I, by no means, possess any modicum of musical talent; however, I have a deep connection to music. As I am sure others in the class feel, music has an ability to correspond to and subsequently heighten or alter any emotional state. Owing to my parents, I have an extremely diverse music collection; I can not say I prefer any particular genre more than another. I do have a particular affinity for funk/r&b, though. When I was very young and couldn't sleep, my dad would drive me around Green Bay with the heat cranked and those genres in the background. Partially due to this, I'm told that for a couple weeks I would only respond to "James Brown" and not my actual name.
On a macro level, music shares a similar importance. It can transmit culture, history and tradition; it drives celebration, commemoration or lamentation, among many other things. Music represents a significant place in society; one can not overstate music's ubiquity. To this end, one must acknowledge music's role within conflict situations. For a dominant power, music is used in many means to promote a power's "self". This is evidenced by national anthems, commemorative hymns and the like. Furthermore, music forms a component of broader cultural repression. For a conflict's repressed, music similarly serves a broad range of functions. Admittedly, I do not have much knowledge of music in Israeli/Arab conflict situation; however, American history demonstrates the broad range of music as a voiced for repressed. Foremost, music can be created by all; it is a form of speech that is unable to be revoked. In American history, music's range of uses covers lamentations, protest discourse, cultural preservation and self-empowerment. Overall, music, like art, creates a deeply rooted spiritual connection within the audience. Powerful tools are actively utilized in conflict situations.
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