Memorial Stained Glass window, Class of 1934, Royal Military College of Canada

"The Rouse" is a

bugle call A bugle call is a short tune, originating as a military signal announcing scheduled and certain non-scheduled events on a military installation, battlefield, or ship. Historically, bugles, drums, and other loud musical instruments were used fo ...

most often associated with the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

countries. It is commonly played following " Last Post" at military services. It is sometimes called the "Reveille" or the "Levet". Despite often being referred to by the name "Reveille", "The Rouse" is actually a separate piece of music from the traditional "

Reveille "Reveille" ( , ), called in French "Le Réveil" is a bugle call, trumpet call, drum, fife-and-drum or pipes call most often associated with the military; it is chiefly used to wake military personnel at sunrise. The name comes from (or ), the ...

". "The Rouse" was traditionally played following "Reveille", which was a bugle call played in the morning to wake soldiers up. "The Rouse" would be played to get soldiers out of bed. The use of both "Last Post" and "The Rouse" at

cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...

ceremonies in

Commonwealth nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...

essentially turns the two-minute silence into a ritualized night vigil. The selection of "The Rouse" in the ceremony as assembled in the aftermath of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

also carries a subtle

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

reference to

Judgement Day The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

and the implied hope that there will be a day when the living and the dead arise together. Because of the close association between the two tunes, "The Rouse" is commonly mistaken for "

", and has taken on many of the functions "Reveille" traditionally held in remembrance ceremonies (such as those on

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 ...

) due to its shorter length and the ease with which it can be played.

Music

Being

bugle The bugle is one of the simplest brass instruments, normally having no valves or other pitch-altering devices. All pitch control is done by varying the player's embouchure. History The bugle developed from early musical or communication ...

music, both "The Rouse" and "Reveille" are composed entirely from the written notes of the brass instrument's harmonic series

C major C major (or the key of C) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and ...

(i.e. C, E, G, E, C etc), these being the only notes available on the instrument.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rouse, The Military life Bugle calls Funerary bugle calls