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May 10, 2005
"And the war was over"
"G.I." at 60 years memorial (Photo: RV)"And the war was over" is the opening sentence of of Steve Reich's Different Trains, part three. I consider this one of Steve Reich's best compositions. Not only because I like the music, but also because of his personal history interwoven with victims of the Holocaust.
All over Europe we had memorial services last week to remember WWII ended 60 years ago. US president Bush had a busy weekend traveling to Lithuania, The Netherlands, Russia and Georgia attending all those services.
But as the memorial services show, the war (WWII or any other war) isn't over. Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Rwanda, Israel and Palestine, Northern-Ireland and the former Yugoslavia are all too recent.
The recent bomb find that closed my so beloved glider site Terlet is only an 'innocent' echo of WWII. In the Egyptian desert locals still lose their limbs thanks to German and English landmines from the same period and no-one seems to bother cleaning the place up.
Music (as art in general) can't stop war, but it can help to reflect. As a composer it is my task create something nice and beautiful for and from material the society I am part of. I know it is naïve, but I think it helps to make this world a better place to live in.
Posted by Renske at 13:59 UTC | permanent link