History of Wind Band - Military Bands

Military Bands

During the American Revolutionary War, there were many unofficial bands in existence. These bands ranged from small music groups of drums and fifes, to larger bands with many woodwind and brass players. Much like modern military bands, these groups performed largely at ceremonial activities, for political reasons, or for parties. It is interesting to note that many generals had bands, sometimes more than one, yet historians often have a hard time placing them, as there is a distinct lack of documentation that they were anything more than groups of drummers and fifers. However, there are numerous accounts that have surfaced recently through correspondence that indicate there were groups with a wide variety of instrumentation in demand at the time. By 1789, when president George Washington went on his grand tour of the United States, the popularity of bands had grown such that in every town he visited, one would greet him.

The 1789 National Guard band in Paris was the first “incontestably modern wind band". That isn’t to say that there aren’t well-documented wind groups performing before this time, but these were usually small, private, chamber groups, which don’t relate to the same degree to the size, role, or sound of a modern wind band. This was the first real distinction between band and orchestra, which was a gradual delineation. The French Revolution propelled greatly the advancement of the concert band, with many large bands enjoying great prosperity. New instruments were developed, and the original repertoire for these groups flourished.