Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Band (PPCLI Band) was the former brass and reed regimental band of the

Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI, generally referred to as the Patricias) is one of the three Regular Force infantry regiments of the Canadian Army of the Canadian Armed Forces. Formed in 1914, it is named for Princess Patrici ...

regiment of the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), 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 re ...

. It was maintained by the regiment from 1919–1994 at CFB Calgary.

History

The band was founded in 1919, with its core consisting of musicians from the St. Mary's Boys Brigade Band and the 140th Battalion (St. John's Tigers) Band. When the latter was disbanded in November 1917, the remaining band was merged with the PPCLI to become the PPCLI Band in 1919. It was formed under the direction of Captain Tommy James and was originally stationed at Fort Osborne Barracks in

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

. In 1935, Bugle bands were established in the PPCLI's 1st and 2nd battalions. It would be accompanied by a dance band that would be established two years later in 1937. At the start of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, members of the PPCLI Band volunteered for active duty, which resulted in its dissolving in 1939. In 1941, the

1st Canadian Division The 1st Canadian Division (French: ) is a joint operational command and control formation based at CFB Kingston, and falls under Canadian Joint Operations Command. It is a high-readiness unit, able to move on very short notice, and is staffed and ...

Band was largely made up of former PPCLI Bandsmen. The band was reactivated after the war at Wainwright, Alberta. In 1950 the band was revived in

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

, where like other military bands (the

Band of the Canadian Guards The Canadian Guards (officially known as the Regiment of Canadian Guards) was an infantry regiment of the Canadian Army that served in the same role as the five regiments of foot guards in the British Army. The regiment was formed on 16 October ...

included), members were recruited from the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

and the Dutch Army. By 1951, the band had numbered 20 members and just two years later in late 1953, it reached its quota of 55 personnel. Some of these members included notable members of the band, including Brian Albert Gossip and Albert Brown. On 13 April 1959, the band took part in a

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

military festival in

Arnhem Arnhem ( ; ; Central Dutch dialects, Ernems: ''Èrnem'') is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is the capita ...

in honor of the organization's 10th anniversary. The 60s and 70s marked an increase in its activities in Alberta and abroad. It was often noted as a regular contingent in the

Calgary Stampede The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, fair, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year a ...

as one of the main performing units. The band was one of 17 tri-service bands to take part in the Canadian Armed Forces Tattoo celebrating Canada's centennial year celebrations in 1967. It was selected in 1976 to represent Canada along with the

Band of the Royal 22nd Regiment Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran *Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, Ir ...

in the Tournament of Roses in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commerci ...

. It played at the opening of the

1978 Commonwealth Games The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, from 3 to 12 August, two years after the 1976 Summer Olympics was held in Montreal, Quebec. They were boycotted by Nigeria, in protest at New Zealand's sporting contacts with a ...

in Edmonton in the presence of Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

and the

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

. In the early 1980s, the band under the direction of Captain R. Swaneveld, performed during the Changing of the Guard ceremony on

Parliament Hill Parliament Hill (), colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern bank of the Ottawa River that houses the Parliament of Canada in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. It accommodates a suite of Gothic revival buildings whose ...

with the Public Duties Detachment (now the Ceremonial Guard). Due to military budget cuts in 1994, the entire band was disbanded and reduced to a

Corps of Drums A corps of drums, sometimes known as a fife and drum corps or simply field music, is a traditional European military music formation. Historically, a Corps of Drums' primary role was communication. Today, the primary role of a Corps of Dru ...

, known today as the PPCLI Drumline. The St. Mary's Band is today known as the St. Mary's Community Band and is active in St. John as a civilian marching band.

Directors

*Captain Thomas William James (1919–1939) *Lieutenant A.L. Streeter (1939) *Captain A. Brown (1950–1953) *Captain F.M. McLeod (1953–1957) *Captain Herbert A. Jeffrey (director 1957–1964) *Captain P.A. Medcalf (1968–1969) *Captain J. Dowell (1969–1972) *Captain Leonard Camplin (1972–1978) *Major Jean-François Pierret (1978–1980) *Captain R. Swaneveld (1980–1984) *Captain Jean-Pierre Montminy (1984–1987) *Captain D. Embree (1987–1990) *Captai
Dave Jones
(1990–1994)

Repertoire

*Regimental Music **Quick: " Has Anyone Seen the Colonel/ Tipperary/ Mademoiselle from Armentières" (medley) **Slow: " Lili Marlene" *Battalion music **1st Battalion: "The Maple Leaf" **2nd Battalion: "March Winnipeg" **3rd Battalion: " Imperial Echoes" *Army marches **'' The Great Little Army'' **'' Vimy Ridge'' **'' The Canadian Infantryman'' **'' Alberta Bound'' **''Canada Overseas''

References

{{Reflist Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Bands of the Canadian Army Musical groups established in 1919 1919 establishments in Alberta Musical groups from Edmonton

History

Directors

Repertoire

See also

References