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History: World War II remembrance

/////// The South Dakota School of Mines and Technology ///////
Concert Choir, Master Chorale, Symphonic Band


James D. Feiszli, Conductor

with guest artists:
The Black Hills Chorale - Clayton Southwick, Director
The Black Hills Voices in Concert - Beverly Scripter, Director
Martin Busch, narration
Alfred Boysen and Donald Parker, percussionists
Katy Chamberlain, pianist

Rushmore Plaza Civic Center Theater
Sunday, April 30, 1995
7:30 p.m.

Of all the events that have occurred during the 20th Century, World War
II (WWII) remains one of the most significant. 1995 marks the observance
of the 50th anniversary of the end of WWII.

WWII can be traced, in part, to the unsettled ending of World War I
(WWI). The signing of treaties at the end of WWI caused political
difficulties in many countries. After the Treaty of Paris, the treaty that
ended WWI, Italy, Japan and Germany left the negotiating table most
agitated. Italy did not receive the amount of land which they desired and
Japan was not allowed the principle of equality of all races. Germany was
most affected because of a clause in the Treaty of Versailles (another
treaty signed at the end of WWI) which stated that they had to accept
responsibility for causing the war.

By the late 1920's, the Great Depression had begun in the United States.
This stopped Europe's economic recovery and caused world-wide unemployment
and poverty. It also weakened democratic governments and strengthened
extremist political movements that promised an end to economic problems.
The political extremes gained the most support in countries with the
greatest economic problems and greatest resentment to the Treaty of Paris.
The two main types of extremist governments that emerged were fascism and
Communism. In theory, Fascism supported a strong patriotic national
government, while Communism espoused complete economic equality via
governmental control.

On September 1, 1939, WWII began when Germany invaded Poland, after
having already seized Austria and parts of Czechoslovakia with no
interference by other nations. By June 1940, Germany had conquered Poland,
Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, and France; which
left Great Britain fighting Germany alone. That same month Italy joined
Germany to attack the Soviet Union. In December 1941 the Japanese attack
on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into the war. Germany, Italy, and
Japan formed an alliance known as the Axis. Opposing them were the Allies:
United States, Great Britain, China and the Soviet Union.

When WWII came to an end in 1945, the Allies were victorious but the
world was left scarred by events and new divisions were established.
Germany was divided and countries were either allies or enemies of the two
opposing world powers, the United States and the USSR.
Heidi Guymon



MADRIGAL Gideon Klein
Bote & Bock: B&B 23509 (1919 - 1945)

Gideon Klein was born to a Jewish family in Prerov na Morave,
Czechoslovakia. From a very early age music, especially piano, became the
focus of his life. When Nazi Germany invaded and conquered Czechoslovakia,
many Czech freedoms and privileges were taken away. A 1941 Nazi ruling
declared that Jewish musicians would no longer be allowed to perform in
public. Klein chanced being caught and shot by Nazi soldiers by playing in
public under the German name of Kar
on January 17, 2007 10:00pm

WAR MEMORIAL (SATB a capella) is the third of "Three Stuart Songs" - music by Huub de Lange on a poem by Alice Stuart

The music can be downloaded as sheetmusic (pdf file) and heared (as mp3 file) via the choral site www.cpdl.ord.

The direct link to Huub de Lange's music is: