Prof. Alain Blondy at the French conference on WWI chansons.

The Migration Museum of Dar l-Emigrant, Valletta, was recently the venue for a poignant evening of songs gathered from the period of the First World War by Alain Blondy.

Tunes and melodies from the desperate trenches of the war as well as those expressing the social conditions of the people involved in conflict in 1914-18 were movingly laced with information on the protagonists of those chansons produced at a time when hope of survival appeared to be fading away.

Organised by the Alliance Française Malte-Méditerranée, the evening was introduced by a minute of silence in commemoration of the 10 million soldiers who perished during what was known as the Great War.

The name arose due to the war’s magnitude in loss of life, wounded soldiers and long-lasting effects on all strata of participating societies.

Prof. Blondy brought to life sounds and images of early 20th century life in northern France and Belgium, where most of the fighting took place.

The audience, filling the hall to its brim, could almost relived the grief and distress of those poor Allied hapless souls on the war front defying poisonous gas, deadly machine-guns and flaming tanks sparing very little in their slaughtering march.

Songs such as Ma P’tite Mimi released in France in 1915 to mimic the machine gun, and It’s a Long Way to Tipperary, were accompanied by contemporary posters, films and photos.