How Can Music Be Useful During Military Combat?
Military parades are some of the most spectacular displays of military might and prowess of a country, and the tradition actually goes way back in ancient times. The Macedonian army first implemented the military parades as drill training to foster discipline and brotherhood among the men in their army, which further evolved into the military marches that we often see today during Victory Day or other national celebrations.
Music and big bands became a huge part of military parades that took inspiration from many aspects, such as the German Prussian Army, USSR’s Red Army, French Army’s Bastille Day march, the march king, and many more. But what do they actually do? How can music be useful during military combat? If you are curious, please continue reading down below to find out!
Entertainment Value
During World War I, many large entertainment companies from the United States of America were sent to the Western Front to entertain any U.S. military units they could find with hopes of keeping the morale of the troops up and bolstering their fighting spirits. Music, big bands, song-and-dance acts, acrobatics all played a massive part in entertaining the combatants fighting in the trenches since World War I was mainly defensive compared to World War II.
What amazes me is that the entertainment companies don’t discriminate between the soldiers and they treat them the same even if they are not white, have different backgrounds, in minor military units like combat photographers or medics, they carried on their duty to entertain them, which made a huge difference in the end.
Morale Boosts
Soldiers fight for their country, and they go to war to defend their loved ones back home because they know they are doing the right thing and doing service for their country, but sometimes the weight of the world can be too burdensome and destroy their fighting spirit, and remembering glimpses of happy memories with their family might not be enough to lift their morale back up. This is when music and entertainment acts come to the rescue in rejuvenating the morale and positive competition aura back to the bodies and minds of soldiers.
The military front that consisted of over 30.000 men helped in the musical acts and performances, and they even had competitions that made them remember what’s important in life and the reason they picked up arms in the first place, it’s to protect the peace and ensure that it lasted for a long time that even their grandkids can enjoy their sacrifices. That is why you see a lot of military songs and music being played in military camps.
The Bottom Line
Music played a huge part in the military, and it’s not uncommon these days that we see music and big bands being used as part of military parades and marches. The United States of America, The People’s Republic of China, the Russian Federation, all of these countries still utilize music as part of their military tradition, and the spectacular display of the military might still impress and entertain the public to this day!
