Role of music in World War II
Encyclopedia
World War II was the first major global conflict to take place in the age of electronically mass distributed music. By 1940 96.2% of Northeastern urban households in the United States of America had radio
. The lowest group to take up, Southern Rural families still had 1 radio
for every two household. During the Nazi rule radio ownership in Germany
rose from 4 to 16 million households. As the major powers entered war millions of citizens had home radio devices that did not exist in the First World War. Also during the pre-war period sound was introduced to cinema and musicals were very popular.
Therefore World War II was a unique situation for music and its relationship to warfare. Never before was it possible for not only single songs but also single recordings of songs to be so widely distributed to the population. Never before had the number of listeners to a single performance (a recording or broadcast production) been so high. And never before had states
had so much power to determine not only what songs were performed and listened to, but to control the recordings not allowing local people to alter the songs in their own performances. Though local people still sang and produced songs, this form of music faced serious new competition from centralized electronic distributed music.
forces. Based on a German poem the song was recorded in both English
and German versions. The poem was set to music in 1938 and was a hit with troops in the Afrika Korps
. Mobile desert combat required a large number of radio units and the British troops in the North African Campaign
started to enjoy the song so much that it was quickly translated in to English. The song was used throughout the war as not only a popular song, but a propaganda tool.
Take note of the non-aggressive and hopeful tone of the song “When The Lights Go On Again”:
It is remarkable that this is not the song of a people wanting to take revenge, or establish an empire, but of a people craving peace. Likely in Japan
, Germany, and Russia
these feelings were the same with most people, but could not be expressed as openly as they were in the Democracies, who were able to use the personal desires of people as a tool in war. Propaganda was consent.
It is also worth noting that by 1943 few Germans would have had many illusions about what the end of the war would mean. It would have been hard to sing about defeat, for when the lights went on again in Berlin it would be on a defeated city. Germans in Berlin
sang "Berlin is Still Berlin", clinging to the past and intentionally almost ignoring the future that was sung about in America and the British Empire.
without compromise and the songs about a world after the war at peace with the boys coming home not only meet the personal desires of people but also reflected the goals of US government. Franklin Delano Roosevelt had always been motivated for a quick end to the war.
This unity of private and state desire likely gave the UK and the USA a degree of energy that allowed the nations to accomplish a great deal more at less human cost than the other major powers in the war. The mass suffering at the hands of the governments was not necessary as it was in Germany.
had had quite an elitist approach to popular music. Jazz, swing or big band music for dancing was relegated to a few late night spots. During the war, the BBC
was obliged to adapt, if only because British soldiers were listening to German radio stations to hear their dance music favourites.
This adaptation was not without conflict. The BBC establishment reluctantly increased the amount of dance music played, but censorship
was severe. The American hit "Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer" for example was censored because of its almost blasphemous mix of religious words and a foxtrot melody. BBC heads were also worried about American-style crooners undermining the virility of British men.
The BBC establishment tried hard to stick to the jaunty tone which they felt had helped to win the first world war - so George Formby
and Gracie Fields
were very much played on the radio. Indeed, these two stars were undoubtedly more heroes to working class people in Britain than was Winston Churchill
, since they were seen to "come from the ordinary people."
The United States did not need a forward Propaganda Minister; they could count on big bands producing music that reflected the governments primary interest because they were the interests of the population.
Britain did have a mass media which played popular music, much enjoyed by the Germans stationed in France and the Low Countries or flying over Britain. The most famous single performer was Vera Lynn
who became known as "the forces' sweetheart".
Popular concert songs in Britain during the war included:
The theme tune of the TV series Dad's Army
, “Who do you think you are kidding, Mr Hitler?” does not date from the war, although it was intended as a gentle pastiche of wartime songs. With lyrics by Jimmy Perry and music by Perry and Derek Taverner, it was sung by one of Perry's childhood idols, wartime entertainer Bud Flanagan
who died in 1968, soon after the first episode played.
took a strong interest in promoting "Germanic" culture and music which returned people to the "folk culture" of their remote ancestors, while promoting the distribution of radio to transmit propaganda at the same time. The Nazi government had an obsession with controlling culture and promoting the culture it controlled. For this reason the common people's tastes in music were much more secret. Many Germans used their new radios to listen to the jazz
music hated by Hitler but loved all over the world.
In art, this attack came after expressionism
, impressionism
, and all forms of modernism
. Forms of music targeted included jazz
as well as the music of many of the more dissonant modern classical composers, including that of Igor Stravinsky
, Paul Hindemith
, and Arnold Schoenberg
. Hindemith was one of many composers who escaped the Third Reich as a result of musical persecution (as well as racial persecution, since Hindemith was Jewish). Modern composers who took a more conventional approach to music, however, were welcomed by the Third Reich; Carl Orff
and Richard Strauss
, for example, were able to stay in the country during the Nazi period.
Also a subtle factor of history makes gaining a reliable picture of the music of Germany more difficult than among the Allies. World War II in the English speaking world is usually remembered as a great triumph and the music is often performed with a sense of pride. Therefore, over time the collective consciousness of this period's music has become stronger. In Germany, World War II is generally seen as a shameful period; it would be difficult to imagine a band playing 'all the old favorites' of World War II in a public place.
Popular music is tied with nostalgia and collective memory. Though a historian can find samples of music that was played in radio or collect soldiers' songs from a period, ranking the subjective meaning and value assigned to a song by the people of that period will be greatly impacted by those subjects' later opinion of that music.
For example it is known that many Germans enjoyed American jazz
music, it is also known that Germans sang songs in Nazi sponsored events; but it would be difficult to determine the relative popularity of this music in the current context of shame concerning the war.
Therefore the best that can be understood about German Music during the war is the official Nazi government policy, the level of enforcement, and some notion of the diversity of other music listened to, but as the losers in the war German Music and Nazi songs
from World War II has not been assigned the high heroic status of American and British popular music, although as the music itself goes, it is considered by many as being above the level of the latter, which is also true of Fascist Italian music of the time.
Therefore the Government officially acknowledged certain composers as true Germans, including:
or Entartete though degenerate is probably a poor translation of the use the Nazis made of this sign, for to them it included all things Jewish, Communist, along with mental illness, gay and lesbian behavior, transgender, and expressionist and modernist.
Along with exhibitions of Degenerate Art
Entartete Kunst the Nazi government identified certain music, composers and performers as Entartete Musik, these included:
In 1938 Nazi Germany passed an official law on Jazz music. Not surprisingly it deals with the racial nature of the music and makes law based on racial theories. Jazz was “Negroid”; It posed a threat to European higher culture, and was therefore forbidden except in the case of scientific study.
Popular songs were officially encouraged during the war including:
A strange note is that Goebbels commissioned a swing band called "Charlie and His Orchestra
" which seemed to have existed for propaganda purposes.
and Polish Armed Forces in the East
. Notable ones included Siekiera, motyka
, the most popular song in occupied Poland; Rozszumiały się wierzby płaczące - the most popular song of the Polish partisans; Czerwone maki na Monte Cassino
- the most popular song of the Polish Armed Forces in the West; and Oka, the most popular song of the Polish Armed Forces in the East.
Dent Wheeler on Axis Sally during the battle of the Bulge
"There is no 'Tokyo Rose'; the name is strictly a GI invention. The name has been applied to at least two lilting Japanese voices on the Japanese radio. ... Government monitors listening in 24 hours a day have never heard the words 'Tokyo Rose' over a Japanese-controlled Far Eastern radio."
During World War II often cut off troops or isolated outposts found themselves exposed in the radio range of the enemy, which used popular music as a means to attract listeners and then provide propaganda messages.
This type of propaganda was performed by both sides and is some of the earliest mass psych-ops. Often the propagandist became popular with the other sides, and there is little evidence that these had any impact, except that the Axis participants were often detained and if originally from allied countries prosecuted, while Allied broadcasters were seen as legitimate. Again it shows the way music is understood in the context of World War II is from the winners point of view, whereas Tokyo Rose
(Iva Ikuko Toguri D'Aquino) and Axis Sally (Mildred Gillars) faced years of persecution after the war.
England executed Lord Haw Haw (William Joyce
) for treason, in 1946. Again there can really be little in the way of an objective history of music in World War II. The historical context since the war, the revelations of the evils of the Axis regimes, and the ultimate victory of the consumer society foretold in the songs of the allies impose a context upon the events like viewing a star through the lens of a telescope.
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
. The lowest group to take up, Southern Rural families still had 1 radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
for every two household. During the Nazi rule radio ownership in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
rose from 4 to 16 million households. As the major powers entered war millions of citizens had home radio devices that did not exist in the First World War. Also during the pre-war period sound was introduced to cinema and musicals were very popular.
Therefore World War II was a unique situation for music and its relationship to warfare. Never before was it possible for not only single songs but also single recordings of songs to be so widely distributed to the population. Never before had the number of listeners to a single performance (a recording or broadcast production) been so high. And never before had states
Sovereign state
A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...
had so much power to determine not only what songs were performed and listened to, but to control the recordings not allowing local people to alter the songs in their own performances. Though local people still sang and produced songs, this form of music faced serious new competition from centralized electronic distributed music.
German English song
"Lili Marlene" was perhaps the most popular song of World War II with both German and BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
forces. Based on a German poem the song was recorded in both English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and German versions. The poem was set to music in 1938 and was a hit with troops in the Afrika Korps
Afrika Korps
The German Africa Corps , or the Afrika Korps as it was popularly called, was the German expeditionary force in Libya and Tunisia during the North African Campaign of World War II...
. Mobile desert combat required a large number of radio units and the British troops in the North African Campaign
North African campaign
During the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
started to enjoy the song so much that it was quickly translated in to English. The song was used throughout the war as not only a popular song, but a propaganda tool.
American songs
American troops had regular access to radio in all but the most difficult combat situations, and not only did soldiers know specific songs, but specific recordings. This gave a nature to American troops music during WWII, not as much songs sung around a fire or while marching, but listened to in the mess between combat on Armed Forces Radio.- "(There'll Be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover(There'll Be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover" The White Cliffs of Dover" is a popular World War II song made famous by Vera Lynn with her 1942 recording—one of her best known recordings. Written in 1941 by Walter Kent and Nat Burton, the song was also among the most popular Second World War tunes...
" - Jimmy DorseyJimmy DorseyJames "Jimmy" Dorsey was a prominent American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, trumpeter, composer, and big band leader. He was known as "JD"...
& His Orchestra (1942) - "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate The PositiveAc-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive"Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" is a popular song. The music was written by Harold Arlen and the lyrics by Johnny Mercer, and it was published in 1944. It is sung in the style of a sermon, and explains that accentuating the positive is key to happiness...
" - Johnny MercerJohnny MercerJohn Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
(1944) - “Be Careful, It's My Heart” - Composer: Irving BerlinIrving BerlinIrving Berlin was an American composer and lyricist of Jewish heritage, widely considered one of the greatest songwriters in American history.His first hit song, "Alexander's Ragtime Band", became world famous...
- From: Movie Holiday InnHoliday InnHoliday Inn is a brand of hotels, formally a economy motel chain, forming part of the British InterContinental Hotels Group . It is one of the world's largest hotel chains with 238,440 bedrooms and 1,301 hotels globally. There are currently 5 hotels in the pipeline...
(1942) - "Boogie Woogie Bugle BoyBoogie Woogie Bugle Boy"Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" was a major hit for The Andrews Sisters and an iconic World War II tune. This song can be considered an early jump blues recording...
" - Andrews Sisters (1941)” - "Comin' In On A Wing And A Prayer" - The Song Spinners
- "Der Fuehrer's FaceDer Fuehrer's FaceDer Fuehrer's Face is a 1943 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The cartoon, which features Donald Duck in a nightmare setting working at a factory in Nazi Germany, was made in an effort to sell war bonds and is an example of...
" - Spike JonesSpike JonesMel Blanc, the voice of Bugs Bunny and other Warner Brothers cartoon characters, performed a drunken, hiccuping verse for 1942's "Clink! Clink! Another Drink"...
and his City Slickers (1943) - "Remember Pearl Harbor" - Sammy KayeSammy KayeSammy Kaye , born Samuel Zarnocay, Jr., was an American bandleader and songwriter, whose tag line, "Swing and sway with Sammy Kaye", became one of the most famous of the Big Band Era.-Biography:...
(1942) - "Don't Fence Me InDon't Fence Me InDon't Fence Me In is the fifth episode of the fourth series of the British comedy series Dad's Army that was originally transmitted on Friday 23 October 1970.-Synopsis:...
" - Bing CrosbyBing CrosbyHarry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
and The Andrews SistersThe Andrews SistersThe Andrews Sisters were a highly successful close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews , soprano Maxene Angelyn Andrews , and mezzo-soprano Patricia Marie "Patty" Andrews...
(Cover) - "Don't Get Around Much AnymoreDon't Get Around Much Anymore"Don't Get Around Much Anymore" is a jazz standard with music by Duke Ellington and lyrics by Bob Russell. The tune was originally titled "Never No Lament" and was first recorded by Ellington in 1940 as a big band instrumental...
(Never No Lament)" - Duke EllingtonDuke EllingtonEdward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
& His Orchestra - Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree (With Anyone Else But Me) - Composer: Lew BrownLew BrownLew Brown was a lyricist for popular songs in the United States.Brown was born as Louis Brownstein in Odessa, Russian Empire...
, Sam. H. Stept, and Charlie Tobias (1942) - Ev'ry Time We Say GoodbyeEv'ry Time We Say GoodbyePublished by Chappell & Company, "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" is a song with lyrics and music by Cole Porter. It was introduced in 1944 in Billy Rose's musical revue, Seven Lively Arts....
- Composer: Cole PorterCole PorterCole Albert Porter was an American composer and songwriter. Born to a wealthy family in Indiana, he defied the wishes of his domineering grandfather and took up music as a profession. Classically trained, he was drawn towards musical theatre...
- From: Musical "Seven Lively ArtsSeven Lively ArtsThe Seven Lively Arts was a short-lived Sunday afternoon hour-long television anthology series produced in 1957 by CBS television and executive producer John Houseman. It was hosted by New York Herald Tribune critic John Crosby...
" (1944) - "G.I. Jive" - Johnny MercerJohnny MercerJohn Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
- "I Don't Want To Walk Without YouI Don't Want to Walk without You"I Don't Want to Walk Without You" is a popular song.The music was written by Jule Styne, the lyrics by Frank Loesser. The song was published in 1941 and became a number one pop hit for Harry James and his orchestra in 1942. Tommy Tucker recorded the song on December 2, 1941.There have been...
" - Harry JamesHarry JamesHenry Haag “Harry” James was a trumpeter who led a jazz swing band during the Big Band Era of the 1930s and 1940s. He was especially known among musicians for his astonishing technical proficiency as well as his superior tone.-Biography:He was born in Albany, Georgia, the son of a bandleader of a...
& His Orchestra Composer: Frank LoesserFrank LoesserFrank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...
and Jule StyneJule StyneJule Styne was a British-born American songwriter especially famous for a series of Broadway musicals, which included several very well known and frequently revived shows.-Early life:...
- From: Movie "Sweater GirlSweater girlSweater girl describes a fashion look made popular in the 1940s and 1950s by Hollywood actresses such as Lana Turner and Jane Russell which was exemplified by a tight sweater which emphasized the wearer's bustline...
" (1941) - "I Wonder" - Louis ArmstrongLouis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
- I'll Be Seeing You - The Ink Spots/Bing CrosbyBing CrosbyHarry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
Words by Irving Kahal, music by Sammy Fain - "I'll Get By (As Long As I Have You)" - Ink Spots
- "I'll Walk AloneI'll Walk Alone"I'll Walk Alone" is a 1944 popular song with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Sammy Cahn. The song, like others that came out during the World War II years such as "Till Then," reflects the enforced separation of couples caused by the war...
" - Martha TiltonMartha TiltonMartha Tilton was an American popular singer, best-known for her 1939 recording of "And the Angels Sing" with Benny Goodman. She was sometimes introduced as The Liltin' Miss Tilton.Tilton and her family lived in Texas and Kansas, relocating to Los Angeles when she was seven years old... - "It's Been A Long, Long Time" - Harry JamesHarry JamesHenry Haag “Harry” James was a trumpeter who led a jazz swing band during the Big Band Era of the 1930s and 1940s. He was especially known among musicians for his astonishing technical proficiency as well as his superior tone.-Biography:He was born in Albany, Georgia, the son of a bandleader of a...
& His Orchestra - "Long Ago (And Far Away)Long Ago (and Far Away)"Long Ago " is a popular song from the 1944 Technicolor film musical Cover Girl starring Rita Hayworth and Gene Kelly and released by Columbia Pictures. The music was written by Jerome Kern, and the lyrics were written by Ira Gershwin...
" - Jo StaffordJo StaffordJo Elizabeth Stafford was an American singer of traditional pop music and jazz standards and occasional actress whose career ran from the late 1930s to the early 1960s...
Composer: Ira GershwinIra GershwinIra Gershwin was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs of the 20th century....
and Jerome KernJerome KernJerome David Kern was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in over 100 stage works, including such classics as "Ol' Man River", "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man", "A...
- From: Musical "Cover GirlCover girlA cover girl is a woman whose photograph features on the front cover of a magazine. She may be a model, celebrity or entertainer. The term would generally not be used to describe a casual, once-off appearance by a person on the cover of a magazine....
" (1944) - ”Kiss The Boys Goodbye” - Composer: Frank LoesserFrank LoesserFrank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...
and Victor SchertzingerVictor SchertzingerVictor L. Schertzinger was an American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His films include Paramount on Parade , Something to Sing About with James Cagney, and the first two "Road" pictures Road to Singapore and Road to Zanzibar...
- From: Movie "Kiss The Boys Goodbye" (1941) - "Praise the Lord and Pass the AmmunitionPraise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition"Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition" is an American patriotic song written by Frank Loesser and published as sheet music in 1942 by Famous Music Corp. The song was a response to the attack on Pearl Harbor that marked United States involvement in World War II.The song describes a chaplain ...
" - Composer: Frank LoesserFrank LoesserFrank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...
(1942) - "Sentimental JourneySentimental Journey (song)"Sentimental Journey" is a popular song, published in 1944. The music was written by Les Brown and Ben Homer, and the lyrics were written by Arthur Green.-History:...
" - Les BrownLes Brown (bandleader)Les Brown, Sr. and the Band of Renown are a big band that began in the late 1930s, initially as the group Les Brown and His Blue Devils that Brown led while a student at Duke University. He was the first president of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences...
& His Orchestra; Composer: Bud GreenBud GreenBud Green was an Austrian-born songwriter. Bud Green grew up in Harlem at 108th & Madison Ave. at the turn of the century, the eldest of seven. He dropped out of elementary school to sell newspapers and help the family...
, Les BrownLes Brown (bandleader)Les Brown, Sr. and the Band of Renown are a big band that began in the late 1930s, initially as the group Les Brown and His Blue Devils that Brown led while a student at Duke University. He was the first president of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences...
, and Ben Homer – (1944) - "Till ThenTill Then*Till Then, a popular song popularized by The Mills Brothers in 1944 and later by The Hilltoppers in 1954, single by The Classics 1963 Charted #20*Till Then, a 1963 album by Ruby & The Romantics...
" - Mills BrothersMills BrothersThe Mills Brothers, sometimes billed as The Four Mills Brothers, were an American jazz and pop vocal quartet of the 20th century who made more than 2,000 recordings that combined sold more than 50 million copies, and garnered at least three dozen gold records... - "Waitin' For The Train To Come In" - Peggy LeePeggy LeePeggy Lee was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress in a career spanning six decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local radio to singing with Benny Goodman's big band, she forged a sophisticated persona, evolving into a multi-faceted artist and...
- "When The Lights Go On Again (All Over The World)" - Vaughn MonroeVaughn MonroeVaughn Wilton Monroe was an American baritone singer, trumpeter and big band leader and actor, most popular in the 1940s and 1950s. He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for recording and radio.-Biography:...
& His Orchestra (1943) - You'd Be So Nice To Come Home ToYou'd Be So Nice to Come Home To"You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To" is a popular song written by Cole Porter, for the 1943 film Something to Shout About, where it was introduced by Janet Blair and Don Ameche. Dinah Shore had a major hit with the song at the time of its introduction...
- Composer: Cole PorterCole PorterCole Albert Porter was an American composer and songwriter. Born to a wealthy family in Indiana, he defied the wishes of his domineering grandfather and took up music as a profession. Classically trained, he was drawn towards musical theatre...
- From: Musical "Something To Shout AboutSomething to Shout About (film)Something to Shout About is a 1943 Columbia musical film directed by Gregory Ratoff. The movie stars Don Ameche and Janet Blair and was nominated for two Oscars.-Plot:...
" – (1942) - "Yours" - Jimmy DorseyJimmy DorseyJames "Jimmy" Dorsey was a prominent American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, trumpeter, composer, and big band leader. He was known as "JD"...
& His Orchestra
Take note of the non-aggressive and hopeful tone of the song “When The Lights Go On Again”:
-
- When the lights go on again all over the world
- And the boys are home again all over the world
- And rain or snow is all that may fall from the skies above
- A kiss won't mean "goodbye" but "Hello to love
-
- When the lights go on again all over the world
- And the ships will sail again all over the world
- Then we'll have time for things like wedding rings and free hearts will sing
- When the lights go on again all over the world
-
- When the lights go on again all over the world
It is remarkable that this is not the song of a people wanting to take revenge, or establish an empire, but of a people craving peace. Likely in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Germany, and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
these feelings were the same with most people, but could not be expressed as openly as they were in the Democracies, who were able to use the personal desires of people as a tool in war. Propaganda was consent.
It is also worth noting that by 1943 few Germans would have had many illusions about what the end of the war would mean. It would have been hard to sing about defeat, for when the lights went on again in Berlin it would be on a defeated city. Germans in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
sang "Berlin is Still Berlin", clinging to the past and intentionally almost ignoring the future that was sung about in America and the British Empire.
Music in the Democratic Allies
What is remarkable about the efforts in the UK and the USA during World War II is the degree to which the desires of most people were in line with that of the leaders. This meant the American and British government could count on popular music reflecting much of the same war aims that the government wanted. The people of America wanted a quick final victory over the AxisAxis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
without compromise and the songs about a world after the war at peace with the boys coming home not only meet the personal desires of people but also reflected the goals of US government. Franklin Delano Roosevelt had always been motivated for a quick end to the war.
This unity of private and state desire likely gave the UK and the USA a degree of energy that allowed the nations to accomplish a great deal more at less human cost than the other major powers in the war. The mass suffering at the hands of the governments was not necessary as it was in Germany.
British popular music and the BBC
Before the war, BBC radioBBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
had had quite an elitist approach to popular music. Jazz, swing or big band music for dancing was relegated to a few late night spots. During the war, the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
was obliged to adapt, if only because British soldiers were listening to German radio stations to hear their dance music favourites.
This adaptation was not without conflict. The BBC establishment reluctantly increased the amount of dance music played, but censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
was severe. The American hit "Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer" for example was censored because of its almost blasphemous mix of religious words and a foxtrot melody. BBC heads were also worried about American-style crooners undermining the virility of British men.
The BBC establishment tried hard to stick to the jaunty tone which they felt had helped to win the first world war - so George Formby
George Formby
George Formby, OBE , born George Hoy Booth, was a British comedy actor, singer-songwriter, and comedian. He sang light, comical songs, accompanying himself on the banjo ukulele or banjolele...
and Gracie Fields
Gracie Fields
Dame Gracie Fields, DBE , was an English-born, later Italian-based actress, singer and comedienne and star of both cinema and music hall.-Early life:...
were very much played on the radio. Indeed, these two stars were undoubtedly more heroes to working class people in Britain than was Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
, since they were seen to "come from the ordinary people."
The United States did not need a forward Propaganda Minister; they could count on big bands producing music that reflected the governments primary interest because they were the interests of the population.
Britain did have a mass media which played popular music, much enjoyed by the Germans stationed in France and the Low Countries or flying over Britain. The most famous single performer was Vera Lynn
Vera Lynn
Dame Vera Lynn, DBE is an English singer-songwriter and actress whose musical recordings and performances were enormously popular during World War II. During the war she toured Egypt, India and Burma, giving outdoor concerts for the troops...
who became known as "the forces' sweetheart".
Popular concert songs in Britain during the war included:
- Run Rabbit RunRun Rabbit RunRun Rabbit Run is a song written by Noel Gay and Ralph Butler. The music was by Noel Gay and the song was originally sung by Flanagan and Allen....
- Sung by Flanagan and AllenFlanagan and AllenFlanagan and Allen were a British singing and comedy double act popular during World War II. Its members were Bud Flanagan and Chesney Allen...
(1939) Words by Noel GayNoel GayNoel Gay was born Reginald Moxon Armitage. He also used the name Stanley Hill professionally. He was a successful British composer of popular music of the 1930s and 1940s whose output comprised 45 songs as well as the music for 28 films and 26 London shows...
& Ralph ButlerRalph ButlerRalph T. Butler was a British songwriter, responsible for the lyrics of many popular songs of the 1930s and later, mostly with comic or novelty elements.He was active as a songwriter from the late 1920s until the mid-1950s...
. Music by Noel GayNoel GayNoel Gay was born Reginald Moxon Armitage. He also used the name Stanley Hill professionally. He was a successful British composer of popular music of the 1930s and 1940s whose output comprised 45 songs as well as the music for 28 films and 26 London shows...
. - There'll Always Be An EnglandThere'll Always Be an England"There'll Always Be an England" is an English patriotic song, written and distributed in the summer of 1939, which became highly popular upon the outbreak of World War II...
(1939–40) Words by Hugh CharlesHugh CharlesHugh Charles is a Canadian football running back for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. He was originally signed by the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2007 before signing with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2008. He played college football at Colorado. He was...
. Music by Ross Parker & Harry Parr DaviesHarry Parr DaviesHarry Parr-Davies was a Welsh composer and songwriter.He was born Harry Parr Davies in Briton Ferry, Neath, South Wales and was a musical prodigy, having composed whole operettas by the time he was in his teens. He came to the attention of composer Sir Walford Davies, who encouraged him to study...
. Sung by Vera LynnVera LynnDame Vera Lynn, DBE is an English singer-songwriter and actress whose musical recordings and performances were enormously popular during World War II. During the war she toured Egypt, India and Burma, giving outdoor concerts for the troops...
. - We'll Meet Again Words and Music by Ross Parker and Hugh CharlesHugh CharlesHugh Charles is a Canadian football running back for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. He was originally signed by the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2007 before signing with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2008. He played college football at Colorado. He was...
(1939)
-
- This is perhaps the most famous war time song with the lines:
-
- We'll meet again
- Don't know where
- Don't know when
- But I know we'll meet again some sunny day
-
- This is perhaps the most famous war time song with the lines:
-
- Vera Lynn'sVera LynnDame Vera Lynn, DBE is an English singer-songwriter and actress whose musical recordings and performances were enormously popular during World War II. During the war she toured Egypt, India and Burma, giving outdoor concerts for the troops...
recording was memorably played during an apocalyptic scene in Dr. Strangelove; the ByrdsThe ByrdsThe Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
covered it (to similarly ironic effect) on their first album.
- Vera Lynn's
- (There'll Be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover(There'll Be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover" The White Cliffs of Dover" is a popular World War II song made famous by Vera Lynn with her 1942 recording—one of her best known recordings. Written in 1941 by Walter Kent and Nat Burton, the song was also among the most popular Second World War tunes...
Words by Nat Burton and Music by Walter Kent (1941–42) - When the Lights Go On Again All Over the World Written by Eddie Seller, Sol Marcus, and Bennie Benjamin
The theme tune of the TV series Dad's Army
Dad's Army
Dad's Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft and broadcast on BBC television between 1968 and 1977. The series ran for 9 series and 80 episodes in total, plus a radio series, a feature film and a stage show...
, “Who do you think you are kidding, Mr Hitler?” does not date from the war, although it was intended as a gentle pastiche of wartime songs. With lyrics by Jimmy Perry and music by Perry and Derek Taverner, it was sung by one of Perry's childhood idols, wartime entertainer Bud Flanagan
Bud Flanagan
Bud Flanagan was a popular English music hall and vaudeville entertainer from the 1930s until the 1960s. Flanagan was famous as a wartime entertainer and his achievements were recognised when he was awarded the O.B.E. in 1960.- Family background :Flaganan was born Chaim Reuben Weintrop in...
who died in 1968, soon after the first episode played.
Russian songs
- "KatiušaKatyusha (song)Katyusha, Katusha or Katjusha is a Soviet wartime song about a girl longing for her beloved, who is away on military service. The music was composed in 1938 by Matvei Blanter and the lyrics were written by Mikhail Isakovsky. It was first performed by Valentina Batishcheva in the Column Hall of...
" - "Proščanije SlaviankiFarewell of SlaviankaFarewell of Slavianka is a Russian patriotic march, written by the composer Vasily Agapkin in honour of the Bulgarian women bidding farewell to their husbands who left for the First Balkan War. The march premiered in Tambov in 1912 and was subsequently released as a single...
" (Farewell of Slavianka) - "Na Bezymiannoj VysoteOn The Nameless Height (song)On The Nameless Height is a Soviet song about World War II. The text was written by Mikhail Matusovskiy in 1963 and music by Veniamin Basner. The song was based on the real history and is about three soldiers, fifteen friends of whom died in the battlefield...
" - "Sviaščennaja VojnaSvyaschennaya VoynaSvyashchennaya Voyna was one of the most famous Soviet songs associated with the Second World War. It was written by Vasily Lebedev-Kumach in 1941 upon the beginning of the German invasion of the Soviet Union...
" (Holy war) - "Oj, Tumany" (Oh, the Fogs)
- "Tiomnaja Noč" (Dark Night)
- "Sinij Platoček" (Blue Kerchief)
- "Ždi Menia" (Await Me)
- "Ogoniok" (Beacon)
German songs
The Nazi governmentNazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
took a strong interest in promoting "Germanic" culture and music which returned people to the "folk culture" of their remote ancestors, while promoting the distribution of radio to transmit propaganda at the same time. The Nazi government had an obsession with controlling culture and promoting the culture it controlled. For this reason the common people's tastes in music were much more secret. Many Germans used their new radios to listen to the jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
music hated by Hitler but loved all over the world.
In art, this attack came after expressionism
Expressionism
Expressionism was a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas...
, impressionism
Impressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s...
, and all forms of modernism
Modernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
. Forms of music targeted included jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
as well as the music of many of the more dissonant modern classical composers, including that of Igor Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
, Paul Hindemith
Paul Hindemith
Paul Hindemith was a German composer, violist, violinist, teacher, music theorist and conductor.- Biography :Born in Hanau, near Frankfurt, Hindemith was taught the violin as a child...
, and Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
. Hindemith was one of many composers who escaped the Third Reich as a result of musical persecution (as well as racial persecution, since Hindemith was Jewish). Modern composers who took a more conventional approach to music, however, were welcomed by the Third Reich; Carl Orff
Carl Orff
Carl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...
and Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
, for example, were able to stay in the country during the Nazi period.
Also a subtle factor of history makes gaining a reliable picture of the music of Germany more difficult than among the Allies. World War II in the English speaking world is usually remembered as a great triumph and the music is often performed with a sense of pride. Therefore, over time the collective consciousness of this period's music has become stronger. In Germany, World War II is generally seen as a shameful period; it would be difficult to imagine a band playing 'all the old favorites' of World War II in a public place.
Popular music is tied with nostalgia and collective memory. Though a historian can find samples of music that was played in radio or collect soldiers' songs from a period, ranking the subjective meaning and value assigned to a song by the people of that period will be greatly impacted by those subjects' later opinion of that music.
For example it is known that many Germans enjoyed American jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
music, it is also known that Germans sang songs in Nazi sponsored events; but it would be difficult to determine the relative popularity of this music in the current context of shame concerning the war.
Therefore the best that can be understood about German Music during the war is the official Nazi government policy, the level of enforcement, and some notion of the diversity of other music listened to, but as the losers in the war German Music and Nazi songs
Nazi songs
Nazi songs deals with songs that were written for the Nazi Party in Germany.Some songs which are much older than the post-World War I Nazi movement, and which were used by the Nazis, are often confused with Nazi songs; this observation applies above all to Das Lied der Deutschen, which was written...
from World War II has not been assigned the high heroic status of American and British popular music, although as the music itself goes, it is considered by many as being above the level of the latter, which is also true of Fascist Italian music of the time.
Approved Germanic music
The Nazi were determined to the concept that German Culture was the greatest in history, but as with all parts of art Hitler took an interest in suppressing the work of all those considered unfit while promoting certain composers as proper Germans.Therefore the Government officially acknowledged certain composers as true Germans, including:
- Ludwig van BeethovenLudwig van BeethovenLudwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
- Anton BrucknerAnton BrucknerAnton Bruckner was an Austrian composer known for his symphonies, masses, and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-German Romanticism because of their rich harmonic language, complex polyphony, and considerable length...
- Hans HotterHans HotterHans Hotter was a German operatic bass-baritone, admired internationally after World War II for the power, beauty, and intelligence of his singing, especially in Wagner operas. He was extremely tall and his appearance was striking because of his high, narrow face, wide mouth, and big, aquiline nose...
singer - Herbert von KarajanHerbert von KarajanHerbert von Karajan was an Austrian orchestra and opera conductor. To the wider world he was perhaps most famously associated with the Berlin Philharmonic, of which he was principal conductor for 35 years...
conductor - Richard WagnerRichard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
Unapproved Germanic music
The Nazis felt a need to identify all art that was somehow degenerateDegenerate music
Degenerate music was a label applied in the 1930s by the Nazi government in Germany to certain forms of music that it considered to be harmful or decadent. The Nazi government's concern for degenerate music was a part of its larger and more well-known campaign against degenerate art...
or Entartete though degenerate is probably a poor translation of the use the Nazis made of this sign, for to them it included all things Jewish, Communist, along with mental illness, gay and lesbian behavior, transgender, and expressionist and modernist.
Along with exhibitions of Degenerate Art
Degenerate art
Degenerate art is the English translation of the German entartete Kunst, a term adopted by the Nazi regime in Germany to describe virtually all modern art. Such art was banned on the grounds that it was un-German or Jewish Bolshevist in nature, and those identified as degenerate artists were...
Entartete Kunst the Nazi government identified certain music, composers and performers as Entartete Musik, these included:
- Berthold GoldschmidtBerthold GoldschmidtBerthold Goldschmidt was a German Jewish composer who spent most of his life in England...
- Ernst KrenekErnst KrenekErnst Krenek was an Austrian of Czech origin and, from 1945, American composer. He explored atonality and other modern styles and wrote a number of books, including Music Here and Now , a study of Johannes Ockeghem , and Horizons Circled: Reflections on my Music...
- Erich Wolfgang KorngoldErich Wolfgang KorngoldErich Wolfgang Korngold was an Austro-Hungarian film and romantic music composer. While his compositional style was considered well out of vogue at the time he died, his music has more recently undergone a reevaluation and a gradual reawakening of interest...
- Arnold SchoenbergArnold SchoenbergArnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
- Bruno WalterBruno WalterBruno Walter was a German-born conductor. He is considered one of the best known conductors of the 20th century. Walter was born in Berlin, but is known to have lived in several countries between 1933 and 1939, before finally settling in the United States in 1939...
- Anton WebernAnton WebernAnton Webern was an Austrian composer and conductor. He was a member of the Second Viennese School. As a student and significant follower of Arnold Schoenberg, he became one of the best-known exponents of the twelve-tone technique; in addition, his innovations regarding schematic organization of...
In 1938 Nazi Germany passed an official law on Jazz music. Not surprisingly it deals with the racial nature of the music and makes law based on racial theories. Jazz was “Negroid”; It posed a threat to European higher culture, and was therefore forbidden except in the case of scientific study.
Popular music permitted under the Nazis
Degrees of censorship varied, and the Germans were likely more concerned with the war than styles of music. But as the war went poorly the objectives of the government moved from building a perfect German state to keeping the population in line, and the relative importance of morale-raising songs would have increased.Popular songs were officially encouraged during the war including:
- Berlin bleibt doch Berlin (Berlin is still Berlin) this was a popular with Joseph GoebbelsJoseph GoebbelsPaul Joseph Goebbels was a German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. As one of Adolf Hitler's closest associates and most devout followers, he was known for his zealous oratory and anti-Semitism...
near the fall of Berlin.
A strange note is that Goebbels commissioned a swing band called "Charlie and His Orchestra
Charlie and his Orchestra
Charlie and his Orchestra were a Nazi-sponsored German propaganda swing band...
" which seemed to have existed for propaganda purposes.
Polish songs of World War II
There were specific songs of Polish resistance, Polish Armed Forces in the WestPolish Armed Forces in the West
Polish Armed Forces in the West refers to the Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its allies...
and Polish Armed Forces in the East
Polish Armed Forces in the East
Polish Armed Forces in the East refers to military units composed of Poles created in the Soviet Union at the time when the territory of Poland was occupied by both Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union in the Second World War....
. Notable ones included Siekiera, motyka
Siekiera, motyka
Siekiera, motyka is a famous Polish military songs from the period of World War II. It became the most popular song of occupied Warsaw, and then, of entire occupied Poland.-Creation:...
, the most popular song in occupied Poland; Rozszumiały się wierzby płaczące - the most popular song of the Polish partisans; Czerwone maki na Monte Cassino
Czerwone maki na Monte Cassino
Czerwone maki na Monte Cassino is one of the best-known and most beloved Polish military songs of World War II...
- the most popular song of the Polish Armed Forces in the West; and Oka, the most popular song of the Polish Armed Forces in the East.
Propaganda Against the Enemy
They played a few American records first. I don't remember everything she said. She said, "Your wives and girlfriends are probably home in a nice warm building, dancing with some other men. You're over here in the cold." It was cold and it was snowing.Dent Wheeler on Axis Sally during the battle of the Bulge
"There is no 'Tokyo Rose'; the name is strictly a GI invention. The name has been applied to at least two lilting Japanese voices on the Japanese radio. ... Government monitors listening in 24 hours a day have never heard the words 'Tokyo Rose' over a Japanese-controlled Far Eastern radio."
During World War II often cut off troops or isolated outposts found themselves exposed in the radio range of the enemy, which used popular music as a means to attract listeners and then provide propaganda messages.
This type of propaganda was performed by both sides and is some of the earliest mass psych-ops. Often the propagandist became popular with the other sides, and there is little evidence that these had any impact, except that the Axis participants were often detained and if originally from allied countries prosecuted, while Allied broadcasters were seen as legitimate. Again it shows the way music is understood in the context of World War II is from the winners point of view, whereas Tokyo Rose
Tokyo Rose
Tokyo Rose was a generic name given by Allied forces in the South Pacific during World War II to any of approximately a dozen English-speaking female broadcasters of Japanese propaganda. The intent of these broadcasts was to disrupt the morale of Allied forces listening to the broadcast...
(Iva Ikuko Toguri D'Aquino) and Axis Sally (Mildred Gillars) faced years of persecution after the war.
England executed Lord Haw Haw (William Joyce
William Joyce
William Joyce , nicknamed Lord Haw-Haw, was an Irish-American fascist politician and Nazi propaganda broadcaster to the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He was hanged for treason by the British as a result of his wartime activities, even though he had renounced his British nationality...
) for treason, in 1946. Again there can really be little in the way of an objective history of music in World War II. The historical context since the war, the revelations of the evils of the Axis regimes, and the ultimate victory of the consumer society foretold in the songs of the allies impose a context upon the events like viewing a star through the lens of a telescope.
Songs, compositions and others written after the war
- Threnody to the Victims of HiroshimaThrenody to the Victims of HiroshimaThrenody to the Victims of Hiroshima is a musical composition for 52 string instruments, composed in 1960 by Krzysztof Penderecki , which took third prize at the Grzegorz Fitelberg Composers' Competition in Katowice in 1960...
, by Krzysztof PendereckiKrzysztof PendereckiKrzysztof Penderecki , born November 23, 1933 in Dębica) is a Polish composer and conductor. His 1960 avant-garde Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima for string orchestra brought him to international attention, and this success was followed by acclaim for his choral St. Luke Passion. Both these...
in 1960 - From Here to EternityFrom Here to EternityFrom Here to Eternity is a 1953 drama film directed by Fred Zinnemann and based on the novel of the same name by James Jones. It deals with the troubles of soldiers, played by Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Frank Sinatra and Ernest Borgnine stationed on Hawaii in the months leading up to the...
by George DuningGeorge DuningGeorge Duning was an American musician and film composer. He was born in Richmond, Indiana and educated in Cincinnati, Ohio at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, where his mentor was Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco....
and Morris StoloffMorris StoloffMorris Stoloff was a musical composer.Stoloff worked as a music director at Columbia Pictures from 1936 to 1962...
was nominated for an Academy Award for best musical score. - The Hiroshima Symphony, by Erkki AaltonenErkki AaltonenErkki Aaltonen was a Finnish composer.-Biography:Born in Hämeenlinna , Finland, he was a student of the violin at the Helsinki Conservatory and of composition in privacy with Väinö Raitio and Selim Palmgren. He directed the Kemi Music Institute from 1966–1973...
in 1949 - A Survivor from WarsawA Survivor from WarsawA Survivor from Warsaw, Op. 46, is a work for narrator, men's chorus, and orchestra written by the Austrian composer Arnold Schönberg in 1947. The initial inspiration for the work was a suggestion from the Russian émigrée dancer Corinne Chochem for a work to pay tribute to the Holocaust victims of...
, by Arnold Schönberg describes the horrors of the Warsaw Ghetto UprisingWarsaw Ghetto UprisingThe Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was the Jewish resistance that arose within the Warsaw Ghetto in German occupied Poland during World War II, and which opposed Nazi Germany's effort to transport the remaining ghetto population to Treblinka extermination camp....
. - Dmitri ShostakovichDmitri ShostakovichDmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich was a Soviet Russian composer and one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century....
's Symphony No. 7Symphony No. 7 (Shostakovich)Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 7 in C major, Op. 60 dedicated to the city of Leningrad was completed on 27 December 1941. In its time, the symphony was extremely popular in both Russia and the West as a symbol of resistance and defiance to Nazi totalitarianism and militarism...
in C Major was nicknamed the Leningrad Symphony. - Cabaret (musical)Cabaret (musical)Cabaret is a musical based on a book written by Christopher Isherwood, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. The 1966 Broadway production became a hit and spawned a 1972 film as well as numerous subsequent productions....
- Musical produced and directed by Hal PrinceHal PrinceHarold Smith Prince is an American theatrical producer and director associated with many of the best-known Broadway musical productions of the past half-century...
in 1966, tells the of the rise to power of the Nazi. It contained a song about the rise of Nazis, Tomorrow belongs to Me. - Mel BrooksMel BrooksMel Brooks is an American film director, screenwriter, composer, lyricist, comedian, actor and producer. He is best known as a creator of broad film farces and comic parodies. He began his career as a stand-up comic and as a writer for the early TV variety show Your Show of Shows...
' film The ProducersThe Producers (1968 film)The Producers is a 1968 American satirical dark comedy cult classic film written and directed by Mel Brooks. The film is set in the late 1960s and it tells the story of a theatrical producer and an accountant who want to produce a sure-fire Broadway flop...
is famous for perhaps the strangest song about World War II, "Springtime for Hitler". - Last King Tiger by IgnitorIgnitorIgnitor is a heavy metal band based in Austin, Texas, USA.- History :Ignitor was formed in 2003 by Erika Tandy , Stuart Laurence aka Batlord , Pat Doyle , Beverly Barrington , and Brendon Bigelow...
is about the Russian invasion to Berlin and the fall of the Reich. - When the Tigers Broke FreeWhen the Tigers Broke Free"When the Tigers Broke Free" is a Pink Floyd song by Roger Waters, describing the death of his father, Eric Fletcher Waters, during the Second World War's Operation Shingle...
,Bring the Boys Back HomeBring the Boys Back Home"Bring the Boys Back Home" is a song from the Pink Floyd album, The Wall. The song was released as a B-side on the single, "When the Tigers Broke Free".-Overview:...
and other songs by Pink FloydPink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
.
External links
- http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/ww2-music-uk.html
- http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/bulge/sfeature/sf_dispatch_dw.html
- http://fcit.usf.edu/HOLOCAUST/arts/musDegen.htm
- http://fcit.usf.edu/HOLOCAUST/arts/musReich.htm
- http://www.remember.org/educate/art.html