Illustration by Lance Fisher

As I awoke the morning after our national election day, the only music I could bring myself to listen to was Samuel Barber’s “Adagio for Strings.” 

It helped sooth my aching heart, an ache so deep that I couldn’t envision ever dancing joyfully again and which kept me from attending most of my planned music outings this past week.

Here are some comments about this beautiful piece I found online: 

“This Adagio has all the drama of life and death, the joy and sorrow. There is the melancholy of Mozart and the strength of Beethoven, the silk of Tchaikovsky, the pathos of Schumann, and the silence and the sound of the earth: beautiful. I can hear it over and over again. It can redeem my soul with its intensity.”

“It is at once a man holding his wife’s hand and speaking to her tenderly. It is the death of Kennedy. It is Platoon. It is the end of the world. It is the contemplative love of those who are dearest to you. It is the apex and ground. It is love and death. Sorrow and passion. Just incredible in the truest since of the word.”

“Must be sent to space to be the funeral song of humankind.”

This last comment conveys exactly how I felt – that not only our country but the entire world and the entirety of the human race is on the verge of annihilation. 

As for healing, there is ample evidence that music can indeed help, particularly for individuals going through loss, health issues and depression. 

But what about healing the societal rifts evident in this presidential election? 

There have been times when music seemed to promise heightened awareness, compassion, understanding, redemption and even joy. 

Was it during the folk revival of the 50s and 60s? I recall my conversation with Peter Yarrow last spring in which he expressed the idea that the people’s music can bring us together and lead us to a better place. He noted several major stars in the music business who seemed to embody this aspiration in their work. I admit I was skeptical then. Now I am just wishful.

A book I’ve been reading, A Time To Harmonize by Sheryl Kaskowitz, documents the under-the-radar New Deal program in the 1930s that was intended to ease aspects of the Depression and promote community connections through music. 

It was a time of progressive actions that held high ideals for addressing the needs of our country and to some extent explores the idea that music could heal society’s schisms. Even then, though, there was an inherent division between the elite’s choices in musical expression and the common person’s preferences.

As I have grappled with coming to terms with the election outcome, I’ve relied on music for solace and connection. Several tunes on Radio Heartland the day after the election seemed to reflect the emotional needs of the listening audience, one of which was The Honey Dewdrops’ “Weep.” 

On Friday, November 8, I roused myself to get over to the Cedar Lounge in Superior to hear Misisipi Mike Wolf’s “weekend primer” gig. That lightened my mood considerably. 

Then on Saturday I listened to The North radio’s blues program in which many selections reflected my feelings about our political situation—“Stop This World” pretty much hit the nail on the head while “Love Will Find A Way” addressed both personal and communal longing for love and compassion. These and others assisted in lifting me out of my post-election funk. 

The Second Sunday Blues Jam at R.T. Quinlan’s provided another needed distraction from dismal thoughts and even got me dancing. 

On the other hand, maybe some angry, heavy metal head banging music would release some of my internal emotional tumult. But I’m pretty sure that would push me deeper into a dark place and likely only remind me of the hateful spewing we’ve been subjected to by the president-elect these past few months (and years). It may take some time to reconcile me to the new world order.

And then I wonder what the many musicians, recording artists and entertainers who supported Kamala Harris will have to deal with in the aftermath of this choice of leaders. 

Will Taylor Swift receive death threats or be jailed as an “enemy from within”? 

Will the contentious song “Sweet Home Alabama” by Lynyrd Skynyrd be the soundtrack of our national life in the coming years? 

Or will some musicians be able to capture the mood of our America in a composition as fitting and profound as “Adagio for Strings”? 

Will musicians like Charlie Parr respond to the angst that so many of us feel? Is there a sound of hopefulness that can lead us to a brighter, more compassionate time and that can unite us? 

I despair for all the hurt that is likely to come and can only wish there was a magical musical antidote to be had. If there be healing in music for ourselves, for our country and for the world, let it begin now.