Military bands of the United Kingdom

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.

Trumpeters and drummers in the field sufficed as a medium for communication, as did pipers, and later fifers, whose further remit was to frighten the enemy.

[6] In 1854, during the Crimean War, a parade in Scutari (nowadays Turkey), to celebrate the Queen Victoria's birthday was held, during which twenty British Army bands performed the national anthem.

By the 18th century, Royal Marines bands were established in Deal, Chatham, Plymouth and Portsmouth, each providing musical support to RM units, as well as to all naval servicemen, stationed in these areas.

By the early 20th Century, regimental infantry and cavalry bands in the British Army, were well-balanced, highly versatile groups of musicians.

At the time, bugle and trumpet calls were still used to signal on the battlefield, with all other aspects remaining unused except for ceremonial events.

With the reduction in size of the army, the need for battalion and event to an extent, regimental bands became obsolete and were seen as a strain in the national economy rather than a cultural symbol.

With the establishment of a regular army in Scotland, the Scottish regiments of infantry played a major role in the development of the pipe band tradition in the whole of Great Britain.

Army pipe bands were developed around the mid-1800s, when regimental pipers and drummers performed during long route marches.

In the mid to late 1800s the Scottish form soon would be adopted by the British Army in Ireland for soldiers coming from units of Irish descent, and they are still in use today.

All the members of these formations wear Scottish/Irish/Gurkha full dress uniforms, with the flat cap for the Brigade of Gurkhas, tartan kilts in unit colours and black feather bonnets for those of Scottish formations, and the caubeen and brown kilts for both the Irish Guards and the Royal Irish Regiment.

Operationally, corps of drums are deployed as a specialist platoon that serve as assault pioneers or force protection.

In the RLC, the corps of drums of that formation is more of a drumline that is famed for a "black light" display, which is a modern touch that makes it very distinct from its predecessors and counterparts.

[23] Until 1949, all RM units, as well as the wider Royal Navy, sported separate corps of drums, today, they form a vital part of all the six bands of the RMBS.

Until that decade, the timpani in the bands of the light cavalry units carried the battle honours of their respective formations, which would be the case until 1952, when guidons were reinstated.

In April 2019, it was announced that the tiger skin pelts that are traditionally worn by Royal Marine drummers were to be replaced by synthetic fur.

The tradition of wearing tiger skin for the bass and tenor drummers while on parade dates back to the 18th century, introduced by a number of African bandsmen who served in the bands of the RM during those times.

Several bands however followed the Foot Guards tradition, stationing the snare drums at the front with the remainder of the corps in the rear ranks.

Those of armoured formations and the Royal Artillery had bands that either followed the Guards Division practice or stationed tubas and euphoniums at the front rank, the latter done more appropriate when mounted on horseback.

The beating of the drumline to commence the playing of marches has been a uniquely British tradition since the Middle Ages and became a formal part in the mid-19th century, done by all the bands and field formations under the Armed Forces.

During the Restoration, the Household Cavalry under King Charles II sported these instruments on parade, training, and actual battles, as well as on ceremonial and public duties and other royal events.

By the late 18th century, these kettledrummers and trumpeters were now joined by a number of musicians, at least in the then twin regiments of Life Guards and the Royal Horse Guards, forming the basis of their mounted bands, which would be a trend later in the 19th, when all the line cavalry regiments of the Army (Dragoon Guards, Dragoons, Hussars and Lancers), all had mounted bands of brass and woodwind instrumentalists, a percussion section when dismounted and the timpanist and trumpeters when mounted, all under bandmasters and later Directors of Music (in the Household Cavalry).

In 1831, the then 1st Life Guards was granted a set of Russian-produced chromatic fanfare trumpets, which made their debut in Trooping the Colour that year.

Until the late 1930s, the RAMB, in mounted formation, played in like manner as in the Army's guards and line cavalry bands.

Currently, the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery, aside from a bugler, maintains a natural chromatic fanfare trumpet section active in ceremonial events and the Musical Ride demonstration, a tradition formerly part of the RAMB in the years when it played in mounted formation.

Then as in today both the timpanist and the fanfare trumpeters, in full dress uniform, wear the colours of their respective units.

Only the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards timpanist in full dress wears a bearskin while playing his instrument in mounted formation.

At the same time, due to its shared history with France (particularly in Quebec), a French aspect to Canadian military bands can also be found.

[29] The country that follows British band patterns the most are those of the South African National Defence Force, which utilizes the voluntary regimental system alongside the active duty structure.

[34] The Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force Steel Orchestra has modified its British tradition with its sole use of steelpans.