Editorial: O say, can you sing it?

Monday, May 29, 2006 | 6:58 a.m.

Quick, name the song in which this line occurs in the fourth verse: "Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation."

Congratulations if you said, "The Star-Spangled Banner," our national anthem.

But don't feel too bad if you were stumped, or didn't even know the national anthem had four verses. A recent Harris poll of 2,200 adult Americans revealed that 61 percent did not know all of the words in the first verse.

And a poll of teenagers by ABC News revealed that 38 percent do not know the official name of the anthem and that less than 35 percent can name its author. And only about 15 percent of teens can sing the anthem from memory.

Stepping into this information gap is the Reston, Va.-based National Association for Music Education. It is currently on tour throughout the United States with its National Anthem Project, which played here in Las Vegas earlier this month at the Fashion Show mall.

We believe in the work of this group, as the polls clearly show that Americans are losing their connection with this song that binds our country together. It is a shame that on patriotic holidays such as today, when the national anthem is sung at parades and other events, many people will find themselves at a loss for the words.

One message that the music teachers are taking across the country is that schools, as a national trend, are not emphasizing music education as much as they were in past decades. This could account for many people today not being able to sing the anthem or even cite its author or the war that inspired his words.

Most adults, if they stop to think about it, will remember that it was in school where they first learned the anthem and sang it often enough to remember it for years to come. We believe the teachers have a point that federal education policy makers should take to heart. In the valid interest of increasing test scores in math, science and reading, we should not neglect subjects such as music that add so much quality to our later lives.