A mounted band is a military or civilian musical ensemble composed of musician playing their instruments while being mounted on an animal. The instrumentation of these bands are limited, with the musician having to play their instrument, as well as steer the animal to the designated location. Most mounted bands, therefore, use instruments that can easily be held, such as bugles, horns, and Fanfare trumpets. Timpani and glockenspiels are also a common feature, usually located at the head of a band. Although a band that is mounted on any member of the families Equidae and Camelidae are considered to be a mounted band, horses are most commonly used, mostly being employed in military bands in Europe, North and South America, and some parts of Asia.
Mounted bands in most cases are variants of military bands and are meant for the cavalry, and only several are in service today in various parts of the world. The main current functions have been providing musical support for ceremonial events, for civic events, and perform at military and police observances such as funerals and military and police academy graduations. Similarly to military and police, and Pipe bands, the musical repertoire is primarily based on ceremonial compositions and marches, with a high percentage also including honors music such as fanfares. A Cavalry march is used as military marching music in the movement of mounted troops. The marches of mounted bands are written in 6/8 time, rather than the 2/4 or 4/4 time of the infantry.
Mounted bands were originally established at sometime around the 12th century, during the crusades, with these newly established bands being incorporated into infantry bands. The idea then caught on in Central Europe before being used by the Ottoman Empire, who also created the first military band in the world. The use of timpani, trumpets, and bugles in these bands played an important role in the middle of the 15th century, when they were deployed to the front lines to motivate the mounted cavalry in battle and in parade.[1][2]
Mounted bands by country
Argentina
The seniormost band of the armed forces, the Alto Peru Fanfare Brass Band of the Regiment of Mounted Grenadiers, is the official mounted brass band in service to the President of Argentina in his/her capacity as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Republic. The brass band was founded in 1929. Despite it being a mounted band, it can also perform with the regiment while dismounted.
Another notable mounted band in the Argentine Army is the Mounted Band of the 4th Armoured Cavalry Regiment "General Lavalle's Cuirassiers", which wears uniforms similar to those of the French Republican Guard. Similar to the Alto Peru Band, despite it being a mounted band, it can also perform with the regiment while dismounted.
A new mounted band was raised in 2018 to serve as the ceremonial musical unit of the Mounted Operations Group of the 1st National Gendarmerie Region, Argentine National Gendarmerie.
Brazil
The Cyclophonica Bicycle[3] Orchestra, founded in Rio de Janeiro in 1999, is the only civilian professional mounted band in the Americas. The only other similar group in the world is the Bicycle Showcase Crescendo, from the Netherlands. Cyclophonica has twelve musicians, playing more than 30 different instruments. The group is directed by its founder Leonardo Fuks, an oboist, multi-instrumentalist and professor of music acoustics at Rio de Janeiro Federal University.
Band and Bugles of the 3rd Cavalry Regiment "Hussars"
Mounted band formations on parade follow the German model, having similar instrumentation with the infantry bands (and not with the brass of the German cavalry ensembles) with the exception being an added bugle section in place of the corps of drums of infantry units, a tradition inherited from France.
Denmark
The mounted Timpani, with the royal monogram
In Denmark, the Guard Hussar Regiment Mounted Squadron has a mounted band (Gardehusarregimentets Hesteskadron Trompeterkorps), which consists of one timpanist and nine buglers. The band is used for military parades, when escorting the Monarch and foreign dignitaries, and shows.[4]
Ecuador
The Mounted Band of the Ecuadorian National Police (Banda Instrumental Montada de la Unidad de Equitación y Remonta (UER) de la Policía Nacional) uses brass, woodwinds and percussion (sans the timpani). The fanfare band of the Presidential Mounted Ceremonial Squadron (Granaderos de Tarqui), also of the Army, is composed only of 2 timpani on drum horses, fanfare trumpets, 3 snare drums, 3 tenor drums and sousaphones (when mounted).
France
Captain Jacques Leblay, director of music of the mounted cavalry regiment of the Republican Guard.
The French Republican Guard Band maintains a mounted fanfare band (La Fanfare de Cavalerie de la Garde Républicaine), which is the seniormost of its kind in the French Armed Forces. In addition to the cavalry of the Republican Guard, the Armoured Cavalry branch of the French Army and Armored Branch maintain mounted fanfare detachments for use on ceremonial occasions. All three of these bands whether mounted or dismounted feature cavalry trumpets, bugles, kettledrums and marching percussion, as well as other one-handed instruments. Mounted bands began to encompass a larger instrumentation after a brief suppression by Napoleon. In the following years after, woodwind instruments were incorporated into French mounted bands.[5]
Germany
A few civilian mounted bands exist today in modern Germany. The Imperial German Army in the 19th century sported many cavalry bands in its ranks before the end of the German Empire's 47-year rule in 1918. Prior to this, the most notable German mounted bands were located in the Kingdom of Prussia. Nazi Germany also sported many mounted bands during its 12-year rule. The number of mounted bands of the over 1,000 that existed in the Third Reich was alleged to be at least 138, according to some historians. Currently, a revival mounted band is underway in the state of Lower Saxony where a brass band, the Heidedragoner Brass Band, aims to honor the traditions of the 2nd Hannover Dragoon Regiment of the Imperial German Army by having a section of the band being mounted on horses. It began this tradition in 2013 and became fully active in 2016, becoming Germany's first military-styled civilian mounted brass band.[6] Like its predecessors, the Heidedragoner Band is an all-brass band, and does not have a woodwind section, relying only on a timpanist when mounted. This was the case for all German Army mounted bands in the 19th century up to the early 20th.
During the Imperial German, Weimar Republic and Third Reich, the bandmaster of the mounted band carried a bugle as a signaling device similar to the baton of the infantry bands[7] wherein he gave the signals to, among others, conduct the band, halt the music, and change the march tempo.
India
The unique BSF Camel Contingent during the annual Republic Day Parade in 2004.
The 36-member camel mounted band of the Indian Border Security Force is one of two official bands in the BSF.[8] It is the only camel-mounted military band in the world, and is mentioned in Guinness Book of World Records as such.[9] It is one of the unique sights of the Delhi Republic Day parade and has been an annual participant since 1990.[10] Former Indian military mounted bands included the Gwalior Mounted Band.
Netherlands
The mounted band services are provided by the Fanfare Band of the Royal Marechaussee in the Netherlands (Trompetterkorps der Koninklijke Marechaussee). Based in Apeldoorn, the band consists of reservists and part-time musicians who work on average 2 days a week.[11] Veterans of reserve bands also hold on to the mounted fanfare and bugle band traditions of the Dutch military. The Opende based Bicycle Showband Crescendo is unique in that the civilian band is composed of musicians who are mounted on bicycles while they are playing their instruments. Currently, there are only two civilian mounted bands in the world:[12] Crescendo and the Brazilian Cyclophonica Bicycle Orchestra. Its military counterpart is the Fanfare Orchestra of the Royal Netherlands Army Cavalry, which can also play while mounted on bicycles and wearing uniforms of the 1940s.
Oman
ROP Camel Band
Oman currently sports what is the only camel mounted pipe band. The official name of the band is the Royal Cavalry Mounted band, and it is a unit of the Royal Guard of Oman (RGO), specifically the central band. The horses are mainly a mix of Arabs, Clydesdales and Shires. The cavalry is composed of at least 100 horses and riders, all of whom are based in Al Safinat stables at the Royal Palace. The cavalry band is probably known the most for the fact that, since 2001, it has seen a significant number of women in its ranks, with women accounting for 25% of the riders in the band. On parade, the pipers lead the band while mounted on Arab horses, as a large carriage pulled by six Friesian horses carrying drummers immediately follows behind. In 2008, Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman requested Kilmarnock-based McCallum Bagpipes design some specialized pipe tubes, due to the ones at the time having a history of leaving gaps in the pipers' teeth.[13][14][15]
The Mounted Fanfare Band Company of the Presidential Life Guard Dragoons Regiment "Marshal Domingo Nieto" is today the only mounted band in active service within the Peruvian Armed Forces. It was established in 1905 along with the formation of the regiment, was disbanded in 1987 and remained inactive until 2012, when it was reactivated by Ollanta Humala, the President of Peru. It reports directly to the President as the official presidential mounted band with operational control under the commander of the 3rd Infantry Division (Army).
A small mounted fanfare band serves the Mounted Police Department of the National Police of Peru and traces its roots to the former 24th Cavalry Command of the Peruvian Civil Guard.
Portugal
Charanga Cavalo in the changing of the guard of the Portuguese Presidential Palace
The Charanga a Cavalo is part of the State Honors and Security Unit (former GNR Cavalry Regiment) and usually parades with the horse squadrons of the GNR, including with Presidential Squadron in the guard mounting ceremony of the Presidencial Palace. This mounted band is the only band of its kind in the world that is able to play while galloping.[17]
Unlike other bands it is an all-brass ensemble similar in instrumentation to that of the French Republican Guard. Usually the band is joined by the pennant bearers of the NRG cavalry.
Russia
In Russia, Mounted Bands (Russian: конный оркестр) existed in the Red Army in the early twentieth century. Many cavalry units sported bands that were mounted and dismounted on horses. Their history dates back to the era of the Russian Empire, majority being all-brass following Imperial German precendence. In 1867, at a competition of European military bands in Paris, first place was taken by the Band of the Life Guards Cavalry Regiment.[18] During the latter half of the Soviet Union, jubilee parades on Red Square in honor of October Revolution Day featured historical Bolshevik cavalry led by a mounted band with a drum major at the front.[19]
The Red Guard of Senegal sports a mounted band which is the premier ceremonial unit of the unit's presidential protection group. The band, which consists of 35 musical cavalrymen, leads the Red guard in parades, on their white bay horses whose tails are dyed red. It is similar to the Republican Guard Mounted Band of France and closely follows the French mounted band tradition, which includes the tradition of a bugle major.
Spain
Only the Spanish Royal Guard and the Civil Guard retain mounted bands (Banda de caballeria), which are very unique in this country that these are composed mainly of cavalry fanfare trumpets, which there are more similar in size to bugles but play differently owing to their historical role as signalling instruments for the cavalry and artillery in the Spanish Army and in the cavalry units of the Civil Guard and the current National Police Corps. The Royal Guard's Royal Escort Squadron Mounted Band of Timpani and Bugles is the only band there that has the timpani as part of its instrumentation, and is led by a trumpet major, timpani were the primary signalling instruments used in the Gardes de Corps of Napoleonic times.
Sweden
The Royal Swedish Cavalry Band (Livgardets Dragonmusikkår (LDK) serves as the official mounted band in the Swedish Armed Forces. Currently, the LDK rides at the head of the Swedish Life Guards during the mounting the King's Guard, which parades through the capital. It is closely related to the Prussian/German tradition for mounted bands and is the common basis for mounted military bands in the Scandinavian Region. The LDK is the only band that still kept their musical traditions even during the Prussian reforms of the mid-1800s initiated by Wilhelm Friedrich Wieprecht. The LDK serves under the general command of the Swedish Armed Forces Music Corps. Unlike other bands it is led by a Drum Major, who uses the mace when mounted. The usual kettledrummers are positioned with their drum horses behind the drum major. All wear full dress and it is an all-brass unit.
Cavalry units and Royal Horse Artillery, like infantry battalions, maintained their own band in the United Kingdom. Until the 1930s, all cavalry regiments had a mounted band led by a drum horse.[24] Similar to the Household Division, until 2014 both the Household Cavalry regiments had their own mounted bands and also their own regimental quick and slow marches, with the merger of the regimental bands to form a unified 64-strong Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry. The term "Massed Mounted Bands" denotes the combined mounted bands of the Household Cavalry.
The current Band of the Royal Armoured Corps is a descendant of the numerous line cavalry mounted bands that existed in the 19th century and in the first half of the 20th century.
United States
The United States Armed Forces does not currently have mounted bands in its ranks, but in the first 100 years of the country's existence, they were not uncommon. In the 1840s, establishing such bands was complicated and took multiple years to assemble from military ranks. This was partly due few band recruits knew how to ride a horse, and fewer still how to play a musical instrument. The original bands were composed of army buglers and trumpet players, with woodwind instruments and other brass instruments joining later. Mounted bands in the United States Army were ultimately disbanded in the '30s and '40s mechanized vehicles such as tanks replaced horses. By the end of the Second World War, there were no ceremonial mounted bands left in the U.S.[25]
In 2019, a military-styled civilian mounted band renewed the tradition in the US, as is happening in an ongoing revival in Germany. The Ohio-based 2nd Cavalry Brigade Band, made up of American Civil War re-enactors, played bugles and brass at its first public parade on May 29 and in 2022 completed a three day run, opening Fantasia at the Equine Affaire held in Columbus Ohio. Another civilian group, the Pendleton Roundup Mounted Band based in Oregon, wears uniforms based on the cowboy dress of the old western communities in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.[26] This band includes more instruments including brass, woodwind and percussion.
Uruguay
The Regimental Band “Grito de Asencio” of the 1st Cavalry Regiment (Presidential Guards) “Blandengues de Artigas” of the Uruguayan Army is a mounted band following the Argentine practice, wearing the regiment's 19th century uniforms, but unlike its Argentine counterpart, also uses woodwinds. It is the official presidential band of the republic. Despite its mounted status, it can also perform with the regiment in dismounted formation.
A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the title of Bandmaster or Music director. Ottoman military bands are thought to be the oldest variety of military marching bands in the world, dating from the 13th century.
Beating Retreat is a military ceremony dating to 17th-century England and was first used to recall nearby patrolling units to their castle.
Martial music or military music is a specific genre of music intended for use in military settings performed by professional soldiers called field musicians. Much of the military music has been composed to announce military events as with bugle calls and fanfares, or accompany marching formations with drum cadences, or mark special occasions as by military bands. However, music has been employed in battle for centuries, sometimes to intimidate the enemy and other times to encourage combatants, or to assist in organization and timing of actions in warfare. Depending on the culture, a variety of percussion and musical instruments have been used, such as drums, fifes, bugles, trumpets or other horns, bagpipes, triangles, cymbals, as well as larger military bands or full orchestras. Although some martial music has been composed in written form, other music has been developed or taught by ear, such as bugle calls or drum cadences, relying on group memory to coordinate the sounds.
A Corps of Drums, sometimes known as a Fife and Drum Corps, Fifes and Drums or Field Music is a traditional European military music formation. In contrast to a military band, a Corps of Drums' primary role is communication. Historically, music was used as signaling device throughout the day for keeping marching tempo and delivering commands. Today, the primary role of a Corps of Drums is ceremonial, performing in parades and military ceremonies. Besides drums, this formation may contain a variety of instruments including trumpets, bugles, and fifes.
A fanfare band, fanfare corps, fanfare battery, fanfare team, horn and drum corps, bugle band, drum and bugle corps, or trumpet and drum band is a military or civilian musical ensemble composed of percussion instruments, bugles, natural horns and natural trumpets. Fanfare bands are the descendants of the old medieval trumpet and drum teams that sounded fanfares on important occasions and are related to drum and bugle corps internationally.
The Royal Artillery Mounted Band was a British military band consisting of woodwind, brass, and percussion instruments, and military unit, founded in 1886, and in existence until 1984, representing the Royal Artillery, and the Royal Horse Artillery, and augmenting the Royal Artillery Band at royal and state occasions.
The Royal Swedish Cavalry Band is one of three professional military bands in the Swedish Armed Forces. The band traces its ancestry back to the 1500s when King Gustav Vasa raised his first regiment of horse. Today LDK is one of few mounted bands in the world. The band rides at the head of the Life Guards through Stockholm when mounting the King's Guard and the parade is considered one of Sweden's main tourist attractions. This band reports as part of the Swedish Armed Forces Music Corps, which is responsible for the formation and maintenance of Swedish military bands
Canadian military bands are a group of personnel in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) that performs musical duties for military functions. Military bands form a part of the Music Branch of the CAF, composed of six full-time professional Regular Force bands, 15 Regular Force voluntary bands, and 53 part-time reserve force bands. Bands of the Music Branch are often badged with the unit or Canadian Forces base insignia that they support.
The Royal Artillery Band was the first official, and permanent British military band originating in 1557, but granted official status in 1762. Consisting of woodwind, brass, and percussion instruments, it represented both the Royal Regiment of Artillery, and the state. The Royal Artillery Orchestra [disbanded on 9 February 2014] was Britain's first permanent professional orchestra. All other bands in the British Army received official, permanent status from 1763 onward. Now that the band's overall history of over four and a half centuries has come to an end, it is now claimed that the Band of the Grenadier Guards are the oldest band, with their overall history of over three hundred and thirty years. It is however, important to consider that until 1762, all military bands were formed as and when required, and then immediately disbanded when not, and that they consisted only of hired, civilian musicians; becoming integrated professional soldiers in 1762 and from 1763.
The Military Brass Band of the Commandant Regiment of the Ministry of Defense of Tajikistan, is the official regimental military band of the commandant regiment of the Ministry of Defence of Tajikistan. Being subordinate to the Ministry of Defence, it is the seniormost military band in the Armed Forces of the Republic of Tajikistan.
A fanfare trumpet, also called a herald trumpet, is a brass instrument similar to but longer than a trumpet, capable of playing specially composed fanfares. Its extra length can also accommodate a small ceremonial banner that can be mounted on it.
The Music of the Foreign Legion, formerly known as the Principal Music of the Foreign Legion is a Military band of the French Foreign Legion.
The Military Music Department of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces serves as the official service of military bands and choirs in active service within the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
A police band is a military-style band operated or sponsored by a police force. Police bands provide ceremonial support for civic events, and perform at police observances such as funerals and police academy graduations. Most police bands consists exclusively of professional police officers, while others consist of personnel of law enforcement and other special agencies. Like military bands, their repertoire is mostly composed of ceremonial marching music and honors music.
Russian military bands fall under the jurisdiction of the Military Band Service of the Armed Forces of Russia, which is the official music service for the Russian Armed Forces, and led by the Senior Director of Music, a billet of an officer with the rank of a Colonel or a general officer. There are currently between 200 and 300 military bands in the Russian Armed Forces that span across the military as well as all uniformed services in the country. Unlike most western nations, the Armed Forces does not maintain any bands composed of volunteering civilian musicians, as all bands, active or reserve, are manned by graduates of the military music training centers stationed anywhere in the country, as well as of civilian conservatories. While choirs may be attached to military bands, individual staff choirs do not exist in the Russian Armed Forces, since they have attached instrumental ensembles or orchestras. As of 2009, all military musicians are paid around 13,000 rubles ($169.65) for their service in the Armed Forces and other uniformed organizations.
The Indian military bands consists of musicians from the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force. Indian military bands regularly participate in international festivals and take part in celebrations dedicated to various national events. These bands are permanent participants in the Delhi Republic Day parade on the Rajpath. Today, the Indian Armed Forces have more than 50 military brass bands and 400 pipe bands and corps of drums. A Tri-Services Band refers to a joint Indian Armed Forces military band that performs together as a unit. At the Spasskaya Tower Military Music Festival and Tattoo in Moscow, the band consisted of 7 officers and 55 musicians. The Military Music Wing of the Army Education Corps is the principal educational institution of the armed forces that provides instruction to musicians of all ranks. Instruction is also provided by the Military Music Training Center and the Indian Navy School of Music.
The Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry is a British Army band which ceremonially serves the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment (HCMR). The HCMR Band is the largest symphonic wind band in the British Army. It is one of the bands of the Royal Corps of Army Music (RCAM) and is currently based at Hyde Park Barracks and Combermere Barracks.
Italian Bersaglieri Bands are military bands that belong to the Bersaglieri Corps of the Italian Army. These brass bands are notable for their marching style, playing their instruments while on a jogging pace ahead of their attached units on parade. In the 1800s, every unit in the Bersaglieri had a band known as a "fanfara" or fanfare. Today, this is not the case, with only four Bersaglieri regiments retaining a "fanfara". A fanfare of the Bersaglieri plays exclusively brass.
The Musical Unit of the Spanish Royal Guard is the official music service of the Spanish Royal Guard of the Spanish Armed Forces that is dedicated to providing ceremonial honours and music to the King of Spain, the Spanish Royal Family, and public officials. The musical unit is one of many battalion sized units in the regiment, with over 100 professional musicians in its ranks who are chosen from the non-commissioned officers of the Military Music Corps. It is one of the more senior and representative bands in the Spanish Armed Forces, with its repertoire covering a wide range of Army, Navy and Air Force music. The entire unit is currently under the baton of the conductor of the Military Band of the Royal Guard, Colonel Musician Enrique Damián Blasco Cebolla.
The military bands of the United Kingdom are musical units that serve for protocol and ceremonial duties as part of the British Armed Forces. They have been the basis and inspiration for many military bands in the former British Empire and the larger Commonwealth of Nations as well as musical organizations in other countries. Military musical units with British influence include United States military bands, the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Music Corps and the Military Band of Athens. British military bands are controlled by the military music departments of the three services that compose the armed forces. These include the Royal Marines Band Service, the Royal Corps of Army Music, and the Royal Air Force Music Services. British style brass bands and carnival bands were then and are currently inspired by the British Armed Forces and its brass bands, especially of the Army's regular and reserve formations, as they follow a similar format as it relates to brass and percussion instruments.
References
↑ Gleason, Bruce 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. 27 (2): 102–119. doi:10.1177/153660060602700204. JSTOR25597924. S2CID142283732.
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