Bands play Civil War music, teach history of an era still alive in lyrics

DECATUR, Ala. - With darkness settling over the battlefield and soldiers bedding down for the night, the familiar lyrics rose - music and voices blending from both Union and Confederate camps.

"'Mid pleasures and palaces though I may roam,

"Be it ever so humble there's no place like home!"

On more than one occasion during the Civil War, those words - from the prewar hit "Home, Sweet Home" - brought the two sides together, an impromptu and peaceful battle of the bands, if only for a few minutes.

For the bored and lonely men trying to while away the evenings, military bands provided much-needed comfort and entertainment.

Now several dozen bands around the United States perform music from the Civil War era - often on authentic instruments and in period attire - but not just to entertain.Infrared Sauna