The Toronto Signals Band (abbreviated to "Sigs") is a Canadian

marching band A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who perform while marching, often for entertainment or competition. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. Most marching bands wear a uniform, ofte ...

and

drum and bugle corps Drum and bugle corps is a name used to describe several related musical ensembles. * Drum and bugle corps (modern), a musical marching unit * Drum and bugle corps (classic), musical ensembles that descended from military bugle and drum units retu ...

based in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Ontario. Although it is not a Canadian military band by virtue of being under the Music Branch of the Canadian Forces, it is directly affiliated with the 32 Signal Regiment of the

Royal Canadian Corps of Signals The Royal Canadian Corps of Signals (RCCS or RC Sigs; french: links=no, Corps des transmissions royal du Canada, CTRC) is a component within the Canadian Armed Forces' Communications and Electronics Branch, consisting of all members of that person ...

. In this arrangement with the regiment, the band serves as a "Duty Band" on a volunteer basis. The band is nicknamed "Canada’s Marching Ambassadors". The band was formed in 1926, as part of the 2nd Armoured Divisional Signals Regiment. In 1959, the band left the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...

to form the famed Drum Corps, "Canada's Marching Ambassadors". Following the

Unification of the Canadian Armed Forces The unification of the Canadian Armed Forces took place on 1 February 1968, when the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force were merged to form the Canadian Armed Forces. History A white paper was tabled in the Parliam ...

in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the band fell out of place in reformed

and was finally restructured as an independent unpaid organization in 1973. The band continued as a voluntary organization, maintaining the traditions of the military band. In 1999, the band welcomed women to join the ranks, which in 2020 comprised 20% of its membership. It has performed for audiences throughout Canada and the United States, in events such as parades, concerts,

military tattoo 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 ...

s and drum corps shows. Since the trophy's inception in 1955, the band has won first place for the Elwood Hughes Trophy at the annual Warriors Day Parade of the

Canadian National Exhibition The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE), also known as The Exhibition or The Ex, is an annual event that takes place at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on the third Friday of August leading up to and including Canadian Labour Day, ...

36 times, more recently in 2018. The band leads 32 Signal Regiment during an annual

Remembrance Day Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces members who have died in t ...

Parade at York Cemetery.

References

{{reflist Canadian marching bands Military bands of Canada Musical groups established in 1926 Musical groups from Toronto 1926 establishments in Ontario

See also

References