During the Reformation in the 16th century, psalms were written in people’s own language, often to a melody people knew. The psalms were supposed to show people the way to God.

Royalty was also celebrated and amused with music. The royals could hire their own full-time musicians. This was thought of as a status symbol.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wished to live as a free artist without a steady job at court or with the church. He wanted to make music in his own way, but this was not easy. If he wanted to be paid, he had to compose what the king or church wanted.

Life as a musician was different for Ludwig van Beethoven. He went deaf in 1818, but still he made fantastic music. He was able to make enough money to support himself as a musician. His life as a free artist still inspires other composers.  

📷  Statue of Ludwig van Beethoven in Bonn, Germany.

Rock legend Bruce Springsteen became the voice of the American working class. In the 1980s, artists helped raise money for emergency help in Africa. Live Aid, a concert in 1985, had a record audience of 1.5 million viewers around the world. They raised billions.

“We Are the World” involved 45 US artists in 1985, raising money for child victims of hunger in Africa.

In Norway, the song “Mitt lille land” by Ole Paus became a song to show support after the terror attacks on the government quarter in Oslo and Utøya on July 22nd, 2011.

Lady Gaga had a monster hit with “Born This Way” in 2010. The song tells us to respect people as they are.

In May 2020, George Floyd was killed by the police in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His death became a symbol of the Black Lives Matter movement, with rapper Dax writing a song about the killing of Floyd.

Two planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York on September 11th, 2001. After the attacks, the United States began its war against terrorism. The American rock band Green Day criticized what the US did in their song “American Idiot”.

“Alright”, a song by Kendrick Lamar from 2015, deals with racism in the US, and can often be heard at demonstrations against police brutality on African Americans.  

Playing the piano saved Polish Jew Wladyslaw Szpilman’s life in 1944. A German officer promised to help him as long as Szpilman kept playing the music of Frederic Chopin.

One of the worst sea catastrophes in world history was the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. When the ship was sinking and people were fighting for their lives, the ship’s orchestra played a song to calm the passengers.

In 1992 R.E.M. released their song “Everybody Hurts”. This song was aimed at their young audience, and was designed to prevent suicide. The song encourages people to remember that even when things feel bad, everything will get better.