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Mercury Living Presence Boxed Set CD18van55

This is not a just mere collection of music and songs from the Civil War era, but an actual attempt to teach the listener about the Civil War and its music.
This double CD package reproduces the band music of the Civil War with authentic instruments and actual arrangements from the period. The viewer is treated to as close a fascimile of a Civil War regimental band as can be possible. However, there is a whole lot more to this collection than just brass band music. It also features fife and drum music, the bugle and drum calls used by the troops (including the actual "charge" which is very different from what we hear today in football stadiums), songs of the period sung by a male chorus accompanied by a lone banjo, and a narration which introduces several segments by giving background on the music and a brief history of the war. (I personally think the brief history of the war narration is the weakest part of the CD. The CD should have concentrated solely on the music and sounds of the war, and left the military history to writers and documentary makers.) Along with the music, the CD comes with other sounds of the war including the sounds of cannons, rifles, and carbines. Yes, the CD actually features the sounds of these weapons actually being fired on the firing range at West Point. If you ever wanted to hear what cannister being fired from a 12lb Napoleon really sounds like then this is the CD for you!