Wickedly funny comment by a wily Frenchman

[Lionel Mandrake]

"La justice militaire est à la justice ce que la musique militaire est à la
musique" -- Georges Clemenceau (1841–1929)



An English translation of Clemenceau's comment is the title of a serious book on military "justice":



Not everyone agrees. Some would argue that military justice has its merits. And military music is not all bad. Even I like "The Stars and Stripes Forever" and "Marche Slave".

But those are exceptional pieces of music. On the whole, I agree with Clemenceau.

One problem with military music is that it tends to be abused as propaganda. Here is an extreme example from the not so distant past:

Nazi propaganda horrifies us now but was extremely effective in its time. I have to wonder how many German boys were seduced by this movie into joining the Wehrmacht just as the tide began to turn against the Afrikakorps.

[jakeXT]

1. It sounds a bit choppy, maybe that's why Hitler also listened to Russian music in private

http://vimeo.com/12199344#

He expelled Jewish and Russian musicians from concert halls during the Third Reich, claimed in Mein Kampf that there was no independent Jewish culture, and referred to Russians as sub-humans, yet at the same time Adolf Hitler listened to their music in secret.

Around 100 gramophone records which apparently belonged to the Nazi leader have been discovered in the attic of a house outside Moscow owned by a former Soviet intelligence officer.

The collection reveals that while Hitler was publicly heralding "racially pure" German music, his musical taste may have been more closely aligned to the artists he ostracised.

Hitler's passion for Richard Wagner is well documented: however this collection contains works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov and Borodin which are worn and scratched from frequent use.

There is a record of a Tchaikovsky concerto performed by Bronislaw Huberman. While Hitler (who, it was said, needed his music to relax) would have been listening to the Jewish violinist, Huberman himself was in enforced exile; he fled Vienna in 1937, a year before the Anschluss, and was publicly declared an enemy of the Third Reich. Music by the Austrian Jewish pianist Arthur Schnabel is also among in the collection.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/aug/07/secondworldwar.germany

[Lionel Mandrake]

2. Interesting. So the mass murderer was also a hypocrite. /nt

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. I do tend to agree with you, my dear Lionel Mandrake, on military music and justice.

I'd forgotten about Marche Slave.

It's wonderful. I guess I hadn't realized it was military music.

Thank you for these wonderful clips.

K&R

[Lionel Mandrake]

5. My dear CP,

I'm glad you enjoyed the clips. Thanks for the K&R.

Since Marche Slave is played by a symphony orchestra (including strings) it doesn't sound like typical military music, but as Wikipedia says:

The march is highly programmatic in its form and organization. The first section describes the oppression of the Serbs by the Turkish. It uses two Serbian folk songs, "Sunce jarko, ne sijaš jednako" (Bright sun, you do not shine equally), "Rado ide Srbin u vojnike" (Gladly does the Serb become a soldier), giving way to the second section in the relative major key, which describes the Russians rallying to help the Serbs. This is based on a simple melody with the character of a rustic dance which is passed around the orchestra until finally it gives way to a solemn statement of the Russian national anthem "God Save the Tsar". The third section of the piece is a repeat of Tchaikovsky's furious orchestral climax, reiterating the Serbian cry for help. The final section describes the Russian volunteers marching to assist the Serbs. It uses a Russian tune, this time in the tonic major key and includes another blazing rendition of "God Save the Tsar" prophesying the triumph of the Slavonic people over tyranny. The overture finishes with a virtuoso coda for the full orchestra.

Read more:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marche_Slave

[zanana1]

4. I think it's funnier in French.

Then again, I think everything is funnier in French.

[Lionel Mandrake]

7. I think it's equally funny in any language,

assuming it's properly translated.

Germans may not appreciate the humor, because Clemenceau led the drive to punish Germany at the Treaty of Versailles (1919).

[AnneD]

8. Then again, I think everything is funnier in French.

even Jerry Lewis.

[Lionel Mandrake]

9. It's funny how the French idolized Jerry Lewis.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

6. Love Marche Slave...

But then I love all music Tchaikovsky.....

Very interesting thread... I think it can be said all nations use music as propaganda to recruit into their military.

[Lionel Mandrake]

10. Tchaikovsky's music has considerable variety.

Tchaikovsky's "Barcarole" is as far removed from military music as you can get.

This piece is lyrical and useless for military recruitment. I am studying this piece and hope to be able to play it some time this summer.

[Sekhmets Daughter]

11. One of my absolute favorite compostions, by any composer,

is Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto in D Major OP 35. I never tire of listening to it and discovered it over 50 years ago!