VCO Education Programs
Music in the Life of Eisenhower

General Eisenhower’s use of music to maintain the morale of American troops in World War II is vividly illustrated by the Airmen of Note, with arrangements of hits which the Glenn Miller Band played overseas, in live concerts and radio broadcasts. The Virginia Chamber Orchestra and select Pro Coro Singers perform selections documented among Eisenhower’s wide-ranging musical favorites, including a West Point song and a Broadway show tune. Narrator Robert Aubry Davis illustrates what the selections reveal about Eisenhower, and also explains the significance of Irving Berlin and his music in Ike’s successful presidential campaigns.

In-studio, nationally recognized Eisenhower experts and students discuss his dramatic rise to the top five American presidents in polls by leading presidential historians, exploring his leadership style and goals, accomplishments, and disappointments.

Narration relates how Eisenhower promoted the exchange of artists to foster better understanding among adversaries as well as allies and also introduced legislation to establish a National Center for the Arts in Washington, which became the John F. Kennedy Center.