by Conner Good

Created on: June 30, 2009

The thirties and forties have always been recognized as an important era in music. The twenties were over and new styles were bursting forth. This was the moment where musical performance took a turn and branched out into so many types that have birthed the music of today. At this point in history, the number of popular new singers was uncountable. But the music scene at this time was not all about the styles and their artists. With the country deep in a depression and forced into war, music started to play a whole new role that it had never played before. Music changed from being the entertaining aspect of art and it became the response, the influence, and the result of life in the early forties.

One of the first things that people generally think about when the forties are mentioned is the war- World War II. At the end of the thirties, the war was starting to form in Europe and becoming a closer focus for the citizens of America. But predominantly, before it joined the war, Americawas focused on the Great Depression. It was at this time- when people were cutting back on luxuries- that music faded into the background. But as the war drew closer, it was going to be more important than it had ever been.

The draft started, and this was where music took on the role of response for one of the first times in the early 1900s, becoming a crucial importance to WWII. Young men were suddenly being forced into a scary, unknown war and they used music to hold to reality. Music raised the spirits of new and seasoned soldiers alike. While soldiers benefited from it overseas, citizens from the mainland used it for support, too. Music was used by industries and companies as a sort of therapy- the upbeat music got the minds of employees off of worrying and stressing about the war. Because of the birth of swing, music became more optimistic as the war went on and reflected America's "peacetime" stance on the war. Americabecame a unit of the same emotions- it became a whole. The entire country was experiencing a depression and war and these tragedies, as tragedies often do, brought everyone together and communicated mixed feelings of sentiment, patriotism, inspiration and comfort. These united feelings brought forth unfortunate nostalgia of the time before the war and the depression- and it connected to the soldiers overseas- they were having the same longing for a time of peace as well. Peacetime was universally on everyone's minds. And this showed itself in the music.

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