The Armed Forces of Malta Band ( mt, Banda tal-Forzi Armati ta' Malta) is a Maltese platoon-sized musical group representing the units of the

Armed Forces of Malta The Armed Forces of Malta ( mt, Forzi Armati ta' Malta) is the name given to the combined armed services of Malta. The AFM is a brigade sized organisation consisting of a headquarters and three separate battalions, with minimal air and naval ...

(AFM). The AFM Band is a regular participant in official events and ceremonies, mostly performing on major holidays such as

Republic Day Republic Day is the name of a holiday in several countries to commemorate the day when they became republics. List January 1 January in Slovak Republic The day of creation of Slovak republic. A national holiday since 1993. Officially cal ...

in December. The band's area of responsibility includes

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

and

Gozo Gozo (, ), Maltese: ''Għawdex'' () and in antiquity known as Gaulos ( xpu, 𐤂𐤅𐤋, ; grc, Γαῦλος, Gaúlos), is an island in the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After t ...

. The personnel of the AFM Band make up the only specialised marching band on the island. The band currently has 43 musicians in its ranks, who, besides their duties as bandsmen, also perform their military duties as medics and security officers. Band members must be musically proficient in one the following instruments: *Flutes *Oboe *Bass Clarinets *Cornet / Trumpet *Horns *Trombone *Baritone *Guitar *String Bass *Keyboard The band reports directly to the AFM's 4th Regiment.

History

Predecessors

The AFM Band's precursor was known as the

Royal Malta Artillery The Royal Malta Artillery (RMA) was a regular artillery unit of the British Army prior to Malta's independence. It was formed in 1889, having been called the Royal Malta Fencible Artillery from 1861 until 1889. Initially on the British Esta ...

Band (RMA Band), which was established in 1890 and provided the basis for the AFM Band later on. The RMA Band itself traces its origins to the year 1800, when a band with fifes and drums formed part of the Malta Light Infantry Regiment. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the band was suspended as its members were serving on active duty missions on mainland

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. Music was also provided by the Band of the 1st Battalion,

The King's Own Malta Regiment The King's Own Malta Regiment was a territorial infantry regiment on the British Army colonial list prior to Malta's independence. It was formed in 1801 as the "Regiment of Maltese Militia", existing only until the following year. It was reformed ...

, which maintained its own

corps of drums A Corps of Drums, also sometimes known as a Fife and Drum Corps, Fifes and Drums or simply Drums is a unit of several national armies. Drummers were originally established in European armies to act as signallers. The major historical distin ...

alongside a

brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other with ...

and reed band.

AFM Band

The RMA Band was reactivated in 1943. The AFM Band was established in 1970 by

Warrant officer Warrant officer (WO) is a rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ranks, the mos ...

Chircop Anthony. Today, the AFM Band is directed

Jonathan Borg. Apart from the position of commanding officer, the AFM Band also has a president and secretary, two positions that are served by Colonel Mark Mallia AFM and Major Edric Zahra respectively.

Duties

Its repertoire of music ranges from military marches to classical and popular music. Since the 1970s, the AFM Band has been represented at various massed–band displays and organized

military tattoos A military tattoo is a performance of music or display of armed forces in general. The term comes from the early 17th-century Dutch phrase ''doe den tap toe'' ("turn off the tap"), a signal sounded by drummers or trumpeters to instruct innkeeper ...

References

{{Reflist

Links

The Power of Military Music
Military bands Military of Malta Musical groups established in 1970 1970 establishments in Malta