Can Music Be 

Political? 
By: Mahaley Mahe 
 
“...classical music in particular has 
covert, if not overt, a political intentions”  
- Mark Whale 
There have been research papers written on this hot topic. Many in the world of 
music have definitely been exposed to different genres of music and how it’s played, 
but typically don’t see the underlying tones that may be within the notes. Many know 
of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, a popular piece 
that was one of the first to introduce a chorus in an 
orchestra. However, not only was Beethoven’s piece 
making new norms, it was also played in 1951 (about 
six years after WWII), conducted by Wihelm 
Furtwangler. This was to mark the re-opening of 
Wagner’s Bayreuth Festival. At this festival, many 
international figures attended and was taken as a 
major step towards rehabilitation for Germany. Now 
knowing the history of the music piece, would you 
still listen to it, and enjoy it the same way? Music has 
a way of speaking the listener in many different ways, but people need to look at the 
undertones of the piece, and maybe they’ll get more than what they were asking for. 
Mark Whale, an expert writing for the Philosophy of Music Education Review, 
does more research on the topic of how political music could get. In his paper, he  
 
states, “Beethoven’s music turns out to be a kind of a political tool, a way of 
brainwashing people into accepting [German culture], and believing as universally 
true…”. Beethoven is considered, “old german music”, which had a lot of ties to Adolf 
Hitler and his ideology. Hitler considered this specific 
symphony almost like an anthem for Germany; hitting 
all of the culture loyalty and allegiance to Germany.  
However, Whale makes it clear that he believes 
music is “twofold”, which means it faces both ways. In 
the article, Whale mentions that people who listen to 
music associate certain memories, feelings, loyalties, 
and allengencies to the song they are listening to. If this 
was the case, then Hitler decided to just look at one face 
of the music, which was more political, instead of the 
other. In Whale’s opinion, Beethoven’s music “evokes associations of freedom, 
civilization, empowerment, and joy” which could be the “other face”.  
Mark Whale also looks into a possible universal message that was being 
conveyed. In Beethoven’s first three movements, the music is harsh, stern, and angry. 
However, as the symphony progresses, the music slowly starts to agree and sound 
more cheerful, which is the resolution that the audience wanted to come to. 
Beethoven was trying to send the message of despair and vanquish in the beginning, 
but slowly incorporate hope, which was “Ode to Joy” in this symphony. 
Similar to the quote in the beginning, I believe music can be either overtly or 
covertly political. There are many instances in today’s music where music is overtly 
political, which some may argue makes it easy to analyze. Classical music doesn’t 
have lyrics attached to it, making it a lot more difficult, but will have much more 
meaning than a top 100 billboard hit.  
 
 
 
Works Cited:  
 
“Best Free Sheet Music Sites.” M
​ usic Advisor​, 23 Oct. 2018, 
musicadvisor.com/10-best-sites-for-free-sheet-music-downloads/. 
 
“Indiana University Bloomington.” ​Indiana University Press​, 
www.iupress.indiana.edu/pages.php?pID=90. 
 
“Ludwig Van Beethoven.” W​ ikipedia​, Wikimedia Foundation, 11 Sept. 2019, 
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_van_Beethoven. 
 
“Two Face Woman Illustrations.” S ​ hutterstock​, 
www.shutterstock.com/search/two+face+woman?image_type=illustration&safe=true
&search_source=base_related_searches.