Gene Scheer

Gene Scheer (genescheer.com) is a two-time Grammy-nominated songwriter and librettist noted for his scope and versatility. His work has been featured at many leading opera companies across the country, including the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the San Francisco, Santa Fe, and Dallas Operas. He has also written songs for such illustrious singers as Denyce Graves, Renée Fleming, Joyce DiDonato, Patti LuPone, and Nathan Gunn. Gene was inspired to write "American Anthem" in 1998 while reading the book The Miracle at Philadelphia about the creation of the U.S. Constitution. Over the years, "American Anthem" has been performed for Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush and at the memorial service for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. A version of the song, sung by Norah Jones, was featured in Ken Burns’s Emmy Award-winning World War II documentary for PBS entitled The War. Gene lives in Connecticut withhis wife, Kristina.