006-013, Chapter 1

trumpeteers or buglers, were never called bandsmen. They had the military rank, uniform and insignia of a fifer, a drummer, a d trumpeteer or a bugler. d Collectively, they could be called the fifes l l & drums, the trumpets & drums, the drum & bugle corps, the corps of drums, the drum e e corps, or they could be referred to simply as i the drums in regiments of foot or the i trumpets in mounted units. f f Since the 19th century, the United States military has termed these soldier musicians e the “Field Music.” This was to distinguish e them from the non-combatant professional l l musicians of the Band of Music. The Field Music’s primary purpose was t t one of communication and command, t whether on the battlefield, in camp, in t garrison or on the march. To honor the combat importance of the Field Music, or a a drum corps, many armies would place their regimental insignia and battle honors on the b drums, drum banners and sashes of their b drum majors. The roots of martial field music go back to ancient times. The Greeks were known to e have used long, straight trumpets for calling e Chapter 1 commands (Fig. 1) and groups of flute players by Ronald Da Silva when marching into battle. h h The Romans (Fig. 2 -- note the soldier When one sees a field performance by a with cornu or buccina horn) used various t t modern drum and bugle corps, even a unit as metal horns for different commands and military as the United States Marine Drum & duties. These instruments could only Bugle Corps of Washington, D.C., it’s hard to produce the few tones used in military believe that the roots of these musical commands and civil announcements and n n organizations are not in the world of music were not known to have been used in music. or entertainment, but in the world of (Top) o organized violence called warfare. o Copyright 1991, Colonial Williamsbur(gle Fft)oundation, the Drum beats and trumpet calls fulfilled the Colonial Williamsburg Fife & Drum Corps; a Civil War era drum, bugle and drummer’s sw(baerdlo wi)t h a reproduction military’s need to communicate commands drummers regulation uniform; Copyright 1970 and keep order on noisy battlefields. These (Ppahroatmogoruanpth Psi catnudre isll,u sat rsacteionnes firno mth itsh ech mapotveier a“Wrea ftreormlo oth”;e personal collection of Ron Da Silva). n musicians, whether fifers, drummers, n r r o o b b y y r r t t n n a a e e g g a a P P The Legions of Rome moved in formation, now accompany the trumpets of the court both in combat and on the march. They were and royal mounted troops. drilled in two cadences; one was a short, The Swiss infantry of the 14th century clipped step called the “military pace,” used developed the practice of marching in step to when in tight combat formations called a the music of fifes and drums (Fig. 4). These phalanx. Swiss foot soldiers marched in block The most famous phalanx formation used formations similar to the phalanx of the by the Romans was the turtle. It utilized the ancient Romans and were effective against Legion’s large interlocking shields, carried on both mounted knights and foot soldiers. the sides by the outer ranks and overhead by Figure 7 Their large block formations contained inside ranks. hundreds of men; the outer ranks on all four The other step was a longer, more natural sides were made up of pikesmen carrying stride called the “full pace,” used when pikes up to 16 feet long. Behind them were marching longer periods or on the march. the crossbowmen and the halbert (a hook and While the Legions of Rome marched in axe on a short pike). cadence like the Greeks, they did so without In the the aid of drum beats. It seems the drum, as Figure 4 center of we know it, was unknown to the armies of Europe. these ancient Greece and Rome. During the Middle Ages, the defense formations The Romans also developed the use of of small kingdoms became the duty of were the standards heavily-armored mounted fifes, drums to identify Figure 1 noblemen called knights, not large and colors, various standing armies. Consequently, which were military the use of trumpets and standards protected by units. Each became common among the a guard Legion had nobility, from whom the knights armed with an “aguila” were drawn. large (Imperial A natural animal horn or a broadswords. Eagle -- metal version of it became the The Swiss Fig. 3 ), favored pattern for the mounted developed a each knight, since the long trumpet was system of cohort a difficult to play on horseback. drum “signum” (a These early horns were almost beatings and distinctive exclusively associated with the hunt fife tunes (marches) that were used to signal device) and and/or the military and would later the movement, direction or shape of their each evolve into the bugle. tactical formations. The military precision detached The long trumpet and the banners and effectiveness of the Swiss foot soldier led unit a attached to it to them becoming the most “vexillum,” an early form of cloth flag. would become a symbol Figure 3 sought after mercenaries in These standards were honored as sacred of the royal court and Renaissance Europe. objects and kept closely guarded. They were be played by the royal Many kings and princes often decorated with awards and battle heralds for fanfares, would hire these Swiss soldiers honors. The utmost disgrace was to lose your religious and court as their personal body guards -- standard to the enemy. Loss of a standard music. most noticeably, the kings of meant the When the kings and France and the Pope of Rome, Figure 2 loss of the knights of Europe went who still has his company of unit. off to the Crusades, Swiss Guards (Fig. 5 & 6) . This loss they found the Saracen In the next century the could also armies’ music German “Landsknechte” (Fig. 7) mean terrifying. The mercenaries adopted these Swiss banishment Saracens grouped their military techniques. The or even martial musicians Landsknechte also used a system death at the around their battle of flag signals by which the hands of flags at the centers of color bearer would twirl, your own advancing formations. flourish or high-toss his unit army. The These bands were color to direct the fifes and term “Death made up of both wind and percussion drums on which march to play. Before instruments and consisted of side drums, These marches were not the type of Dishonor” called tabors, small kettledrums in pairs, march we have today, but precise military had real called nakers, flutes, oboes and horns. These commands which not only directed meaning to Muslim musicians played continuously formation movement, but also synchronized the soldiers during a battle and, as long as a soldier could the motions of weapons exercises or manual of Rome. hear his unit’s music, he fought on. If the of arms. This music ceased, he would retreat. A drummer’s roll-off to signal horns-up is reverence and defense of military standards To Islamic armies, the capture of the a carryover of this military usage. would later be carried over into Christian drums of an enemy was considered a special These colors, called “Fahnlein,” were armies, who also consecrated their colors and glory. Likewise, the loss of one’s instruments usually six feet wide and up to 10 feet long, standards. Many of these standards bore was an everlasting disgrace. with a rounded end. The staff was normally Christian symbols, most commonly the Cross When the Crusaders returned to Europe, slightly longer than the width of the color, of Christ. Many of these cross standards they introduced the fife and tabor to the foot with a knob or handle to facilitate the would become the first national flags of soldiers’ march, while the kettledrums would celebrated flag swinging. 7 It was not uncommon to find a color with the cold ensign in the thick of a fight defending his steel of their color to the death. bayonets. An Italian account tells of a dead German Since these ensign found on the battlefield with both firearms were arms hacked to pieces, his standard clenched not very in his teeth. accurate at over Figure 8 The art of a hundred yards, Renaissance soldiers rarely flag tossing took aim at to the beat individuals. of drums Troops would can still be line up as close seen at as 50 yards from annual each other, then tournaments volley fire into in the each other’s Northern lines until one Italian unit was (Copyright 1970 Columbia Pictures) cities of weakened and Figure 9. Florence and disengaged. Figure 11 Siena In the mid-18th century, the Figure 10 (Fig. 8). infantry regiments of Prussia’s Frederick the Figure 5 Great would It is also depend on linear becoming a formations, regular three men deep, feature at shoulder to Medieval shoulder, to and achieve greater Renaissance firepower. These festivals in tight formations, the United States as combined with quicker well as in Europe. loading and firing With the procedures, proved development of the effective even against numerically larger musket, musketeers forces. (Fig. 9) would replace However, they required precision drill and the crossbowmen. strict discipline, something the Prussian Still, the long pike army would become noted for. These would remain a useful Prussian techniques would also be adopted by infantry weapon and the British army (Fig.

Load more