When discussing nationalism in classical music, often the first American images that come up are apple pie, the West, and patriotic marches. Yet the American experience for centuries have included the music from all over the globe and from indigenous societies. American music for centuries included influence from Africa, the West Indies , Europe , Asia, indigenous groups, and Latin America.  In fact, when Anton Dvorak, a nationalist Bohemian composer, traveled the United States to gain inspiration for his New World Symphony , he based it on the music of the Native Americans and the African spirituals. To his European ears, the fresh and new American music that he heard was the music most unlike his own. American music traditions and music from the New World (Western Hemisphere) are often overlooked until the 20th century. In the 20th century, European traditions had grown so much in the Americas, that talented composers insisted on training in Europe to complete their stud...