Today in my primary music classes we talked about music as a force for peace. In broad, simplified strokes we talked about The Singing Revolution in Estonia and the Prayer of the Mothers associated with the Women Wage Peace movement in the Middle East. We talked about how war is sometimes a function of greed, where one country wants what another country has. And I saw before me a sea of confused and inquisitive faces, posing the most innocent, most poignant questions:
“Why can’t they just play Rock, Paper, Scissors to decide who gets what?”
“Why can’t they just buy what they need?”
“Why can’t they just trade for what they need?”
“Why can’t everyone just sing songs instead of fighting?”
Timely questions, indeed.
Remembrance Day is coming up next week, and my junior choir will sing a soulful lament about a child trying to understand the horrific games that adults play when they go to war. I hope my young singers understand how powerful their voices can be. I hope that we can learn to amplify and project their voices into a world that so desperately needs to be asking the same questions. And I hope that, as we commemorate the fallen, we also take the time to remember and honour the many voices calling, and singing, for peace.
The Singing Revolution happened in all three Baltic countries. I saw videos of people in Lithuania, young and old holding hands, stretching across long distances and singing.
How can you NOT be inspired??