Linda Pohly (Ball State University), Muncie, Indiana
Elsie Stuhr Center, Center for Senior Activities
Beaverton, Oregon
October 23, 2009
The participants of this project were senior citizens who lived during World War II and the Korean War.
The purpose of this project was to encourage individuals to make connections between music and wartime memories, and to share and document them. Ms. Pohly presented various links that can be found between music and war. She played several excerpts designed to trigger war memories. The participants were receptive to the variety of music presented, and, after listening, were able to ask questions and share their own memories of music during wartime. Participants were implored to bring written documentation of their war reminiscences, so that they could be preserved in a booklet. Although only one woman did so, several audience members seemed interested and offered questions and comments. The audience was moved by the woman’s written remarks. They were affected by her memories of being a small girl in Paris when she heard the “thundering pounding” of Nazi boots marching through the city. The woman explained that that particular memory forever affected her associations with strong musical rhythms. The participants were receptive to the wide variety of music presented.
