The text posted with the piece says that 100 veterans of WWII pass away every day ? so the very fact that here is a recording of two men alive who were there, and saw it with their own eyes, is already important. Both men also state that they weren?t able to talk about the experience until recently ? so, it?s great to have them on tape. Their reluctance to talk may explain the dispassionate tone they both take when explaining what they saw. The information flows along ? all in much the same tone ? first the self-conscious laughter heard during a discussion of eating nothing but spam ? then a description of the starving prisoners they liberated ? and again cut short with that little self-conscious laugh. They?re still not ready to talk about it ? perhaps they never will be. The men do agree that it?s important to let people know what war really is?and it could be quite interesting in itself that the experience will seems so controlled and under wraps for both of them. However, the peaceful, mellow jazz music only underscores this - if you don?t catch exactly what they?re saying, it?s all so strangely just another bit of easy listening. A different approach to editing could have given the piece some dramatic structure.
Comments for Stories of Liberation
Produced by Catherine Komp
Other pieces by WAER Syracuse, NY
Rating Summary
1 comment
Marjorie Van Halteren
Posted on May 09, 2006 at 02:27 PM | Permalink
Review of Stories of Liberation
The text posted with the piece says that 100 veterans of WWII pass away every day ? so the very fact that here is a recording of two men alive who were there, and saw it with their own eyes, is already important. Both men also state that they weren?t able to talk about the experience until recently ? so, it?s great to have them on tape. Their reluctance to talk may explain the dispassionate tone they both take when explaining what they saw. The information flows along ? all in much the same tone ? first the self-conscious laughter heard during a discussion of eating nothing but spam ? then a description of the starving prisoners they liberated ? and again cut short with that little self-conscious laugh. They?re still not ready to talk about it ? perhaps they never will be. The men do agree that it?s important to let people know what war really is?and it could be quite interesting in itself that the experience will seems so controlled and under wraps for both of them. However, the peaceful, mellow jazz music only underscores this - if you don?t catch exactly what they?re saying, it?s all so strangely just another bit of easy listening. A different approach to editing could have given the piece some dramatic structure.