Military music forms a key component in the history of instrumental music worldwide. In the United States, this history goes centuries back way long before the signing of the Declaration of Independence on the 4 th of July 1776 (Howe, 1999). Moreover, even before formation of the continental army in 1775, musicians formed a key part of military. Ranging from the signal corps drummers who were part of the Revolutionary War to the full brass bands who were integral during the World War II, music has been key to the United States’ military success (Go Army, 2018). As such, the bands played key roles whether in special performance for ceremonies, as a tool of communication, provision of entertainment, or to boost the morale of soldiers during war time (Howe, 1999). Notably music in the military had stark differences that distinguished it from the normal music during the entire eras of its development. Over time, military bands have witnessed numerable modifications and evolution into what it is today. In this regard, the purpose of this paper is to provide a concise description of the evolution of the military band from its origin to what it is today while citing the differences it exhibits with the normal music.
The support of a military musical unit has featured in a number of American historical events. Prior to the revolutionary war as far back as 1633, matching practice during militia drills in the colonies were characterized by performers from drummers (Go Army, 2018). However, the first recorded appearance of an American military band in the colonies in 1756 when an artillery regiment under the command of Colonel Benjamin Franklin matched with over 1000 men accompanied by fife players and other musicians (Go Army, 2018).. The bands in this era, which typically were made of between six and eight musicians, performed using a variety of instruments including oboes, clarinets, horns, and bassoons. Notably, the band were made of two distinct types with one type devoted to performing during ceremonies and other special occasions while the other was mainly useful during that sounded signals for troops. The military bands role further intensified during the revolutionary war (Camus, 2017). In 1775, the minuteman musicians in the bands readily provided rhythms of patriotic melodies that were useful when drilling new militia in preparation for the war against the British. Notably, Gen. Washington who was the 1 st general of the U. S army and later become the 1 st American President was an accomplished flutist. During the war, he ordered that his musicians attend training with the regimental fife and drum majors at regular intervals (Camus, 2017). The role of military bands in aiding the military to obtain victory during the Revolutionary War is exemplified the victory during the Battle of Bennington. During this battle, under the command of Colonel John Stark the fifers and drummers played well into enemy positions providing much inspiration to the troops (Go Army, 2018). Notably, this battle became a major turning point in the war owing to the decisive nature by which the American troops defeated the enemy forces, showing just how much military bands were useful during the Revolutionary War.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Over time, the military bands were transformed through addition of more instruments to the bands. For instance, in 1777 trumpets were added to the Army bands in order to control the mounted maneuvers of cavalry regiments. During the same period, regulations did not allow for the use of verbal commands in the military, as such the bands came in handy as means of communication. As such, the soldiers’ days were controlled by drum calls and each had to learn how to respond instantly to the drums (Go Army, 2018). Noteworthy, up until this time the military bands were primarily musicians and were not involved in soldierly duties. This however changed in 1781 when Congress approved the plan for drummers and fifers to be picked from the ranks of enlisted personnel. Notable addition of instruments to the military band also came in 1830 when brass instruments were added to the band (Camus, 2017).. In this manner, the sound of the military bands drastically changed owing to the perfection of the valved brass instruments in 1830s. The brass instruments also took up the role of playing the melodies which were initially reserved for woodwinds. These further equipped the military bands for the Civil War. During the war, the bands continued offer their service as the military leaders with the Union and the Confederacy relied on military musicians to entertain troops, position troops in battle, and stir them on to victory (Gleason, 2006). Interestingly, in some instances the band members performed concerts in the frontline during war. Expectedly, this led casualties an example of which was the death of 4 deaths and 30 injuries to the members of the Massachusetts Regiment Band on April 19, 1861 in Baltimore, MD. Evidently, over time military band were enriched through the addition of newer instruments into the band.
Important changes to the military bands occurred in the events surrounding World War I. During this period, General John J. Pershing was appointed as the Commander of all Allied Expeditionary Forces. After his taking office in early 1918, Pershing made a realization that the military bands of the United States were considerably inferior to that of France and Great Britain (Howe, 1999). Cognizant of the important role that the bands played in troop morale and subsequent victory, Pershing implemented a four-pronged program that aimed to improve the Army bands of the United States. The four points in Pershing’s program were addition of the number of bands which was the increased by 20, increasing the strength of regimental band strengths from 28 to 48 pieces providing the bands with their first full instrumentation, establishment of a band school at Chaumont, France, and finally he commissioned all bandleaders as 1 st and 2 nd Lieutenants in a bid to grant them an authority equal to their responsibilities (Howe, 1999). Pershing’s effect are present to date as the full instrumentation he instituted still exists to date and also, one of the most prestigious Army bands of the United States is named “Pershing’s Own”.
The military bands would then undergo significant transformations throughout the 20 th century. In 1940s music schools such as the emergency Army Music School and a school for bandmasters at the Army War College were established to cater for the urgent need of bands in World War II (Howe, 1999). During the war, the number of military bans was nearly 500 categorized into three: special bands, separate bands, and organization bands. The bands would continue to support the troops in the wars that would follow in the second half of the 20 th century such as in Korea and Vietnam. To mark two centuries since independence, a multi-service Bicentennial Band was formed. The band toured all the 50 states, Canada, Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Virgin Island with the final performance of their twenty-month tour happening at a Pentagon ceremony on December 9, 1976 (Go Army, 2018). To date, the military bands form an integral part of the US military with all the four wing namely Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine bands actively executing their fundamental duties whether providing musical support for deployed troops, entertaining civilians around the world, or serving as musical ambassadors of the military
The music performed by military bands exhibits salient difference with normal music performed in non-military setups. To begin with, the structure of performance of music in military bands is different from normal music. For instance, for matching bands in the military the music is performed at a constant tempo in order to facilitate a steady marching of the entire military group (Gleason, 2006). This is unlike the normal music whose tempo is varied depending on the genre of music. In addition, the performance of military is highly dependent on instrument performance with minimal usage of lyrical song sang. This contrasts to most of the normal music which, although also employs the usage of various musical instruments, vocal lyrical songs form an a significant part of the song giving its theme and content.
In conclusion, the present day military bands have a rich history that dates to over two centuries back. Their development was caused due to the realization of the importance of bands in the military. Over time, the bands have transformed leading to the increase in the number of instruments of the bands as well as the number of bands and band members. Clearly, the military bands have played important roles in military victories right from the pre-Revolutionary War era, the Civil War, World War I & II, the Vietnam War as well as other military operations. The music provided by the military bands, which differs significantly from the normal music, continues to serve the United States through musical support for deployed troops, entertaining civilians around the world, or serving as musical ambassadors of the military.
References
Camus, R. F. (2017). Sound the Trumpet, Beat the Drums: Horse-Mounted Bands of the U.S. Army, 1820-1940. Notes , 74(1), 65. https://doi.org/10.1353/not.2017.007
Gleason, B. P. (2006) U.S. Mounted Bands and Cavalry Field Musicians in the Union Army during the Civil War-Background, Duties, and Training Journal of Historical Research in Music Education in JSTOR 27(2); 102-119
Go Army (2018) Army Music History | Go Army Retrieved from https://www.goarmy.com/band/about-army-bands/history.html
Howe, W. P. (1999) Early American Military Music American Music in JSTOR , 17(1); 87-116
