The Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry is a British Army band which ceremonially serves the

Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment The Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment (HCMR) is a cavalry regiment of the British Army tasked primarily with ceremonial duties. Part of the Household Division, it is classed as a regiment of guards, and carries out mounted (and some dismounted ...

(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.

Origins

Band of The Life Guards

In the years since the dissolution of the Commonwealth of England, music had become very important to the ceremonial duties of the regiment, which each Troop of the Guards having a fanfare team consisting of one kettledrummer and four trumpeters. The trumpets and drums were silver, crimson, and gold, with the Royal Coat of Arms engraved on it. At that time, the horses they mounted were of a black Clydesdale horses.

Band of The Blues and Royals

It originates from the Band of the

Royal Horse Guards The Royal Regiment of Horse Guards (The Blues) (RHG) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. Raised in August 1650 at Newcastle upon Tyne and County Durham by Sir Arthur Haselrigge on the orders of Oliver Cr ...

which was founded in 1805. On St George's Day that year, King George III presented the band with a set of silver kettledrums, and appointed Herr Stowasser as the first bandmaster of the Regiment. In 1938, the band made an appeared in the movie ''The Drum'' where they performed in kilts for the first time in their history. The band went through an amalgamation in 1969 to form the Band of the Blues and Royals which was founded in the same year.

Merger

In September 2014, the Bands of The Life Guards and the Blues and Royals were merged to form the combined Mounted Band of the Household Cavalry composed of 64 musicians from the two bands. The band wear the uniform of both The Life Guards and the Blues and Royals on service events and the State Dress on major holidays and occasions.

Regimental music

* Life Guards: ** Quick - Millanollo ** Slow - Life Guards Slow March ** Trot Past -

Keel Row "The Keel Row" is a traditional Tyneside folk song evoking the life and work of the keelmen of Newcastle upon Tyne. A closely related song was first published in a Scottish collection of the 1770s, but may be considerably older, and it is unclear w ...

* Blues and Royals: ** Quick - Quick March of the Blues and Royals ** Slow - Slow March of the Blues and Royals ** Trot Past -

Events

Female Trumpeter of The Band of The Household Cavalry MOD 45162372

The two 35 member mounted bands of the combined massed bands of the HCMR Band regularly perform at special occasions and events. Some of the main and most notable events they participate in are listed below, although this is not a comprehensive list: * Mounting of the King's Life Guard *

State and official visits to the United Kingdom State and official visits to the United Kingdom are formal visits by the head of state of one country to the United Kingdom, during which the British Sovereign acts as official host of the visitor. It is a royal event that involves all the asset ...

* The Festival of Remembrance * Trooping the Colour * Beating Retreat *

State Procession at the State Opening of Parliament The State Opening of Parliament includes a State Procession, a formal display of the Sovereign, dignified by a sizeable entourage made up of Great Officers of State, members of the royal family and of the Royal Household. The State Procession ...

* Lord Mayor's Show *

Coronation of the British monarch The coronation of the monarch of the United Kingdom is a ceremony (specifically, initiation rite) in which they are formally invested with regalia and crowned at Westminster Abbey. It corresponds to the coronations that formerly took place in ot ...

Since 2014, the HCMR Band has performed in many other public events, such as the Sweden International Tattoo, as well as the Birmingham International Tattoo.

Uniform

The HCMR Band mostly wears 3 ceremonial dress uniforms: * The mounted band's main uniform is known as the state dress (unchanged since 1685) which consists of a gold state uniform and dark blue peaked equestrian caps. The state dress is only worn if a member of the British royal family is present, as for example on the ''Monarch's Birthday Parade'' ( Trooping the Colour), but not on the two Trooping the Colour's rehearsals, the ''Major General's Review'' and the ''Colonel's Review''. An often overlooked detail on the state dress is a pair of vestigial ''false sleeves'', now in form of narrow strips hanging from the back of the shoulder and looped up into the waist-belt. False sleeves were a traditional embellishment of the uniforms of British Army drummers and pipers (who were also, in non-royal regiments, clad in reverse colours) which were abolished in 1768. * The main uniform of the Life Guards consists of a scarlet coat with a silver lace. It originates from a similar uniform created in 1678. * On ceremonial occasions, the Blues and Royals wear a blue tunic (inherited from the

, also known as "the Blues"), with an Eagle arm patch inherited from the

1st The Royal Dragoons The Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons) was a heavy cavalry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1661 as the Tangier Horse. It served for three centuries and was in action during the First and the Second World Wars. It was amalgama ...

, and a metal cuirass, and a matching helmet with a red plume worn unbound.

State Trumpeters and Drummers

The HCMR Band often provides State Trumpeters for ceremonial events of state. The HCMR Band, specifically when denoted as the "Massed Mounted Bands" on parade, is led by two musicians on Shire horses who are playing the timpani. They steer the reins of the drum horses with their feet, due to their hands being occupied with the drumsticks. A drum horse must have a minimum of 68 inches in order to be used in this regard. They also have to have the capability to carry two silver drums weighing combined.

Notable members

* Major Jason Griffiths - Director of the Band of the Blues and Royals * Captain J. Cooper - Member of the Band of the Life Guards and founder of the Nigerian Army Band Corps * Warrant Officer Class 1 Esther Freeborn - First female bandmaster of the HCMR Band * Herr Stowasser - First Bandmaster of the Band of the Blues and Royals * James Tutton - Bandmaster of the Band of the Blues and Royals and one of the founders of the Society of British Musicians *

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Magician Magician or The Magician may refer to: Performers * A practitioner of magic (supernatural) * A practitioner of magic (illusion) * Magician (fantasy), a character in a fictional fantasy context Entertainment Books * ''The Magician'', an 18th-ce ...

and soldier known for winning the tenth series of '' Britain's Got Talent'' in 2016.

Citations

{{Reflist

External links

IMMS-UK: Household Cavalry Mounted Band - June 2016Household Cavalry Mounted Band drummerThe Band of the Household Cavalry and The Life GuardsChanging of The Queen's Guard - 7 June 2015 - FEAT Band of the Household CavalryGarter Parade 2015 with the Household Cavalry Band
Royal Corps of Army Music Mounted bands Household Cavalry British ceremonial units