Piece Comment

Review of A Short History of Music as a Weapon


It is amazing what human beings do to one another. This short piece is chock full of information that shows that while music might have charms to soothe the savage breast, it can also be used to scare, humiliate and destroy human beings. A sound-rich piece, the listener will learn that, two centuries ago, the British banned the bagpipe and declared it a weapon of war. Now the bagpipe is used as a heartwrenching instrument during funeral marches. (Is any instrument more plaintive? Maybe the harmonica.)A variety of other musical artists,instruments, and sounds are featured as weapons of torture. It would be the sound of a dental drill that would finally break me. This piece would fit in whenever there was any news from Iraq. The piece could also stand alone. Five minutes well worth a listen, it would grab me wherever I was and whatever I was doing. I would turn to my friend and say, "Shhh . . . listen to this."