The Nittany Lion

"The Nittany Lion," sometimes incorrectly referred to as "Hail to the Lion," was composed by James Leyden, who I believe was a member of the class of 1914. I transcribed a Penn State Blue Band recording by ear and made an arrangement for string quintet, or orchestra. And you know what they say, "once you kill a cow, you gotta make a burger." So I can't just make an arrangement and not play it. But I have no string quintet readily available to help me record it, and you know what else they say, "if you want it done right, do it yourself." So I recorded all the parts myself, with a violin, and altered the pitch as necessary. The viola sounds alright, but the cello and bass parts are noticeably strange.

Lyrics and Chords:

G. . . . . . . . . D. . . G. . . . . . . . . . C. . . . . . . . . . .G
Every college has a legend, passed on from year to year,
B. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Em. . . . . . . . .A. . . . . . . . . .D
To which they pledge allegiance, and always cherish dear.
G. . . . . . . . . D. . . . . .G. . . . . . . . . . . B. . . . . . . . . . . . . Em
But of all the honored idols, there's but one that stands the test,
C. . . . . . . . . . Am. C half dim. G/D Eaug7. .A. . . . . . . . . .D
It's the stately Nittany . . . . . . Li. . .on, the symbol of our best.

G. . . D. . . . G. . .C. . . . . .G
HAIL! to the Lion, loyal and true.
B. . . . . . . .Em. . . A. . . . . . . . . . . . . .D
HAIL! Alma Mater, with your white and blue.
G. . . . . . . . . E. . . . . .Am. .E. . .Am
PENN! STATE! forever, molder of men (and women),
C. . . . . . .C#dim .G/D.Fdim7. . . . . . Em7.A. . .D. . G
FIGHT! for her. . . honor — FIGHT! — and victory again.

Indiana has its Hoosiers,
Purdue its gold and black.
The Wildcats from Northwestern
and Spartans on attack.
Ohio State has its Buckeyes,
Up north, The Wolverines.
But the mighty Nittany Lions,
The best they've ever seen.

HAIL! to the Lion, loyal and true.
HAIL! Alma Mater, with your white and blue.
PENN! STATE! forever, molder of men (and women),
FIGHT! for her honor — FIGHT! — and victory again.

[This is an old verse and hasn't been used since Penn State joined the big ten]
There's Pittsburgh with its Panther,
and Penn her Red and Blue,
Dartmouth with its Indian,
and Yale her Bulldog, too.
There's Princeton with its Tiger,
and Cornell with its Bear.
But speaking now of victory,
We'll get the Lion's share.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Hail
• to
• The
• Nittany
• Lion
• James
• Leyden
• Penn
• State
• fight
• song
• marching
• Blue
• Band
• string
• quintet
• quartet
• music
• lyrics
• chords

[cutlass528]

This was really really cool, thank you for this. It's interesting to hear it in a medium other than the band and the Glee Club!

[BlindSoothsayer]

No problem, I'm just doing what I can. Thanks for listening!