Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor (“Für Elise”) Composed in 1810 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Public domain. Performed by Simone Renzi. Recording used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY-NC 3.0 license. Source.
Grand March from Aïda Composed in 1871 by Giuseppe Verdi. Public domain. Performed by the United States Marine Corps Band. Public domain recording. Source.
Second Suite in F for Military Band Composed in 1911 by Gustav Holst. Public domain. Performed by the United States Air National Guard Band of the Northeast. Public domain recording. Source.
Editorial cartoon produced by the US Office of War Information, 1943.
The US enacted its first peacetime draft in 1940, and it included African Americans, although Black soldiers were assigned to segregated units and subjected to racist treatment and even violence.
In 1941, the Roosevelt Administration oversaw the creation of the first US Army Air Forces Fighter squadron crewed by Black pilots.
“The Air Force Song” Composed in 1938 by Robert MacArthur Crawford. Public domain. Performed by the United States Navy Band. Public domain recording. Source.
The US Army stopped admitting Black cadets to West Point in the late 19th century. That policy remained in place until 1932. Army leadership generally considered Black soldiers inferior.
Meanwhile, in the real world, African American volunteers were serving in combat ( and in integrated units) in the Spanish Civil War.
“U.S. Field Artillery” Composed in 1917 by John Philip Sousa. Public domain. Performed by the United States Marine Band. Public domain recording. Source.
American popular music in the war years was heavily influenced by boogie-woogie, as exemplified in the music of Glenn Miller and the Andrews Sisters.
The video clip above comes from the 1942 film Orchestra Wives and is a performance of that film’s breakout hit song, “I’ve Got a Gal in Kalamazoo” by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra, with Tex Beneke and the Modernaires on vocals, along with an amazing song-and-dance by the Nicholas Brothers. Note that the Nicholas Brothers’ segment is separate from the rest of the performance. This was done so their dance routine could easily be cut from the film when it was shown in theaters in the American South.
Japanese ships in Truk Lagoon attempt to flee from an American air attack.
With Japan on the defensive in the Southwest Pacific, and then the American capture of Tarawa, Japan’s military position in the Pacific was crumbling.
The Imperial Army and Navy bickered over allocation of resources, particularly fighter aircraft, which Japan was losing at a phenomenal rate. The Navy continued its strategy of attempting to lure the American fleet into a decisive defeat.
Water Harp Music A water harp is a Japanese musical instrument that creates music from dripping water. Recording by Wikimedia Commons contributor Slowsteps used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY-SA license. Source.
Review March Public domain. Performed by the Imperial Japanese Army Band. Public domain recording. Source.
Australian-British actor Clifton James, dressed to look like Bernard Montgomery.
Beginning in late 1943, British intelligence began an elaborate set of deceptions, codenamed Operation Bodyguard, intended to mislead the Germans into thinking the invasion would take place somewhere else.
Among the deceptions were operations intended to make it appear that Norway, the west coast of France, the Paz-de-Calais, and Crete would be targeted. Australian-born British actor Clifton James (above), who bore a close resemblance to Bernard Montgomery, was dressed as Montgomery and sent on a tour of Allied bases in the Mediterranean, to make it appear that something was going on there.
Variations on an Original Theme for Orchestra (“The Enigma Variations”) Composed in 1899 by Edward Elgar. Public domain. Performed by the Skidmore College Orchestra. Public domain recording. Source.
The ruins of the Benedictine abbey at Monte Cassino, following the Allied bombing.
The Allied advance in Italy was blocked by the Gustav Line, the German defensive line. Winston Churchill promoted the idea of an amphibious invasion behind the German line as a means of breaking the stalemate.
At the front line, many Allied commanders were inclined to think, despite German claims to the contrary, that the enemy was using the abbey on Monte Cassino as a forward observation post, and bombed the abbey.
Overture to La Forza del Destino Composed in 1861 by Giuseppe Verdi. Public domain. Performed by the University of Chicago Orchestra and used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY 3.0 license. Source.
A look at American popular music during the war. This period marks the decline of the big bands, which occurred for a number of reasons, among them two crucial strikes in the music industry.
The videos above are of Glenn Miller and his Orchestra performing “In the Mood” in the 1941 film Sun Valley Serenade (I will have more to say about both Glenn Miller and this film in a future episode) and Jessica Rabbit (Amy Irving) performing “Why Don’t You Do Right?” in the 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
