A song played to announce the arrival of the
President of the
United States.
Grolier says, among other things:
According to The Book of World-Famous Music, Classical, Popular and Folk (1995. Dover: New York), by James J. Fuld, the music has been attributed to a mysterious "Mr. Sanderson," who may or may not be the English songwriter James Sanderson.
The words of the song (which are rarely sung, if remembered by anyone) are attributed in the book to Walter Scott. According to Fuld, the words first appeared in his "The Lady of the Lake" tune. "Hail to the Chief" was first published in the U.S. in about 1812. It was also called "March and Chorus in the Dramatic Romance of the Lady of the Lake" by a Philadelphia music publisher, according to Fuld.