game took place on May 15, 1862, during the opening game played at Union Base Ball and Cricket Grounds in Brooklyn. In an era without sound-reinforcement systems, performances were usually by marching bands and orchestras. Once amplified sound came into the picture, vocals became the norm.
A Controversial Issue
Networks and leagues vary on when they include the anthem in broadcasts. It's rarely included in regular-season game broadcasts; however, it's often included in the televised portion in event-level games, such as all-star games and postseason play.
But controversy over how some athletes acknowledge the anthem is changing that. On Friday, ESPN announced that the network won't televise the national anthem during its telecast of Monday Night Football. According to a survey by USA Today, CBS Sports doesn't plan to show the playing of The Star-Spangled Banner as part of its weekly NFL broadcasts, in line with the network's practice in recent years; Fox Sports will reportedly broadcast the anthem performance only during what it considers to be special-event broadcasts, according to an unnamed source; an NBC Sports spokesperson told the paper that plans for its NFL broadcasts this season are still undetermined.
However, on a practical level, broadcasters often have little to do with it other than just taking the feed from the venue's audio system.
We usually just take the stadium feed, says Dave Grundtvig, who has done A1 work for MLB and NFL broadcasts. They don't always use the appropriate microphones, but it's really all on the singer.
Some games will use a prerecorded version of the song, to avoid problems. In many cases, even its introduction is prerecorded. More and more often, singers are chosen for their celebrity, and, as with Super Bowl halftime shows, their selection is often linked to new recordings about to drop. But there are also the welcome surprises, like 13-year-old Nayah Damasen, who nailed it at Game 1 of the 2015 NBA, pausing perfectly before The Note, creating theatrical apprehension ahead of the vocal equivalent of making a half-court three-pointer.
Stanley has advice for those who supervise performances of the anthem, strongly recommending at least one run-through before game time, with some basic microphone-handling tips for novices. Not too close, not too far, he cautions on proximity to the mic. Don't give the [mixer] any surprises that would lead to overmodulation or feedback.
Then, he adds, you cross your fingers.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
13/05/2026
New Adobe Premiere Color Grading Mode Accelerated on NVIDIA GPUs
Joel Pennington May 13, 2026
0 Comments
New NVIDIA RTX-accelerated features streamlin...
13/05/2026
Grass Valley announced that dB Broadcast has delivered new IP-based outside broadcast (OB) trucks for Cloudbass, featuring Grass Valley LDX 100 Series cameras a...
13/05/2026
Ikegami will exhibit the latest additions to its wide range of broadcast production cameras, control units, viewfinders and monitors on stand 5D3-1 at Broadcast...
13/05/2026
FISE, working with the founding members of the XR Sports Alliance (XRSA), Accedo, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and HBS, have collaborated to develop an immersive...
13/05/2026
Canon Unveils New EOS R6 V Full-Frame EOS Camera and RF20-50mm F4 L IS USM PZ Bu...
13/05/2026
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Honors Beth Morrison and Moses Pendleton at Comme...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Creative software developer Foundry today announced the latest developments on Nuke Stage. A purpose-built application for end-to-end virtual production and in-...
13/05/2026
A definitive portrait of one of Ireland's most influential musicians
New TV documentary airs Monday 18 May on RT One and RT Player at 9.35pm
Watch the...
13/05/2026
Agentic AI is changing the way users get work done. Following the success of OpenClaw, the community is embracing new open source agentic frameworks. The latest...
13/05/2026
Reinforcement-learning agents - AI systems that learn by trial and error - can c...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
Politics Aside, the National Anthem Poses a Variety of Issues for Broadcasters A virtually unsingable song makes an A1's job harder By Dan Daley, Audio Editor 
