Fauser, Annegret - Sounds of War

Classical music in 1940s America had a cultural relevance and ubiquitousness that is hard to imagine today. No other war mobilized and instrumentalized culture in general and music in particular so totally, so consciously, and so unequivocally as World War II. Through author Annegret Fauser's in-depth, engaging, and encompassing discussion in context of this unique period in American history, Sounds of War brings to life the people and institutions that created, performed, and listened to this music.

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CONTENTS

Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
Introduction
Chapter 1: We, as Musicians, are Soldiers, too...
Musicians in Uniform
Performing for Victory
Composition in the War Effort
Cultural Mediators and Educators
Chapter 2: Shaping Music for Total War
Music in the Service of Propaganda: The Office of War Information
Crossing Borders: Music, Diplomacy, and the State Department
The Singing Army: Uplift and Education for a Nation
Music Therapy and the Reconditioning of Soldiers
Chapter 3: I Hear America Singing...
Sounds of a Usable Past
Salutes to American Folk Song
Voicing Opera in America
Chapter 4: The Great Invasion
Exile Experiences
French Connections, Czech Identities
Refugees from Axis Nations
Chapter 5: Hail Muse Americana!
Commemoration and Patriotic Celebration
Celebrating the American Way
New World Symphonies
Works Cited