Bruce Springsteen Center opens exhibition on protest, patriotism and American music
New rotating exhibit explores 250 years of songs tied to civic life, from "Yankee Doodle" to Bruce Springsteen's "Streets of Minneapolis."
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The Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music has opened a new exhibition examining the role music has played in American civic life over the past 250 years.
The exhibition, "Chimes of Freedom: Protest, Patriotism, and the Power of Song," opened to the public on June 13 as the inaugural exhibit in the center's rotating gallery.
According to the center, the exhibition explores how music has shaped and reflected moments of protest, patriotism, mourning, activism and social change throughout American history.
The exhibit arrives as Bruce Springsteen's recently released song, "Streets of Minneapolis," has drawn public attention for addressing immigration raids and protests in Minneapolis.
"Springsteen's remarks fit within a long American tradition in which artists across the political spectrum have used music to advocate for causes they believe in," founding Executive Director Robert Santelli said. "Whether listeners embrace or reject the message, the act of musical advocacy has consistently been part of how artists engage with the world beyond the studio and the stage."
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Featured songs span more than two centuries and include "Yankee Doodle," "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," Woody Guthrie's "Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos)," Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind," Edwin Starr's "WAR," Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi," Toby Keith's "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue," Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" and Springsteen's "Streets of Minneapolis."
The exhibition also includes artifacts, photographs, audiovisual media and interpretive materials, including handwritten lyrics to Springsteen's teenage anti-war song, "All Man the Guns," written during the Vietnam War era.
"Whether the songs, artists, and themes we cover in 'Chimes of Freedom' express protest, patriotism, grief, or resolve, they reveal how deeply music has been intertwined with public life in the United States," Santelli said. "The exhibition invites visitors to consider not only what artists say, but why music has remained such a powerful vehicle for civic expression across generations."
