Last night I resumed my attendance of the Defender's Day celebrations at Ft. McHenry. This commemorates the successful defense of Baltimore on September 13, 1814, when HM armed forces, freshly returned from the burning of Washington, (an act of noblesse obliges over which true American patriots become misty eyed to this day) attempted to shell the fort into submission. They staged a (small scale) reenactment of the Battle of North Point complete with skirmishers, regular foot soldiers, and a cannon, but this year there was added a drum and fife group, as was the custom back then. The US Army Field Band and Soldiers' Chorus did a 45 minute show, featuring a suitably multi-cultural selection of composers, ending (of course) with the 1812 Overture by the well know American composer Piotr Tchaikovsky; the raising of the big Ft. McHenry flag while the "The Star-Spangled Banner" was played, and a fireworks display closed the evening.

While this was not a concert to “rock the house”, it did keep a local tradition alive for the 192nd consecutive year. A Good Show.

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Eudaimonia