Vietnam Military Music Analysis

Weaponized sound seems like a modern implementation of psychological warfare. One notable example in modern history was utilized in the Vietnam War. Known as Operation Wandering Soul, the US military attempted to psych out the superstitious Vietcong snipers by playing altered voices and eerie sounds to mimic dead souls. Although the efficacy of that operation is unknown (as the Vietcong usually shot wherever the sound was coming from), other uses of sound have been implemented successfully in battle. Music, for example, was one of the lesser known facets of military strategy. In it, it can convey cadence and orders as well as motivate troops. The Ottoman military band implemented it to great success, helping make the Ottoman army one of the most powerful in the world.

Image 1 (left): A mehter drummer in traditional garb. Picture courtesy of http://mehter.com.tr

The military band, often known by the misnomer mehter (مهت), was part of an Ottoman elite infantry unit (the Janissaries). Although the exact date of their inception is unknown, the first recorded mentioning of
That said, it definitely was not representative of the type of contemporary warfare in the area. The Ottoman military band was not original in its use of battle music; it was unique in the instruments and the composition of the band as well as the scale in which it was implemented. The mehter band added to the traditional percussion instruments of drums, triangles, and cymbals with their own shrill pipes, horns, zurnas, and human voices. Even the type of music was heavily influenced by Islamic culture. Art and culture renovations were influential on the classical Turkish folk music that told of the Ottoman heroism. The music became a characteristic of these armies. In fact, it even inspired European armies to copy them, changing the way war for fought for