Politics and Music


The Trumpets of Jericho

Beethoven and Napoleon 

Wagner and the Nazis

"Ohio" and the Vietnam War

"Imagine" and consumerism 

The Dixie Chicks 

Countless examples illustrate the intersection of Music and Politics. Jerry Garcia referenced his group as "just a dance band." Always pondered how we react to our choices of music. Divorce it entirely from the controversies of the day and merely enjoy the artistry or allow it to change the way in which we view the world. Transformative, escapism, nostalgia, intellectual profundity, cultural discovery. Large questions. Your thoughts?

jpwarren58

Showing 1 response by rok2id

This topic is worth mentioning only if you live in a country ruled by dictatorships. If there is no personal risk or danger to the artist, then it does not count for much what is said or performed.

Now, imagine being a composer in Soviet Russia during the rule of Stalin. If an artist then, had the balls to write any music that didn’t meet the approval of that great music critic Stalin, it meant much more. Some did some didn’t.

Shostakovich comes to mind.

In the West, its just kids having fun upsetting their parents.

 

Cheers