Varieties of Bugles

Mike Miller
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The Federation of American Scientists has some unique topics on their site and I found this today:

http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/bugle.htm

Bugle Calls
Times & Meaning

5:50 AM - Assembly of Trumpeters for Reveille [First Call] RM / MP3
The first signal for the soldiers to rise and shine. This call was historically sounded between 4:45 AM - and 6:00 AM - depending on the season. It bears a similarity to the French Cavalry call "La Garde a Vous."

6:00 AM - Reveille RM MP3
Upon the last note of this call, the flag was raised, the morning gun fired and the men all had to assemble for morning roll call. It is the same as a French call which dates from the time of the Crusades.

6:15 AM - Stable Call
Soldiers in the cavalry would report to the stables to feed and groom their mounts.

6:30 AM - Breakfast Call [Mess Call] RM / MP3

7:00 AM - Sick Call
Soldiers who were ill were to report to the hospital for examination by the surgeon.

7:30 AM - Fatigue Call
Those soldiers appointed to a work party would report to their assignments.

8:50 AM - Guard Mounting, Assembly of Trumpeters
First call for "Guard Mount", or the changing of the 24-hour guard detail.

8:55 AM - Guard Mounting, Assembly of Guard Detail
Men assigned to guard duty assemble in front of their respective barracks.

9:00 AM - Guard Mounting, Adjutant's Call RM / MP3
The guard details were marched to the guardhouse where the Guard Mount ceremony took place.

9:15 AM - Water Call
Horses received their watering.

9:55 AM - Drill, First Call
Preparatory call for soldiers assigned to morning drill.

10:00 AM - Drill, Assembly
Soldiers would practice the Manual of Arms, bayonet drills and marching. New recruits would be taught more basic skills.

11:00 AM - Recall from Drill RM / MP3
Morning drill was to cease.

11:30 AM - Recall from Fatigue RM / MP3
Morning work parties were to cease at the sound of this call.

12:00 Noon. Dinner Call [Mess Call] RM / MP3
Dinner was the main meal of the day.

1:00 PM - Fatigue Call
Afternoon work parties.

1:30 PM - First Sergeant;s Call
Company First Sergeant;s were to report to the post headquarters with their "Morning Reports" on the number of their men sick in the hospital, on guard duty, on drill or fatigue, or on special assignment.

2:00 PM - Mounted Drill, Boots and Saddles
This signal alerted cavalrymen to put on their riding boots and saddle their horses.

2:30 PM - Dismounted Drill
Cavalrymen are to practice all movements on foot before attempting them on horseback. This drill also allows cavalry men to prepare for battle on foot.

3:30 PM - Recall from Drill RM / MP3
Afternoon drill was to cease.

4:30 PM - Water and Stable Call
Horses received their afternoon watering and cavalrymen repeated the morning care of their horses.

5:00 PM - Recall from Fatigue RM / MP3
Afternoon work parties were to cease at the sound of this call.

5:15 PM - Assembly of Trumpeters for Retreat
Preparatory call for Retreat Parade.

5:30 PM - Assembly RM / MP3
The entire garrison would turn out for the Retreat ceremony. The actual lowering of the flag and playing of Retreat would occur at sunset.

5:45 PM - Adjutant's Call RM / MP3
The Captains march the companies (musicians playing) to the regimental parade grounds, where they take positions in the order of battle. After reporting to the senior officer present, the Retreat ceremony would commence.

6:00 PM - Retreat RM / MP3
The flag-lowering ceremony.

8:55 PM - Assembly of Trumpeters for Tattoo

9:00 PM - Tattoo RM / MP3
"Tattoo" was the signal for the men to prepare for bed and to secure the post.

9:05 PM - Assembly RM / MP3
Bed check, the last roll call of the day.

9:15 PM - Taps RM / MP3
By the final note of "Taps" all lights were to be extinguished, all men bedded down in their bunks, and all loud talking was to cease.


Additional Calls include:
To The Colors RM / MP3 - To the Color is a bugle call to render honors to the nation. It is used when no band is available to render honors, or in ceremonies requiring honors to the nation more than once. To the Color commands all the same courtesies as the National Anthem.
Attention RM / MP3 - Sound as a warning that troops are about to be called to attention.
Carry On RM / MP3
TO ARMS -- Signals all troops to fall under arms at designated places without delay.
Charge -- Wav
Church Call -- It is exactly the same as the French "Church Call." It predates the Seymour revisions of 1867, having been adapted from the "Sonneries de Chasseurs d'Orleans of 1845.
David Webb Φ
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An interesting image from the Boer war. The caption is interesting
Image
David
Pat Holscher
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David Webb wrote:An interesting image from the Boer war. The caption is interesting
Image
David

Interesting. I know even less about British bugles and trumpets, and wouldn't have guessed the British bugler would have to carry two.
Pat Holscher
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Neat print, by the way.
Joseph Sullivan
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Actually, there are more varieties of trumpets than that. I hav three now, and have owned several over time, although I am not an expert and can't play them. In fact, it was great fun a few years back to hear forum participant Anita play my trumpets down near the river in Richmond.

Anyhow, in the WBS, trumpets seem to have been a bit un-standardized, and in the post-war period materials varied with commodity avaioability. For example, one of mine is mostly fabricated of copper as brass was in short supply.

Around WW1 or perhaps dugint the Spanish American War period, the army adopted a new "G" trumpet. It is essentially the same as the standard Boy Scout bugle, which was adopted from the army -- EXCEPT that most of the Scout bucles are lighter in construction.

Joe
Pat Holscher
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Joseph Sullivan wrote:Actually, there are more varieties of trumpets than that. I hav three now, and have owned several over time, although I am not an expert and can't play them. In fact, it was great fun a few years back to hear forum participant Anita play my trumpets down near the river in Richmond.

Anyhow, in the WBS, trumpets seem to have been a bit un-standardized, and in the post-war period materials varied with commodity avaioability. For example, one of mine is mostly fabricated of copper as brass was in short supply.

Around WW1 or perhaps dugint the Spanish American War period, the army adopted a new "G" trumpet. It is essentially the same as the standard Boy Scout bugle, which was adopted from the army -- EXCEPT that most of the Scout bucles are lighter in construction.

Joe
When I was a kid, I learned to play the trumpet. I don't really remember how, and while I still own the trumpet, a few bugle calls is all I can do.

I think bugles are pretty neat, however, and wish I knew more about them.
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Trooper
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Another neat print showing two instruments:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FIELD-ARTILLERY-T ... 286.c0.m14
Tony Barton
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If I might chip in with some British observations on the subject : the reason that there were more than one size or type of instrument was largely musical.
The longer the tube , the more notes can easily be sounded.

If you look at the original 17c military trumpets , they were long (2 '6" in a single loop of three straight sections ) with a sounding length of about 7 foot six inches, giving the series of C.

At that length you can play quite elaborate tunes in the upper register :all the famous Baroque trumpet music was played on the same instrument . ... think Bach , Handel , Purcell etc.

The favourite size by 1700 was a little shorter, in D , and such instruments were still carried by the cavalry by the end of that century, but they were inconvenient to carry on campaign and rather prone to damage.
They are still carried by some ceremonial trumpeters , notably the Household Cavalry when in State Dress .

So it became commonplace for active service to make them in shorter double-loop form, often a little higher in the pitch of Eb. They are much handier , and stronger , but can produce the same range of notes .
That size and format became pretty standard across Europe by the Napoleonic Wars , and carried on until the demise of Cavalry.

At the same period ( late 18c ) the Bugle arose, originally a large curved Horn ( NOT a trumpet, which is essentially cylindrical ) used by Light Infantry. They were also taken up by some cavalry units, notably Light Dragoons, who were sometimes associated with the Forester/Jaeger image used by Light Infantry.
The Bugle is quite short, essentially conical , has a coarser tone and can produce fewer notes , normally about five. But it's very handy to carry , has a clear carrying sound , and is ideal for signalling.
It's also much more forgiving to play than a trumpet. being less prone to " crack " notes .

By the 1840s , if not earlier , it had been adopted as well as the Trumpet by the British Cavalry because of that advantage.
So you end up with the situation where the cavalry trumpeter is carrying two instruments, the Bugle for mounted calls ( easier to play on a moving horse ). and the Trumpet for dismounted calls ( more musical and brilliant in tone ).
That pertained , in British Service at least , until the present.
Most countries seem to have used a fairly similar arrangement.

The US bugle pictured above with the add-on crook to lengthen it would be used for playing more elaborate tunes at the top of its range : the longer the instrument, the easier to play in the upper register.

I had the privelege , as a boy , of being taught the Trumpet by a man who served as a trumpeter in the Gloucestershire Hussars , in Allenby's cavalry in Palestine in 1918.
It was fun , and he was a lovely man, Stan Carter.
Couvi
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Fort Buchanan bugler: http://www.army.mil/media/45829/

U.S. Army Bands Music

Bugle Calls

Bugle calls are musical signals that announce scheduled and certain non-scheduled events
on an Army installation. Scheduled calls are prescribed by the commander and normally
follow the sequence shown below. Non-scheduled calls are sounded by the direction of the
commander.

http://bands.army.mil/music/bugle/
Couvi
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Trumpets vs Bugles

I have a questions as relate to trumpets and bugles, that being, what is the difference?

Did the American Army use trumpets or bugles?

I have heard that the instruments were keyed differently so that each branch had its own key and thus its own set of signals. Is this accurate?
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Not positive, Couvi, but confident, that the bugle is a valveless instrument, whereas trumpets and coronets have valves. I'll leave pitch to someone who knows better. I suspect that it is a more convoluted topic than one might suppose, complicated by the fact that A 440 is fairly recent as a universal tuning standard.

Sandy
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I should have the answers, as my son plays trumpet and is an aspiring Cavalry field musician. It's hard to keep it all straight, though. I'll relate what I know, and someone else can fill in the blanks. In general, trumpets are made of straight tubing, and bugles are made of flared tubing. I don't remember what was used in the Rev War through Indian War periods, but I think that they used clarions (like a big, long bugle) in the Civil War. I do know that the 1892 trumpet and the 1894 trumpet (the Army/"Boy Scout" "bugle" and "Trench Bugle", respectively) are technically trumpets. Everyone just wants to call them bugles. So, the US Army has not really carried a bugle since at least before the Span Am War. In short, a clarion with valves is called a flugel horn (sic), a bugle with valves is a cornet, and a trumpet with valves is called ... a trumpet! All of these instruments are in different pitches, and that gets into Couvi's other question. I don't know one pitch from another, so I can't answer the question.

One other note: the British and French Cavalry (maybe other European Cav) buglers carried BOTH a bugle and a trumpet. They used the trumpet for mounted calls in the field, and the bugle in camp. This, again is related to the different pitches, I think. I don't know if this practice was ever done in the US - definitely not done, here, post 1900.
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Joe Sullivan knows a lot about this topic. Perhaps Joe can provide some illumination for us as well.
Tony Barton
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The difference is one of length and bore , which gives a different tone and range when sounded.

Valves are an addition used for orchestral instruments after about 1850, but are not relevant to the traditional trumpets and bugles. The trumpeter sounds the different notes by changing the tension of the lips.

The Trumpet is the older instrument , dating back at least to the 15th century in cavalry service.
From around 1800 it was used in its twice-wound form , which conceals its length of around seven feet six inches ( that of course depends on the pitch chosen , traditionally D or Eb . Deeper if longer ) .
Brass instruments produce a series of harmonics, with gaps between them, rather than a continuous scale. The longer the tube, the more harmonics you can get , and the closer together the notes become.
So a long trumpet can play more notes , increasing the musical possibilities..... in fact the same instrument , played in a highly contolled way, provided the baroque trumpet in the orchestra until the arrival of valves in the 1830s.
Think Handel and Bach..
The field trumpet used seven notes, and a good player can get a few more at the top. The tubing is cylindrical apart from the last foot making the bell, and that gives the rather shriller , harsher tone typical of a trumpet .

The Bugle has a different history , having evolved ultimately from a cowhorn. Military use starts in the late 1700s with Jaeger and Light Infantry units, who needed a signalling instrument suitable for broken country , and less cumbersome than the traditional Infantry drum. The first bugles appeared in German armies, but were adopted by most armies by 1800.
The first versions were halfmoon ( Halbmond ) shaped , like a large letter C on its back .
The French and Germans adopted the curled " french Horn " shape which will be familiar as the typical emblem of Postal Services in many places.

The British adopted a trumpet format during the Napoleonic Wars, copied by US Forces , which is the familiar type today. Large numbers of British made bugles were imported during the Civil War .
They are quite short instruments, in Bb , with a continuously conical bore, and that gives them fewer notes ( typically five ) and a more hollow , mooing tone.

They are however easier to play , more forgiving to a nervous player, especially when trying to blow on a restive horse .

The bugle was essentially an Infantry instrument , but In British service, cavalry trumpeters started carrying both around 1850, and played mounted calls on the easier bugle, and dismounted calls on the harder trumpet .
The Household Cavalry here in Britain still play the 17century style long format trumpets when mounted on State occasions , which is not easy . ( no bugles for them ! ). They now have a full mounted band , whereas originally they were just trumpets and kettledrums .

In the US , and other parts of the world, the two instruments have hybridised, creating what is in effect a short trumpet , but called a bugle.
Their use by marching bands , Scouts ,Czech gymnastic associations , and anyone you can think of , has also created a demand for all sorts of simple instruments of different sizes and pitches , some with a single valve so they can change key for variety .They easily get confused with the true military instruments.

I have no idea what the current US military instrument is ,ot its pitch , but I suspect it's a trumpet masquerading as a bugle.
In Britain , apart from the State trumpets , the two distinct types with their different tone remain in use .

I believe the Danish Hussar Squadron have a rather good Fanfaro , as they call the mounted trumpet band , but I haven't been able to find them on Youtube yet .
In Europe, cavalry often had such mounted trumpet bands , with kettle drums as well , and the Garde Republicaine in France still field a splendid example.

Incidentally , the wonderful trumpet calls in John Ford cavalry Westerns don't fool me : recorded in the studio !
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Some examples on YouTube :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kutm606Dqb0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kutm606Dqb0

sound quality not so good in the second one.
Properly played , trumpets should take the paint off the wall.....
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Tony,

Excellent! :thumbup:

Thanks,
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JLNJrTrumpeterBoyScoutsinCO.jpg
JLNJrTrumpeterBoyScoutsinCO.jpg (34.38 KiB) Viewed 9080 times
Great timing, my family was just looking at this picture the other day, it's my father circa mid to late 1920's playing the trumpet (?) as a Boy Scout in Colorado. We were trying to figure out if this is indeed a trumpet he's playing, a long bugle, or ...?
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FtValleyPS wrote:
JLNJrTrumpeterBoyScoutsinCO.jpg
Great timing, my family was just looking at this picture the other day, it's my father circa mid to late 1920's playing the trumpet (?) as a Boy Scout in Colorado. We were trying to figure out if this is indeed a trumpet he's playing, a long bugle, or ...?
I'm pretty sure that's a trumpet.
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Joseph Sullivan wrote:Actually, there are more varieties of trumpets than that. I hav three now, and have owned several over time, although I am not an expert and can't play them. In fact, it was great fun a few years back to hear forum participant Anita play my trumpets down near the river in Richmond.

Anyhow, in the WBS, trumpets seem to have been a bit un-standardized, and in the post-war period materials varied with commodity avaioability. For example, one of mine is mostly fabricated of copper as brass was in short supply.

Around WW1 or perhaps dugint the Spanish American War period, the army adopted a new "G" trumpet. It is essentially the same as the standard Boy Scout bugle, which was adopted from the army -- EXCEPT that most of the Scout bucles are lighter in construction.

Joe
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