Monday is Memorial Day in America, a day we remember those service men and women in all wars who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. We gratefully honor their service.
Eighty-one years ago in World War II we saw the defeat of fascism and militarism. But as we have sadly learned,
this is a struggle that didn't end in 1945. It continues to the present
day all over the world... and most disturbing to us, in our own
country. It would be an appropriate way to honor the memory of those
who died in this struggle by defeating fascism once again in our time.
So, as has been a tradition with us, we're recognizing Memorial Day with
"Beneath the Southern Cross," part of the original Richard
Rodgers soundtrack for the NBC "Victory at Sea" World War II documentary series
from the early 1950s. The title refers to the constellation Crux (or
Southern Cross) easily visible in the South Pacific. The RCA Victor
Orchestra led by Robert Russell
Bennett performs the song, also familiarly known as "No Other Love Have
I." Have a safe and memorable weekend.
Not to be forgotten: "Victory at Sea" had 26 half-hour episodes, with basically nonstop orchestra music. Richard Rodgers composed twelve one-minute piano "themes" (this tango is one of them); Robert Russell Bennett got about two hours of arranging/transforming out of them, but more than nine hours of the series' scoring is entirely Bennett's composing.
ReplyDelete