THE AFL 150 YEARS TV ADVERT

Sean Fagan of RL1908.com

Oh dear...don't tell anyone.... the music in the background of the AFL's 150 years advert - is a piece called "Nimrod", written and composed by Edward Elgar.

With the opening of the commercial emblazoning boldly as The True History of Australia, it takes a light-hearted look at Australian history and makes mostly tongue-in-cheek connections to Australian football history.

From the AFL's web site: AFL spokesman Colin McLeod said regardless of which sport you follow, one thing is undeniably true of Australian football – “it is our game”.

“It was invented here. It is played by us and has become a huge part of the social, cultural and economic life of our country,” he said.

“We thought that the 150th year of Australian football presented a terrific opportunity to celebrate this, in a very typically Australian way. In our 150th year, we want to recognise Australia's indigenous game – past, present and future – and its unique place in Australian society and culture.

So, in a typical Australian rules style, were told that this advertisement presents the 150th anniversary in a "very typically Australian way".

It continues the oft-heard AFL sentiment that Australians, in a nationalistic way, should cast away the other imported English football codes, and embrace Australian football.

Given the code is struggling to come to grips admitting that the 1858 schoolboys match and its first rules (1859) have their basis in England's Rugby School football (link: English origins), I found the choice of musical score rather ironic.

Surely the AFL would ensure that an Aussie composer provided the music to an advert celebrating 150 years of the Aussie game....Well, they didn't.

The AFL seems to have been unaware that the selected music used is by Edward Elgar, a man known worldwide as THE quintessential nineteenth century English composer.

If there was ever one person and his work who represented the antithesis of "all-things Australian football", and its philosophy of eschewing its Engish origins, its Elgar, his music and his place in history.

Elgar's music is invariably used to imply British patriotism! If anyone ever wants to invoke feelings of the old Empire, they turn to Elgar and his compositions.

Nimrod is always played at the Cenotaph in London on Remembrance Sunday (the Sunday nearest to 11th November).

You may perhaps already be familiar with Elgar through his other famous musical score, Land of Hope and Glory.

I'm told that if the AFL had made up their minds to go "classical" they could easily have gone for Peter Sculthorpe or particularly Ross Edwards ...men who have both written marvellous music that is quintessentially AUSTRALIAN.

How apt that the AFL should opt for such a quintessential English composer to celebrate the playing of a football game in 1858 that had its origins in Tom Brown's Schooldays and Rugby School.

link: English origins

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