by Larry Johnson

When the Civil War broke out, all the elements necessary to provide Regimental Bands were in place. When recruiters raised a regiment, all they had to do was go into an area and muster in enough preexisting militia companies to form a regiment. No matter where the recruiters went, somewhere nearby was a town band which had probably been serving with the militia. The band already had military or marching instruments and instruments playing them. And they were nearly always willin gto enlist as a unit. Of course, this readiness to serve was prompted somewhat by the alternative, which was to be conscripted as an infantryman. But by and large the bandsmen’s motives were pure. They were aware of the contributions the bands made, and they felt that serving in a band was the patriotic thing to do. So enlisting in an intact band was no problem, there were plenty of them, on both sides, and the members were eager to join up.

Once the War was underway, the Regimental Bands on both sides were of inestimable value. These units performed every type of service, in all weather, and under every imaginable condition. Bands were everywhere, at the front, at the rear, on the march, in camp, everywhere. They played for the entertainment of idle troops, and they played under fire to inspire men in battle. Bandsmen performed lively tunes for grand reviews and they produced somber tones for funerals. They played hymns for divine services and provided music for dances. Bands even played a part in military execution. In every facet of military life there was a role for bands and the bands served well.

The Civil War was the culmination of the brass band movement. Some 600 bands served the Union cause. Confederate bands were fewer but there were probably more bands in Southern armies than previously thought. The federal army felt it had too many bands and in 1862 the Regimental Bands were discharged. Many of the members reenlisted as Brigade bands and for the remainder of this conflict nearly every brigade had a band. Confederate bands remained on the Regimental level and either served for the duration or until their enlistment expired. But there came Appomattox and the day it was finally over. Then all the bands went home and the heyday of the Brass Bands was over.

Musical, not social, forces had brought about changes in the composition of bands. The over-the-shoulder instruments had served well in the field but they had been severely out of tune and were not acceptable for continued service once the bands returned to a concert role. Hence they were discarded and their day was ended. The importance of the clarinet had been rediscovered and bands began readmitting reed instruments as soon as the war ended. By the time of the Spanish-American War the conversion to mixed reed and brass instrumentation, led by a young John Philip Sousa, had been completed and the brass bands were heard no more.

by Larry Johnson

Military bands in America developed along the same lines as those in Europe. What few American bands there were at the time of our Revolution were clarinet and oboe-centered. These saw the introduction of keyed bugles in the very early 19th Century, and then converted to brass as soon as the valved brasses reached America. By the end of the 1830s a phenomena known as the brass band movement was underway, and before it was over it would have an enormous influence on the course of American military music.

In the early 1800s American society was predominantly rural. Small towns and villages were the core of America, and much of our culture developed from them. Such was the case with brass bands. As towns grew, so did the need for music and entertainment for private and civic events. The only music available before recording was live music, so every town had a need for musicians. This need was filled by the creation of town bands, which, because they played outdoors, were usually composed of brass instruments. Town bands became popular and soon spread. By the 1850s nearly every town had a band, and larger towns and cities sometimes had several. The brass bands eventually found themselves at the center of a town’s social life and in this position it was only natural that the soon grafted into another social institution, the militia movement.

Originally nearly every settlement in America had formed militias for the necessary purpose of protecting themselves from marauding Indians. But as the frontier steadily moved west, the need for militias passed. So with nothing of a military nature to do, the militias became social organizations. In many towns militia muster was a major social event, calling for music and entertainment. Naturally the town bands turned out for these musters, and it was inevitable that the bands became closely associated with the militia units. This association led to the need for the bands to march, and that in turn led to the next development in brass instruments.

The saxhorns were first built either as upright or bell-front instruments. Trombones, which were widely used in brass bands, also had bells facing forward. This configuration projected the sound of the bands towards their front, which was desirable when playng concerts. But when bands were on the march, forward-projecting instruments became a liability because troops marching behind them could not hear the music, much less march to it. To remedy this situation, some now-unknown manufacturer produced a series of saxhorns with the bells facing ot the rear over the player’s shoulder. The Dodworth Band in New York City, which purchased a set of these over-the-shoulder instruments in the late 1830s, is believed to have been the first band to have used them. The rearward -facing design proved workable, and by the late 1850s a majority of the brass bands all over the country, in particular those that performed in conjunction with the various militia units owned a set of the over-the-shoulder instruments.

Next time; Music of the Civil War and beyond.

by Larry Johnson

It all started with Joshua. Or did it? The idea of making some kind of noise for the dual purposes of frightening the enemy and inspiring one’s own troops appears for the first time in recorded history at the time the ancient Israelites began the conquest of Canaan. But the practice is obviously much older. The earliest Egyptians are known to have used trumpets for military purposes, and there are indications that the most ancient civilizations in China and India had similar practices But Joshua’s use of a recognizable form of military music is the earliest instance in which such a practice was written down.

What General Joshua chronicled was his use of the first military band at the siege of Jericho around 1400 B. C. The Bible clearly describes a band of seven trumpets at the head of his army while it marched around the city. This band, which was composed of Hebrew priests, was under the tutelage of a man who was dressed in all the finery of his time. His costume included an ephod, or breastplate, set with twelve gemstones. The hem of his robe was decorated with pomegranates. And on his head he wore a turban of the finest linen. While the Bible identifies this individual as the High Priest, he is instantly recognized by bandsmen everywhere as the original Drum Major. So all the elements of what would evolve into the modern military band were present at the time of this ancient campaign.

In subsequent centuries there is only a single mention of a significant military-type ensemble, that of Nebuchadnezzar, until Greco-Roman times. Then the use of brass, reed and percussion instruments in close association with military activities reached a golden age.

The Romans, who practiced the art of war profusely, were quite fond of brass instruments and developed several types of horns and trumpets for military use. They also combined trumpets with drums. The Roman Drum Major, or standard-bearer, wore a wolf skin over his upper body and carried a wooden pole topped by the imperial letters SPQR. Roman bands were not known to have played anything other than calls; acoustically their instruments were incapable of melody. Tub the presence of several types of brass instruments in relatively large numbers does create some interesting speculation as to whether Caesar’s legions developed a close relative of a modern day drum and bugle corps.

The Greeks differed from the Romans in military music as widely as they differed in other areas. Athenian Greek armies placed melodic instruments (flutes, strings, reeds) at the head of their columns and reinforced them with tambourine-like percussion instruments instead of drums. Spartan Greeks utilized the double pipes and on several occasions refused to go into battle until they first heard the sound of them. (The precursors of Scottish traditions can be clearly seen here.) Trumpets were strictly signalling devices in Greek armies and were separate and apart from the musical establishment.

The passing of the Greco-Roman world brought an end to the early military band prototypes. The trumpet reigned supreme on battlefields for a thousand years, usually in teh service of a monarch or nobleman, and almost always in the form of a single instrument. Organized ensembles did not reappear until the time of the Ottoman Turks. And then began the history of modern military bands.

Next time: we’ll go from the Turkish traditions to Europe.