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Amilitary band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for thearmed forces. A typical military band consists mostly ofwind andpercussion instruments. Theconductor of a band commonly bears the title ofbandmaster ormusic director.Ottoman military bands are thought to be the oldest variety of military marching bands in the world, dating from the 13th century.^[1]

The military band is capable of playing ceremonial andmarching music, including thenational anthems and patriotic songs of theirs and other nations, both while stationary and as amarching band. Military bands also play a part in militaryfuneral ceremonies.

There are two types of historical traditions in military bands. The first is militaryfield music. This type of music includesbugles (or other natural instruments such asnatural trumpets ornatural horns),bagpipes orfifes, and almost alwaysdrums. This type of music was used to control troops on the battlefield as well as for entertainment. Following the development of instruments such as thekeyed trumpet or thesaxhorn family of brass instruments, a second tradition of thebrass andwoodwind military band was formed. A third type, that of amounted band, serves cavalry and sometimes artillery formations.

Some police forces have their ownpolice bands that provide a similar function to that of a military band.

Military band instruments such as fife, drum, and bugle were historically used to communicate orders to soldiers in battle.^[2]11th century bookDiwan Lughat al-Turk mentions a prototype of theMehtaran, as a "nevbet",Turkish military band tradition.^[3] Bands were formed by soldiers.^[4][5] 17th century travelerEvliya Çelebi noted that theOttoman Empire had 40 guilds of musicians in the 1670sIstanbul.^[6] Ottoman military bands influenced European equivalents.^[7] Each regiment in theBritish Army maintained its own military band. Until 1749 bandsmen were civilians hired at the expense of the colonel commanding a regiment. Subsequently, they became regular enlisted men^[8] who accompanied the unit on active service to provide morale enhancing music on the battlefield or, from the late nineteenth century on, to act as stretcher bearers. Instruments during the 18th century included fifes, drums, the oboe (hautbois), French horn, clarinet and bassoon. Drummers summoned men from their farms and ranches to muster for duty. In the chaotic environment of the battlefield, musical instruments were the only means of commanding the men to advance, stand or retire. In the mid 19th century each smaller unit had their own fifer and drummer, who sounded the daily routine. When units massed for battle a band of musicians was formed for the whole.^[2]

Military bands can vary in function and duties based on their specific mission. Bands may perform for a variety of reasons such as special events,military parades, military review,military tattoos, public relations, and troop entertainment. It may also play a role in boosting theesprit de corps or morale of the entire military, a particular service branch or a specific unit (usually regiment/brigade-sized at least).

Military bands play ceremonial andmarching music, including thenational anthems andpatriotic songs. Aconcert band's repertoire includes originalwind compositions, arrangements oforchestral compositions,light music, popular tunes andconcert marches found instandard repertoire. Modern-day military musicians often perform a variety of other styles of music in different ensembles, fromchamber music torock and roll.

Military bands take place in Algeria. TheAlgerian People's National Army maintains military bands in the country.

TheAngolan Armed Forces maintains Portuguese-style military bands, primarily in the Army,Navy andAir Force and then in individual units of the FAA. The primary band is the 100-member Music Band of the Presidential Security Household, which is the official security service of thePresident of Angola.^[9] The music band of the Army Command was created on 16 June 1994.^[10] 4 years later, on 15 August 1998, the National Air Force created a music band within the artistic brigade.^[11] Outside the navy's marching band, the navy also has a small musical group known asBanda 10 de Julho (10 July Band), based at theLuanda Naval Base.^[12] All bands follow both the Portuguese and British precedent with the percussion at the front ranks of the band.

Cameroonian military bands solely follow the French precedent for military music and military bands. TheYaoundé basedMusic Band Company of theCameroonian Armed Forces under the baton of Captain Florent Essimbi is the main military band of the country. The band was founded in 1959, a year before Cameroon gained its independence, as purely abrass band company. Because of its increase in musicians it was upgraded to a musical section 10 years later. It has retained its current name since 2004. The band currently and has previously relied on its cooperation with theFrench Military and specifically its connections to musicians from theConservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Lyon.^[13] Other band include theMusique du Carroussel spécial de l'armée, theMusique de laGarde Présidentielle^[14] and theMusique de la gendarmerie.

Although Ethiopia has a very long militarily history dating back to the Kingdom of Axum its bands were firstly of the French manner of a fanfare band. The first regular band was established by the early 20th century before the Italian invasion of the 1930s, based on the British and German tradition.

The first permanent military band in the country took the form of theImperial Bodyguard Band (Kibur Zebegna) of theEthiopian Empire, being formed in 1929 under Swiss conductor Andre Nicod. It originally consisted of just over a dozen uniformed musicians, majority coming fromWelega province. Members of this band got their training originally from the Arba Lijoch fanfare band led by theirArmenian bandleader Kevork Nalbandian. Notable members of the Imperial Bodyguard Band includedTilahun Gessesse andMahmoud Ahmed, Bizunesh Bekele, Colonel Sahle Degago and many more. It was the first African nation to implement western style military music conventions. It came under the direct command of theDerg in the 70s and went into its current form in 1991.

Current marching bands in Ethiopia

Today theEthiopian National Defence Force Band (ENDFB) (Amharic: የኢትዮጵያ ብሔራዊ መከላከያ ባንድ) is the central military band of theEthiopian National Defense Force. With its headquarter in the Ethiopian capital city ofAddis Ababa, it performs on ceremonial and state functions. Given the British influence, its current formation on parade is modeled on those of the British Army line infantry bands. It is composed of amarching band, abig band, aCorps of Drums, and a youth cadets section modeled on similar bands in the Commonwealth of Nations. It has received assistance from the BritishRoyal Corps of Army Music, most recently between 2007 and 2012. The band itself has trained other marching bands in the country like theTigray and Somalian marching bands.

In Addition to the EDFMB, there are some notable marching bands in Ethiopia, including:

TheNamibian Defence Force maintains many military bands throughout its service branches and even its own central band for the entire NDF. These bands followed the South African/British precedent due to the country's administration asSouth West Africa from 1915 to 1990. In recent years, it has gained a more German and Prussian tradition when marching and performing based on the country's 19th century colonial era asGerman South West Africa. Since the early 2000s, regular music training has been provided by the South African military.^[15] The Namibian Defence Force Brass Band is currently the country's most senior military band, having anarea of responsibility out of its base inWindhoek. TheNamibian Navy^[16] and theNamibian Marine Corps also maintain their own ceremonial brass bands.

Nigerian military bands follow the BritishHousehold Division format and are heavily influenced and aided by British military bands. Military bands in Nigeria share similar practices with theNigerian Police Band, which was considered to be the pioneer military band formation in the country, being established in 1892. Being mostly composed ofbuglers at the time of its founding, the band was originally composed of British servicemen, rather than native Nigerians. Over the years, however, theNigerian Armed Forces have taken enormous steps to indigenize military bands due to the overuse of American and British military music and the exposure of the military to Nigerian art. Some of these steps include the establishment of the Nigerian Army School of Music (NASM) and the creation of new military music.^[17] Nigerian military bands are today under the command of the Headquarters of theNigerian Armed Forces inAbuja.

TheNigerian Army Band Corps (NABC), which provides official military records for the armed forces, is the most senior band in theNigerian Army and in the armed forces. Other bands maintained by theNigerian Armed Forces outside the NABC include theNigerian Air Force Band, theNigerian Navy Band, and theNigerian Defence Academy Band.^[18] TheNigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps Band also serves as a paramilitary band.^[19] The Nigerian Navy Band was established in 1963 months prior to the country becoming a republic. The Air Force Band was the most recent military band established, being founded in 1970. Enlisted musicians only joined a year later, and did not have its first director of music until 1975. On 9 April 2019, the NAF graduated its first set of pipers from an air base inAbuja who would later comprise the newly formed NAF Pipe Band.^[20] A pipe section can also be found in theGuards Brigade.^[21]Steel pans were introduced in the late 70s, with the NABC beginning the process of manufacturing steelpans and was the only steel band in the country until 2001.^[22][23] The Army School of Music inOjo and the Navy School of Music in theOta both provide musical instruction as it pertains to incoming musicians. In September 2019,Ibok Ekwe Ibas, theChief of the Nigerian Naval Staff, announced plans for the Navy Directorate of Music to partner its foreign counterparts as well as the Music Society of Nigeria to improve its performances.^[24]

Like Cameroon and Niger, theArmed Forces of Senegal follows the French military band format in all of its musical formations. The Mounted Squadron of theRed Guard of Senegal, being the premier ceremonial unit of its 1st Infantry Regiment, maintains a 35-member mountedfanfare band similar to that of theFrench Republican Guard Cavalry. The mounted band leads the reset of the squadron in military parades and ceremonial processions in the capital ofDakar. Band musicians ride on white horses whose tails dyed red to match the official colors of the Red Guard.

The Armed Forces of Senegal is represented by a joint services band which, unlike the Red Guard mounted band, has a repertoire of a mix between Senegalese folk and classical music. This band was created in 1961 at the time of the founding of the armed forces and the independence of the country. The main music of the Senegalese Armed Forces was at the time formed by a majority of newly recruited young people with no musical knowledge. It was then necessary to count on the Captain Jean Avignon who directed, for 12 years, the Paris-basedMusique des Troupes de Marine. Its official duties were prescribed in November 1981.^[25] The Senegalese Gendarmerie also maintains its own fanfare band.^[26]

During colonial rule inSierra Leone, the army music unit was the Band of the 1st Battalion,Royal Sierra Leone Regiment. Mustapha Sahr "Big" Fayia formed an army dance band in 1965 from soldiers in the newly formed armed forces.^[27] It earned money by playing concerts at home and abroad, winning in 1978 the top band prize with their performance at theWorld Festival of Youth inHavana.^[28] TheRepublic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces today maintains a marching band organized in the British format.

There are currently 9 main military bands currently under the auspices of theSouth African National Defence Force (SANDF) that are speed across the four different branches of the SANDF (Army,Navy,Air Force,Health Service). Outside of marching bands, which follow the British influence, the SANDF also follows the British/Commonwealth precedent for utilizingpipe bands, with some of the most notable pipe and drums coming from theTransvaal Scottish Regiment.^[29] Since 1969, the South African Army is currently represented in musical support by the Corps of Bandsmen, a military band service that presides over the country's five military bands and theNational Ceremonial Guard (NCG) Band. The South African Navy Band, the South African Air Force Band and the South African Military Health Service also operate in the country to represent their own branches.

TheUganda People's Defence Force sports a military band for each of the three services: Army, Air Force and Special Operations Command. All bands follow the British precedence. The senior band is the UPDF Band, part of the army, which serves ceremonial duties inKampala. In the 1970s, military bands under PresidentIdi Amin gained official sponsorship grew as a result.^[30]

TheZimbabwe Defence Force (ZDF) maintains multiple military bands that are based on the British pattern. The two main bands are theZimbabwe National Army Band (shortened to the Zim Army Band) and theAir Force of Zimbabwe Band. The latter band has a traditionalHosho player serving in its ranks.^[31] A smaller band,Crocodile Sounds, is part of the Mechanized Brigade. The ZDF also maintains the Military School of Music (MSM), currently based at Imbizo Barracks inBulawayo.^[32] In the now dissolvedRhodesian Security Forces, musical duties were provided by the Band and Drums of theRhodesian African Rifles, notably led by Captain Ken MacDonald, composer ofRise, O Voices of Rhodesia, the Rhodesian anthem.^[33][34] A military band was also maintained by the Rhodesian Corps of Signals.

Given the history of the military forces in the Americas, the military band heritage in this part of the world is a mix of various traditions, primarily drawn from Europe. Countries in the Americas belonging to theCommonwealth of Nations are generally modelled after their British counterparts. Trinidad and Tobago take this tradition a bit further with the use ofsteelpans in its bands. Military bands throughoutLatin America draws influence from the military bands found in France, Germany, Portugal, Italy, and Spain. However, Haiti remains the only state in the region whose military bands are primarily modelled after the French.

Argentina has longstanding connections with Germany, and their army bands reflect these traditional links. At the beginning of the 20th century, there was an exchange of marches between the Imperial German Army and the Argentine Army: Germans gave ArgentinesAlte Kameraden, while Argentines gave Germans theMarcha de San Lorenzo, which was used in 1940 during the victory parade on the Champs Elysées following the defeat of France. Argentine military bands have field drummers and occasionally buglers and fifes (as is the case with theTacuari Drummer military band of theRegiment of Patricians, which has two fifers) accompanying the main band.

Three bands belong to the oldest cavalry, artillery and infantry regiments of theArgentine Army, using band formations modeled on German and Italian traditions. All of them report to the Buenos Aires Garrison Command and are administrative, as with the other bands, fall under the Inspectorate General of Military Music.

• The Alto Peru Fanfare Band of the ArgentineRegiment of Mounted Grenadiers is an all-brass mounted band using the brass and percussion instruments (and formerly bugles). The ceremonial uniform design dates from 1813, and this band serves the President of Argentina.
• The Tambor de Tacuari Band is the "Regiment of Patricians's regimental band. This regiment is the oldest and most prestigious Argentine line infantry regiment. Musicians wear the 1806 regulation uniform originally worn by the regiment when it was raised in response to the British attack on Buenos Aires. The Patricios formally represent the Federal Capital as its honor band.
• The Ituzaingó Band of the 1st Artillery Regiment "Brigadier General Tomas de Iriarte" is the official honor band of the Argentine Ministry of Defense. The band wears uniforms worn by Argentine gunners during theArgentina-Brazil War and later conflicts, withpith helmets as a headdress.

Another notable band of the Argentine Army is the Mounted Band of the 4th Armoured Cavalry Regiment (Mountain) "General Lavalle's Cuirassiers". They wear uniforms similar to those of the French Republican Guard Cavalry and 19th-century cuirassier units. This band uses the same brass and percussion instruments as in the Mounted Grenadiers, when either mounted or dismounted. There are currently 54 bands in the army.^[35][36] Other bands in the Army include:

The Argentine Navy fields the Navy Staff Band, the Band of the Argentine Naval Academy and the Band of the Argentine Navy NCO School. The Navy Staff Band is particularly unique that aside from buglers it also sports a bagpipe section. Representing the Argentine Air Force are the Band of the Argentine Air Force Academy, the Band of the Argentine Air Force NCO Academy, and the 1st Air Brigade Band.

Military-styled police bands are present in both theArgentine National Gendarmerie and theArgentine Naval Prefecture.

TheBarbados Defence Force Band (also known as the Zouave Band), is an element of the reserve units that are composed of members of TheBarbados Regiment and theBarbados Defence Force.^[37]

In Bolivia, the use of the Turkish crescent with the addition of vertical banners and standards is standard practice in its military bands (only the Bolivian Navy fields bagpipers and fanfare trumpeters in its bands), while the drumline is stationed at the front of the ensemble, thus following both German and French practice. The bands of theBolivian Colorados Regiment, the presidential guard infantry regiment, and of the Bolivian Army Military Music School are both designated as the country's most senior military bands of theBolivian Armed Forces. The Military Music School (Escuela Militar de Musica del Ejercito) was created by Supreme Decree on 20 May 1889. Today the anniversary of the school is celebrated on 20 May of each year.^[38] In 1951, it received the honorific "Lt. Col.Adrián Patiño".^[39] It wears the service dress with the peaked cap. In addition the Band of the Military College of Bolivia served as the senior band of the military educational institutions, having been established in the early 20th century. The Band follows the Prussian precedent with the wearing of the Prussian-styled full dress on parades. Two additional regimental bands wear War of the Pacific era full dress in the Army (the bands of the 2nd Infantry Regiment and the 3rd Infantry Regiment).

A number of Army regimental bands wear either battle dress or combat dress uniform on parade, with combat helmets as headdress for the bandsmen. There's only one mounted brass band.

Bands are also mounted by the Bolivian Navy and Air Force. As a general rule the bandsmen of these two services wear the service full dress uniform on parade, regardless of rank held (the Navy has an exception, as US dixie hats are worn with the full dress by bandsmen who are in lower-ranked ratings).

Brazilian military bands descend from the small unit bands of thePortuguese Army in what was thenColonial Brazil.^[40] The last of these bands was the Band of the Brigada da Real da Marinha.^[41] TheArmed Forces of the Empire of Brazil kept this tradition alive through the 19th century. Military bands became more common from the 1840s on, expanding into services such as military corps and the National Guard.^[41] Since the late 1940s, theBrazilian Marine Pipes, Drum and Bugle Corps uses brass (formerly bugles) and percussion instruments, as well as bagpipes and fifes. They represent both the Brazilian Marine Corps and theBrazilian Navy in all activities it participates. Its formation mirrors Portuguese and Italian military band traditions, as well as those of the United States drum and bugle corps of the early 20th century.

The Brazilian Marine Corps also fields for public duties the Brasilia Marine Corps Band and the Central Band of the Marine Corps. Other military bands include those of thePresidential Guard Battalion, the Independence Dragoons, and the Brazilian Air Force Academy Band. The band for the Presidential Guard Battalion is the only band in the Brazilian Army to include both a pipe band section and a drum corps. Personnel from both the Presidential Guard Battalion Band and the Band of the Independence Dragoons form part of the newly formed Army Marching Band and Pipes and Drums, formed in 2016. The Brazilian Marching Band and Pipes and Drums is composed of 74 musicians who play instruments ranging from instruments for marching bands to traditional instruments.^[42] Individual military units operate music bands. Currently, the 3rd Army Division Music Band serves one of the largest military garrisons in the country.^[43] Military bands are also active both in theMilitary Police and the Military Firefighters Corps, one of the most notable of which being the Symphonic Band of theMilitary Police of Paraná State.

Years of French and later British rule made their imprint in the creation of the Canadian military band tradition. TheMusic Branch of theCanadian Armed Forces is composed of six full-time bands of theRegular Force, and 53 part-time bands of thePrimary Reserve. These bands serve theCanadian Army,Royal Canadian Navy and theRoyal Canadian Air Force. The Music Branch includes both concert bands, made up ofbrass,percussions, andwoodwind instruments; andpipe and drum bands, formerly the Branch providedcorps of drums anddrum and bugle corps for ceremonial duties.

In addition to the bands of the Regular Force and Primary Reserve, theRoyal Military College of Canada also maintains apipe and drum bands. TheCanadian Cadet Organizations, a youth program sponsored by the Canadian Forces, also maintain their own bands. Bands of Cadets Canada are modeled after their respective sponsored service branch.

Two Chilean mounted bands are of high interest: the Mounted Band and Bugles of the 1st Cavalry Regiment "Grenadiers" and the Band and Bugles of the 3rd Cavalry Regiment "Hussars" of theChilean Army. Other bands include the band of the Army NCO School and the Bernardo O'Higgins Military Academy, also of the Chilean Army, the Band of theChilean Marine Corps Basic School, the Band of the Arturo Prat Naval School and the Band of the Naval Politechnical Academy, all of theChilean Navy and theNational Band of the Carabineros. Band formations on parade, mounted bands included, follow the German model, however only theChilean Air Force Symphonic Band does not participate - the service is represented on parade by the Bands of the Captain Manuel Avalos Prado Air Force Academy and the Air Forces Specialities School. Another band formation and one with increasing public awareness is the military band of theChilean Gendarmerie, which reports to the Ministry of Justice.

Military bands in Chile have the same instrumentation with added bugles on the Corps of Drums, as German military bands, with a few unique additions (a remnant of the former French influence in the armed forces). Another distinguishing feature is the presence of theTurkish crescent in the military bands when they are on parade and the band's conductor being assisted by a bugle major.

TheMilitary Forces of Colombia and theNational Police of Colombia sport military bands and drum and bugle corps with formations similar to those in theUnited States,Italy,Germany andFrance. Military bands first reachedBogotá in the 16th century and were developed into active musical ensembles in the 20th century. In the late 1890s, military bands in the country were implemented based on the French model of these ensembles. The37th Infantry Presidential Guard Battalion of theNational Army of Colombia maintains a military band and acorps of drums unit that serves under the command of thePresident of Colombia at his/her residence at theCasa de Nariño. Pipe bands are also used in theColombian Navy's educational institutions (the Admiral Jose Prudencio Padilla Naval Academy and the Marine Basic School).^[44] The Military Symphonic Band of theColombian Air Force (founded in November 1987) consists of male and females NCOs, many of which are part of the Band of the NCO School "Captain Andrés M. Díaz", which wears the service full dress and marches with the school drum and bugle corps.^[45]

Since the late 1960s, the tradition of theCuban Revolutionary Armed Forces Military Bands Department has been based mostly on the Russian tradition but also with a mix of the former American and Caribbean musical influence.

The previous regime ofFulgencio Batista, the military sported to military bands: the Music Band of the Cuban Navy (officially named as the Music Band of the Constitutional Navy) both of which were established 5 years apart in the first decade of the 20th century. The Band of theCeremonial Unit of the Revolutionary Armed Forces has acclaimed high praise by many foreign leaders, including U.S. PresidentBarack Obama, who greetedbandleader Ney Miguel Milanes Gálvez and said that they did a "Good job" for their performance ofThe Star-Spangled Banner.^[46]

Given the long history of theArmed Forces of the Dominican Republic, it is no surprise that the military band tradition is a mix of the French and United States military band practice. Ceremonial bands are present not just in the Armed Forces but in theDominican Republic National Police.

The Armed Forces' senior band is the Band of the Presidential Guard Regiment, the seniormost of the infantry of the Dominican Army, which serves as the protocol band for the President of the Dominican Republic, who serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

As a general rule Ecuadorian military bands are manned by servicemen with formations modeled after the German, British and United States practice. In parades, the percussion forms the front rank of the band or massed bands during the march past segment of parades.

The Mounted Band of the Ecuadorian National Police uses brass, woodwinds and percussion (sans the timpani). The Ecuadorian Army's Eloy Alfaro Military Academy uses the same format as French bands but without the bugles, as they are part of the Corps of Drums. The fanfare band of the Presidential Mounted Ceremonial Squadron "Tarqui Grenadiers", also of the Army, is composed only of timpani, fanfare trumpets, a snare drum, single tenor drums and sousaphones (when mounted), the military band, which serves as the official presidential band, has a similar formation like the Military Academy but with the large size (around 60 musicians).

European influence of military bands inGuatemala began when an Italian opera company arrived in the country in the latter half of the 19th century to bring orchestra conductor Pietro Visoni to the country, where he was asked byPresidentMiguel García Granados to take control of the bands of the 1st and 2nd battalions of theGuatemalan Army, after which Visoni merged the two and established the Martial Symphony Band, which is still in existence today. The School of Substitutes (known today as Military School of Music Maestro Rafael Alvarez Ovalle) was created shortly after due to the lack of trained military musicians in the country. The school of music is today a middle level military training center. Many bands, when in concert formation, include themarimba as it is the national instrument of Guatemala.^[47]

TheJamaica Defence Force funds and oversees two full-time military bands - theJamaica Military Band (JMB) and theJamaica Regiment Band (JRB). During war time, musicians will take on operational roles as Medical Assistants. Jamaican military bands follow the precedent set by British and other Caribbean military bands.^[48] The Jamaican Combined Cadet Force also maintains its own unit band.^[49]

Military bands inMexico follow the precedent of the Spanish military, with the band being on ceremonial occasions backed up by a drum and bugle corps mainly composed of snare drummers and buglers, both of which are provided by military units and educational institutions. In cavalry and artillery units of the Army and the cavalry of the National Guard, fanfare trumpeters are the equivalent to their infantry counterparts. In 1884, the 76-member Band of the 8th Mexican Cavalry Regiment under the direction of Encarnación Payén visited theWorld's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition,^[50][51] which was seen as a massive PR campaign for American investment byMexican PresidentPorfirio Diaz.^[52] It was also designed to showcase Mexican military music, which was rarely if ever done before. Five years later, Diaz ordered the creation of the Music Band of the Supreme Power, which is now theRepresentative Music Band of the Mexican Armed Forces.^[53] In February 2015, it was reorganized to include personnel from the Secretariats of theMexican Army, theMexican Air Force and theMexican Navy. TheSymphonic Band and Chorus of the Secretariat of the Navy also serves as a military band, consisting of professional musicians in theSecretariat of the Navy.

The 1884 U.S. trip also influenced civilian music in thesouthern U.S., which many members of the band staying inNew Orleans and forming and/or joining civilian bands. Lorenzo Tio Sr., the father ofLorenzo Tio Jr., was a notable example of this.^[54]

Bands and drummers and buglers wear the full dress or combat dress uniform of their service branch/unit or assigned educational institution, with appropriate distinctive unit insignia and patches.

Military bands are in service within theArmed Forces of Paraguay and theNational Police of Paraguay, following the former Imperial German and French band patterns. The seniormost band is the Band of the Presidential Guard Regiment, which serves the President of Paraguay as Supreme Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, it falls under the operational control of theParaguayan Army.

Examples of Peruvian bands include the Mounted Fanfare Band Company of the"Mariscal Domingo Nieto" Cavalry Regiment Escort, the Band of theChorrillos Military School of thePeruvian Army, the Lima Air Region Band of thePeruvian Air Force, the Peruvian Air Force Central Band, and the Casma Cadet Band of thePeruvian Naval School. These bands follow the Spanish and French practice, although with drums out front following the French model, followed by the occasional bugle section (more often during the 1980s to early 1990s). The Presidential Life Guard Dragoons Regiment's regimental band is also the only mounted band in active service within thePeruvian Armed Forces.

The Peruvian Republican Guard Band, for seven decades, provided music during state ceremonies,state funerals, and other events. The unit was disbanded in 1991 when the band was merged with that of the National Police's other predecessor services' bands. The Mounted Band of the Presidential Life Guard Dragoons Regiment, the other official presidential band, was established in 1905 along with the formation of the regiment, was disbanded in 1987 and remained inactive until 2012, when it was reactivated byOllanta Humala, thePresident of Peru.

In addition to the military bands of the Peruvian Armed Forces, the military-styled band of theNational Police of Peru continues the heritage of the Republican Guard Band together with the bands of the Civil Guard and the Investigations Police. Assigned to Lima it has carried on the designation of official protocol band.

Trinidadian military bands are unique in that they follow French and British traditions for military bands, however, they use unconventional instruments such asSteelpans and native Trinidadian instruments. To this day, theTrinidad and Tobago Defence Force Steel Orchestra (TTDFSO) is the only military steel band of its kind in the world. TheTTDF'sTrinidad and Tobago Regiment provides the majority of the musicians who are assigned to the orchestra.^[55]

The American military band traditions date from the British era. From the American Revolutionary War onward military bands – and field musicians playing drums, fifes and bugles – marched in the same manner as their French counterparts. Ever since the American Revolution ended in 1781, American military bands march to the fast tempo of French military bands, owing to their fast marching pace as compared with the slow marching pace of British bands. The instrumental positioning, even though inspired by the British, is also a mix of other influences, including French and German influences.

During theAmerican Civil War mostUnion regiments had both types of groups within the unit. However, due to changes inmilitary tactics by the end ofWorld War I field musical had been mostly phased out in favor of the brass bands - themselves the basis for today's American civil brass band culture and traditions. These performed in a concert setting for entertainment, as well as continued to perform drill and martial events. In theUnited States, these bands were increased in instrumentation to includewoodwinds, leading to the modernmilitary band traditions in the United States, andhigh school andcollegemarching bands and concert bands.

A uniquely American type of military band is theFife and drum corps, with theOld Guard Fife and Drum Corps the only remaining band of this type in the United States military. The United States' military bugle bands are also the precursors of the modern-day civil drum and bugle corps and the only one in active service today is that of theUnited States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps "The Commandant's Own".

The largest military marching band in the U.S. is the "Fightin' Texas Aggie Band" ofTexas A&M University. It is entirely composed ofROTC cadets from the university's Corps of Cadets^[56] and subdivided into two bands: the Infantry and Artillery bands of the Corps. The four other State Military Colleges and four Junior Military Colleges maintain bands of their own. The format used by the British Royal Marines is the formation used by theValley Forge Military Academy and CollegeRegimental Band in Wayne, Pennsylvania, led and staffed by retired RMBS personnel, and by theUnited States Merchant Marine Academy Regimental Band, also modeled on the Royal Marines bands. Another American military academy, theMissouri Military Academy, has its band modeled in the same manner as the Royal Marines.

The Mounted Band of the 1st Cavalry Regiment "José Gervasio Artigas's Blandengues" of theUruguayan Army is a mounted band following the Argentine practice, wearing the regiment's 19th-century full dress uniforms, but unlike its Argentine counterpart, also uses woodwinds. Another example is that of the Army's 1st Infantry Brigade Band, the official honors band of theGeneral Assembly of Uruguay, which sports dress uniforms worn during theArgentina-Brazil War and later conflicts. Bands are also mounted by the Army'sUruguayan Military School and the General Artigas Military High School, the latter having recently reinstated the use of the bugle for its field section, the only band to do so. The Air Force Band, which reports to the Air Force Academy, is the only one that uses the shoulder-mounted snares and the multiple tenor drum. Uruguayan military bands have field drummers and occasionally buglers and fifes accompanying the main band. TheNational Navy of Uruguay maintains for ceremonial purposes the Band of theUruguayan Naval Academy, which doubles as the official band of the service. It has a bagpipe section attached to it.

The "Day of the Military Musicians" is marked in the Armed Forces celebrated on 30 November, with the International Festival of Military Bands held every year on this date.^[57]

The Military Band Division of theGeneral Staff ofArmed Forces of Armenia oversees all of the military bands inArmenia.^[58] TheBand of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Armenia is the seniormost military band in the entire military, performing at all state functions and national military parades. It follows theRussian andEurope a precedent for military bands, being formed from the former Band of TheSoviet ArmyYerevan Garrison. The combined band performs as a guest contingent in themilitary parade of theArtsakh Defense Army inStepanakert. The Police Band of Armenia formerly served as the band of the country'sInternal Troops. Like theArmenian Army and thePolice of Armenia, the Rescue Service of theMinistry of Emergency Situations maintains a 48-member military brass band known as thePoghatin Nvagaxumb, founded recently in 2010 by order of by Minister Armen Yeritsyan.^{[59][60][61][62]} TheArmenian Border Guard also maintains its own brass band.

The Band of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (Pancaragam Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei) is the official band of theRoyal Brunei Armed Forces. Raised in 1962, it was at first led by musicians seconded from British Army formations and graduates of the prestigious Royal Military School of Music. Badged at first as the regimental band of the then newly raised Royal Brunei Malay Regiment, it became the Armed Forces Band in 1984, when the country attained independence. The band's first Brunei-born Director of Music,Major Haji Manaf bin Kamis, was appointed to that role that year and was on the helm during the country's first Independence Day parade on 23 February that year. Its international participation thru the years has been in military tattoos such as theEdinburgh Military Tattoo, the Brunei DarussalamInternational Tattoo and theBerlin Military Music Festival.^[63] The RBAF Band first participated in theHari Merdeka celebrations and the Kuala Lumpur International Tattoo inMalaysia in 2007 and has since become one of the more popular guest bands in Malaysian celebrations.^[64] Since then the RBAF Band has served as the official state and protocol band of the nation, playing during state visits, the ceremonial opening of the sessions of the Legislative Council, passing out parades, state funerals and key national holidays. As of 2003 Major Awg Jaya bin Metussin is the director of music of the RBAF Band. Since its raising the band followed the format of British Army bands of line infantry regiments with the drumline at the front of the band, since it was formed with assistance from their musicians and experienced band leaders from the British Army as well as from the bands of both the Royal Brunei Police Force (established 1958) and the Royal Malaysian Police in the neighbouring Malaysian state of Sarawak.

Military music bands within China are descended from the brass and percussion formations raised during the Imperial era and the first Western-styled military bands formed during the final decades of the Qing Dynasty, as the nation began to modernize its armed forces. During theBoxer Rebellion, the xenophobic Chinese GeneralDong Fuxiang who commanded the MuslimKansu Braves, refused to allow his troops to play western musical instruments, making them play traditional Chinese instruments such as the Sheng Jia.^[65]

Although inspired by Soviet military music throughout their history, the bands of the People's Republic of China, from both thePeople's Liberation Army (PLA) or thePeople's Armed Police play indigenous and locally composed military marches, during official ceremonies and other events as called for. The military bands of the People's Republic of China play a mix of foreign and native marches and musical pieces. Their formation today mirrors those of bands in Russia, up until 2009 the formation was a throwback to those used there in the parades of the 1930s and 1940s.

TheCentral Military Band of the People's Liberation Army is the senior military band in the country, with the band falling under the command and supervision of the Political Work Department, which is a directorate of theCentral Military Commission.

The PLA National Marching Band is a distinct unit attached to the PLA Central Band, which consists of 61 field drummers, state fanfare trumpeters, and buglers who are similar in marching style to the United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps, and somewhat resemblesUnited Statescollege marching bands. Other unit bands exist in the PLA known as "amateur bands", with those including theWomen's Military Band of the PLA National Defense University, the14th Group Army Band,^[66] thePLA Airborne Corps Band^[67][68] and the6th Armored Division Band.

The band of thePeople's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison is modelled similarly to the other garrison bands of the PLA. Along with the PLA Hong Kong Garrison, thepolice band for theHong Kong Police provides similar functions to a military band. These bands will often play a mix of Chinese, and international marches.

In addition to the band of the PLA Hong Kong Garrison, military-styled bands in Hong Kong are typically modelled after British and Commonwealth military bands. As a result, a number of military-styled bands in Hong Kong will also make use of pipe bands, a common feature with military bands in the Commonwealth. The band of theHong Kong Sea Cadet Corps is modelled after the Royal Navy pattern. Formerly, the Band of theRoyal Hong Kong Regiment was used as the official protocol band.

ThePublic Security Police Force of Macau maintains a military-style band that reflects the region's Portuguese military traditions. This band is known as theBanda de Música da Polícia de Segurança Pública de Macau, or theBand of the PSP for short. The Band of the PLAMacao Garrison is also available in the region.^[69]

Indian military bands are based on the British pattern and have evolved to be unique in its own right. Martial bands have existed in Indian culture since the era of theMaratha Empire.^[70] It was only in the 18th century that organized military bands were brought toIndia by theBritish Army. Military bands are maintained throughout the regimental centres of theIndian Army,Indian Navy commands and bases and the air stations of theIndian Air Force. As a general rule bands are fronted by tuba and euphonium players in the front rank, a tradition inherited from the Royal Artillery Band, a few bands have trombonists in the front ranks.

India boasts the largest number of military bands, with theIndian Armed Forces today having more than 60 military bands and over 400pipe bands. TheMilitary Music Wing of theArmy Education Corps is the principal musical education institution of the Indian Army.^[71] The Indian military also has dedicatedpipe bands that serve as independent units and are maintained by all infantry regiments.^[72] A regular military band consists of a band master and 33 musicians while a regular Army pipe band consists of a drum major, a pipe major and a minimum size of 17 drummers and pipers for battalion formations, mostly from the infantry battalions.^[73]

The modern Indonesian military band tradition includes Japanese, Dutch, British and United States influences, with prior forms from Portuguese and Chinese origin. Known locally asCeremonial Bands (Korps Musik Upacara/Satuan Musik Upacara/Detasemen Musik Upacara), they form part of theIndonesian National Armed Forces. The most senior of these bands is thePaspampres Presidential Band, which is part of thePresidential Security Forces of the Republic of Indonesia. These bands are led by Conductors and Bandmasters and are of the headquarters element. Indonesia also maintains a "corps of drums" tradition, such ensembles being led by drum majors. These exist either as full bands or guard post bands (termed asgenderang sangkakala) which provide the arrival or departure honors for distinguished military and police officers and government officials. Such ceremonial units, both bands and field music, are also part of the Dutch colonial legacy, as both theRoyal Netherlands East Indies Army and theRoyal Netherlands Navy included similar formations before independence, both on the basis of the existingTanjidor civil band culture ofJakarta, developed as a result of the Dutch band traditions which arrived in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Similar ceremonial bands are maintained by theIndonesian National Police.

The following is a list of active military bands in Indonesia:

All Iranian military bands follow the British, French and Arab format for these units, with the percussion at the front ranks following the practice of the British line infantry and the Royal Marines (with occasional bugles following Russian precedents). The first military band concept inIran came in the mid to late-1800s after the European tours ofKingNaser al-Din Shah Qajar ofPersia. After his first tour in the 1860s, he ordered the creation of a military music school and an Imperial Army band.^[74] He specifically employed French musicians in the westernization of the military bands in the country.^[75]

TheIranian Armed Forces maintains military bands in theIslamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and theIslamic Republic of Iran Army. The latter maintains military bands across its branches, including theGround Forces,Air Force, andNavy.

Prior to 1979, the Bands of theImperial Immortal Guard provided musical accompaniment for official events of state. All of these bands provide honours for theIranian President and during events such asstate visits and national holidays in a tri-service format in the capital ofTehran. Bands are also provided by territorial military units within the country's provinces and major cities.

Iraqi army music bands were formed on 30 August 1922. The Military Music School is the primary educational institution for military bands. Many Iraqi military bands have become in high demand since theIraq War and the War on Terror.^[76]

Even before the 1948 establishment of theState of Israel, military bands have been active and prominent in the region for many decades. As it refers to bands inside the current borders of Israel, the only known ones were small groups of soldiers organized in the country's first 20 years in existence.^[77] These bands were formed up of soldiers who served in battalions who were deployed in remote parts of the country. Israeli military bands reached what is considered to be their golden age during the late '60s and mid-'70s. At the time, many famous and well-off actors and musicians based inIsrael received their musical education not from a music school, but rather from military bands within the Army, which as a general rule were inspired at first by the musical traditions of the British Armed Forces.^[78]

Today, theIsrael Defense Forces Orchestra, which has similarities to American and British military bands plus a mix of the Russian tradition with its trumpeters stationed at front of the band, is the flagship ensemble of the IDF and responsible for live musical accompaniment at all national events taking place inTel Aviv andJerusalem. Additionally, bands are also found in theEducation and Youth Corps of the IDF'sManpower Directorate. The Outstanding Musicians Program of the IDF is the most common of the varied ways that young soldiers continue to develop and advance their musical skills during their military service within the Forces.^[79][80]

The Western military band tradition arrived in Japan during theMeiji Restoration, which saw the armed forces reformed to the standards of Western armed services. Today, theJapan Self-Defense Force sports a moderate number of military bands within all its service branches (The Ground, Maritime and Air Self-Defense Forces) which carry on a long heritage of Japanese military music beginning in the 1880s. The JSDF also carries on the Imperial practice of bugle call playing, and every service branch has dedicated bugle platoons present in almost every unit using G major bugles similar to those used by the United States Army in the past.

Japanese military bands have a number of formations, modeled on those in the United States and the United Kingdom, and they are led by Drum Majors, Conductors and Bandmasters, while the bugle platoons are led on parades by a Bugle Major. Aside from ceremonial duties, military musicians have no secondary duties, while buglers serve combat roles.^[81]

The main military bands of the JSDF include theJapan Ground Self-Defense Force Central Band, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Band, and the Japan Air Self-Defense Force Central Band. In addition to the three service branches' centralized bands, the JSDF also maintains several regimental, brigade and divisional bands, including theEastern Army Band, theCentral Army Band,1st Division Band, and the Tokyo SDF Band.

Until 1945, theJapanese Imperial Guard maintained mounted cavalry and dismounted bands that performed musical duties, alongside the rest of the bands of both theImperial Japanese Army and theImperial Japanese Navy.

TheHashemite Kingdom of Jordan, like many otherArab nations andCommonwealth countries, follow the British precedent and pattern for military bands. TheJordanian Armed Forces sports many different military bands that span its three branches of service. Like otherMiddle Eastern military bands, Jordan follows the tradition of includingpipe bands in its units. The military arranges the Jordanian Army Band Corps, which is the organizational body for military music, in a similar fashion to the Bands of theHousehold Division. In 1952, a small school of music was built in order to begin training military musicians. The most senior band in the armed forces is theJordanian Armed Forces Band, which particularly serves theHouse of Hashim in its position as the rulingroyal family of Jordan.^[82]

Jordanian military band institutions and units include the School of Music of the Jordanian Armed Forces,^[83]Prince of Jordan Pipe Band, and the Al Hussein Musical Band.

While retaining a lot of Soviet/Russian military music that was composed in theSoviet era, military bands in theArmed Forces of Kazakhstan and/or theMinistry of Internal Affairs perform indigenous marches that are native to Kazakhstan and were made by Kazakh composers. TheMilitary Band Service is responsible for the organization, layout, and instruction of all military bands under its command. The most notable Kazakh military band is thePresidential Band of the State Security Service of the Republic of Kazakhstan, which is used for state ceremonies carried out by theState Security Service of Kazakhstan in the presence of thePresident of Kazakhstan in his/her position as theSupreme Commander in Chief of the national military. Military bands are also maintained in theMinistry of Defense and theNational Guard, as well as in the four regional commands of the country. Most of the leadership in these bands also work in the State Concert Band of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Laotian military bands under the command of theLao People's Armed Forces follow the military format and tradition of military bands fromVietnam and China. TheVietnam People's Army often provides music lessons to musical soldiers of military bands in Laos.^[84]

The sole military band inLebanon is known simply as the Army Band, providing support to the Army Command and its units. It follows the French precedent as well as an indigenous Arab format for military bands. It is the descendant of a band called the "Band of the Armies of the Levant" that was formed following theFirst World War. It was later renamed "The Band of the post" and became a sub-unit of theRepublican Guard in the 70s, is known as the "Company of the Army Band". It is presently stationed at Karantina Barracks inBeirut.^[85] It is modelled more on that of the Republican Guard with the main band and a fanfare band section.

Malaysian military bands are led by the percussion (snare drums either slung or mounted, bass drums, single and multiple tenor drums, cymbals and sometimes glockenspiels), and followed by the brass and woodwinds (with the addition of trumpets,mellophones, marching baritone,contrabass bugles and sousaphones), following a formation format that is similar to the Royal Marines Bands Service and former Royal Navy bands, and inspired by its long cultural heritage in music.

The following military bands are based inKuala Lumpur and support theMalaysian Armed Forces:^[86]

Also stationed in the capital are the following paramilitary styled bands:

Band of Armed Forces and police formations are stationed in all the states and federal territories. In particular the following states are served by the bands of the Armed Forces formations save for Johor, which is served by both the Band of theRoyal Johor Military Force and the Brigade Band of the21st Special Forces Group:

• Kelantan: Central Band of the Royal Artillery Regiment
• Selangor: Band of the National Hydrographic Centre RMN
• Perak: Band of the Royal Engineers Regiment
• Pahang: Band of the Royal Malaysian Air Force Pahang
• Sarawak: Band of the 10th Battalion, Royal Ranger Regiment
• Sabah: Band of the 11th Battalion Royal Malay Regiment and Sandakan Band of the Royal Malaysian Navy
• Perlis: Central Band of the Border Regiment and 30 Border Brigade
• Terengganu: Central Band of theRoyal Armoured Corps
• Kedah: Band of 5th Battalion Royal Malay Regiment and Band of the Royal Malaysian Air Force Academy
• Malacca: Band of the 10th Parachute Brigade
• Negeri Sembilan:Band of the Royal Signals Regiment and Training Band of the Malaysian Army Military School of Music

Pipe bands are maintained by battalions of the Royal Malay Regiment, Royal Ranger Regiment and the Royal Armoured Corps.

Military bands in theMongolian Armed Forces and the precedingMongolian People's Army followed the Russian model and utilized many Russian aspects used in the 20th century. Prior to the expansion of China'sQing Dynasty into what is nowMongolia, traditionalMongol Empire-era instrumentation was used in bands for hundreds of years. During a visit of theBogd KhanatePrime MinisterTögs-Ochiryn Namnansüren toSt. Petersburg, Russia in late 1913 and early 1914, he an artillery band was present to perform for him. Impressed by the military band, he requested that the Russian government give him brass musical instruments so that he could form a local band of close to a dozen musicians. This gave way for what would become the first modern military band in the country.^[87][88] The country currently operates three military bands: TheMilitary Band of the General Staff, theMilitary Music College of theNational Defense University and theMongolian Military Song and Dance Academic Ensemble.^[89] Notable Mongolian military musicians include Colonel Navaany Tserenpil (1914–1978, commonly called theMongolian March King), Ganbat Yondondüichiriin (born 1951) and Pürevjavyn Khayankhyarvaa (born 1935).^[90][91][92] As part of the expansion of the army in the late 1960s, the Minister of Defense organized the Music Group of the Civil Defense, which has since 2009, been known as the Emergency Services Band under theNational Emergency Management Agency.^[93]

Band formations in theTatmadaw follow the former British pattern, especially of the bands of the Royal Marines Band Service and the former Royal Navy bands. The Central Military Band of theMyanmar Armed Forces was formed on 30 November 1988 in theHmawbi Township of theYangon Region. Other service bands were formed in October 1991. On 23 April 1997, the ceremonial Honor Guard Troop as well as music bands from the Army, Navy, and Air Force were combined to form the Honor Guard and Military Music Troop of the Tatmadaw. On 4 February 2006 the Honor Guard and Military Music Troop was transferred to the capital ofNaypyidaw.^[94][95] All army Regional Military Command (RMCs) maintain military bands. The 240-memberMyanmar Police Band, which is the country's oldest brass band (it was formed in 1945), also serves as a type of military band as it is part of the Armed Forces.^[96]

Thebands of theKorean People's Army and the Korean People's Internal Security Forces follow the general instrumental setup ofDaechwitas, the Korean traditional military bands. They also resembleRussian andChinese military bands, adopting theSoviet tradition of adding chromatic fanfare trumpeters when in massed bands formation. As in keeping with theSongun policy andJuche ideology within the KPA, as directly reporting units of its General Political Bureau, most of its repertoire is made up locally composed marches, plus classical and modern music adapted for the band. Until 2013 French horns formed the front rank of the Pyongyang parade massed bands, today they are fronted byWagner tubas and euphoniums.

North Korean bands are known around the world for their marching techniques and their complex marching maneuvers, some of which are only found in large college marching bands such as theFightin' Texas Aggie Band, and a tradition which began in 1997. The military bands in the KPA and police bands in the KPISF are led by a Conductor or Director of Music, with a Drum Major joining him or her to mark the pace of the bands, if in massed bands formation, they are led by a Senior Director of Music, 2–6 conductors, 4–8 bandmasters and 5 to 6 drum majors (with 2 female drum majors included).

TheOmani Royal Guard Military Band is the official music band of theRoyal Guard of Oman and the most senior military band of theSultan of Oman's Armed Forces. It is specifically designed to provide ceremonial honours to theSultan of Oman and theHouse of Al Said in all settings including arrival ceremonies atAl Alam Palace. The band operates theRoyal Oman Symphony Orchestra, pipe band formations and a school of music. The RGO sports what is the only camel mounted pipe band known as the Royal CavalryMounted Band, whose horses consist a mix of Arabs,Clydesdales andShires.^[97]

TheRoyal Army of Oman, theRoyal Navy of Oman, andRoyal Air Force of Oman also maintain their own separate military brass and pipe bands.

The Air Force Band was conceived in the early 1980s when SultanQaboos bin Said issued Royal directives for the formation of the Sultan of Oman Air Force Band. In June 1990 the name of was changed to Royal of Oman Air Force (RAFO) Band.^[98]

All these bands and pipe bands, as well as the mounted bands, follow the British precedent, with ceremonial bugle platoons and fanfare trumpet teams. The band formation is modeled more on the Royal Marines Band Service.

Military bands inPakistan are derived from the British format and are closely associated with the format followed by their neighbors in India. ThePakistan Armed Forces Band is the chief military band in the country. All army musicians are trained by the Army School of Music, which was raised inAbbottabad in 1956 and have been linked with theBaloch Regimental Centre since 1965. It has the sole purpose of training officers and soldiers serving in both military bands and pipe bands.^[99][100]

The following bands are in the armed forces:^[101]

The Azad Kashmir Regiment Pipe Band is considered to be the best of Army, having represented PA internationally multiple times.^[102]

The following bands are part of thePakistani Navy:Naval HQ BandIslamabad, Navy BandLahore. The paramilitaryPakistan Rangers and theFrontier Corps also maintain military bands and pipes and drums are well. The Desert Rangers maintain a camelmounted band that consists of pipers and brass players in the unit.^[103]

The military band tradition in the Philippines is modeled primarily on the traditions of military bands of the United States and Spain since it was their respective armed forces that brought the Western march and military band tradition to the islands.

The Philippine Army Band is the main military band of thePhilippine Army, and the seniormost marching band of theArmed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). It was founded as thePhilippine Constabulary Band in the early 1900s, and was eventually reorganized into the Philippine Army Orchestra, and then the Philippine Army Headquarters Band. Currently, the Philippine Army Band is composed of 74 musicians who are under the leadership of Captain Ronel A. Rabot. It is an army service support unit, so, therefore, it is under the administrative command of thePhilippine Army Reserve Command. ThePhilippine Marine Corps Drum and Bugle Team (MDBT) is the prime musical unit of the Philippine Marine Corps and the only Drum and Bugle Corps in the entire AFP. It is inspired by theUnited States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps and is based at Rudiardo Brown Marine Barracks inTaguig.^[104] ThePresidential Security Command, thePhilippine Navy, and thePhilippine Air Force also maintain their own marching bands, as well as the paramilitaryPhilippine Coast Guard under the Department of Transportation. In addition the General Headquarters Band of the Armed Forces, based in Quezon City, is the official band of the Armed Forces and serves as protocol band for the Secretary of National Defense. The GHQ Band was established in the 1950s to provide the Armed Forces with a separate band of its own drawn from personnel from all branches of the armed forces.

As a general rule bandsmen wear the service dress, duty or combat dress uniform of their service branch. Enlisted personnel of thePhilippine Military Academy Band use American style enlistedrank insignia in their service dark blues, worn with either the peaked cap or the shako with black hackle. The Philippine Army Band, assigned to the Escort and Security Battalion, wears the unit's First Republic styled rayadillo uniforms with straw tricorne-style hats with the drum major wearing a pith helmet, with similar uniforms worn by the PSC Band.

Until the 1990s theSingapore Armed Forces andSingapore Police Force band formations were similar to the Royal Marines Band Service, and Malaysian military bands. In the beginning of the 21st century this was changed to a format similar to British Army and Royal Air Force military bands before returning to the RMBS precedence in 2020. TheSingapore Armed Forces Band form theSingapore Armed Forces musical arm, which plays a vital role in parades and ceremonies such as theSingapore National Day Parade. Before the 1994 unification of SAF Bands under one unit, the different service arms of the SAF fielded their own bands, which would make up the combined inter-service massed bands for the NDP from 1987 to 1997. Since 1986, all the three bands of the SAF, as well as the Band Training Wing, are manned by both male and female bandsmen reflecting the country's diverse ethnicities.

The band service traces their origins to the beginning of Singapore's self-governance. The Singapore Infantry Regiment Band (current Ceremonial Band A and formerly the Staff Band of the Singapore Military Forces) was raised in 1958 alongside its then parent unit, and was briefly rebadged as the Singapore Army Band in the 1980s. In 1972, the current form of three bands was finalized when what are now the SAF Central Band and Ceremonial Band B were made operational, and both moved to other branches in the 70s and 80s, becoming the Republic of Singapore Navy Band in 1977 and the Republic of Singapore Air Force Band in 1982. Their first appearance together in the NDP was in 1987's edition in the Padang conducted by the SAF's first Senior Director of Music MAJ Erwin Dragon, with another joint performance in 1990. 1988 saw the rebirth of the SAF Music Board and the formation of the SAF Symphonic Wind Band.

Although patterned after American and British military bands, the bands of the Republic of Korea are also inspired by thedaechwita of the old Korean kingdoms. Their formation mirrors American and British military band formations. TheRepublic of Korea Army maintains a Traditional Band playing in thedaechwita styles of old, using Korean traditional musical instruments.

TheRepublic of Korea Armed Forces (South Korean Armed Forces) maintains a number of bands including the Republic of Korea Air Force Band, theRepublic of Korea Army Band, the Republic of Korea Navy Band, the Republic of Korea Marine Corps Band. In addition to the main bands of the service branches, the Republic of Korean Armed Forces also maintains a Traditional Daechwita Band of the Armed Forces, as well as military bands in its military academies, including the Band of the Korea Military Academy, the Band of the Korea Naval Academy, and the Band of the Korea Air Force Academy.

When military bands were originally formed inSouth Korea, American military music was the primary type of musical accompaniment used by ROK bands, as the bands were formed with United States assistance, with later influences from bands of the other armed forces which assisted the ROKAF during the Korean War (Canada and Greece for example). Later on in the 1970s, Korean martial and traditional music were incorporated into the repertoire of the bands, including modernized adaptations of folk songs for performances during concerts.^[105]

Military bands of the Republic of China (ROC) can trace their origins to the 1911 revolution. Existing military band units include:^[106]

All these bands are inspired by American and German military band traditions, and their formation mirrors those used by United States military bands. Taiwan also has a great military drum and bugle corps tradition as well with a few military drum and bugle corps in active service, with their formations not quite similar to the American corps. Corps style marching bands may also be found in the Armed Forces Preparatory School and the Republic of China Army Academy.

Military bands in Thailand were inspired by British military bands, although they play uniquely Thai military marches. The ceremony has been performed during the Trooping of the Colours ceremonies in Bangkok every December 2 since 1953, and at every military function attended by the Royal Family and other military officers and local executives, together with the general public.

Thai military bands' formations closely follow either that of the British Royal Marines Band Service, being that the percussion are at the front rather than the middle, followed by the main band itself or that of the British Army's Household DivisionFoot Guards Bands, being that the percussion are at the middle of the main band. But another formation followed is that of the Brazilian military bands, wherein the percussion are in front of the brass and winds, with the bass drums as the lead instruments. These bands are led by a Drum Major and the Director of Music.

The massed military bands of the Thai Armed Forces that are involved with theThai Royal Guards parade include following bands whose combined strength is up to 180 musicians who are under the direction of theDirector of Music of the Bangkok Garrison District:

TheRoyal Thai Navy Music Division has existed since the existence of a naval department of theRoyal Thai Army.

TheOttoman military band style is retained today through theArmed Forces Mehter Unit (Mehter Bölüğü) at theIstanbul Military Museum (Askeri Müze). It is based on a tradition that can be dated back to the 13th century and even further back. It has participated in ceremonies inGermany,Russia andAzerbaijan where it presents itself as a historical unit. Other military bands existed with a more European tradition due to the influence of the Italian Instructor General of the Imperial Ottoman MusicGiuseppe Donizetti. With the declaration of the Republic, military bands were expanded in their organization in the newly formed Armed Forces to a more western format. This was done by order PresidentAtatürk to establish culture of the arts in the new republic. On the other hand, the instrument of Turkish origin, theTurkish crescent, is commonly displayed during military band formations in Turkey and around the world.

Nowadays, the regular bands of theTurkish Armed Forces have continued to follow a more Western pattern, with theHarmonic Band of the Turkish Armed Forces being the seniormost and oldest of its kind in modern-dayTurkey, being founded in 1826 by order of Ottoman SultanMahmud II under the name of "Musika-i Hümayun" (Royal Band inOttoman Turkish).^[108] Prior to its establishment, Janissary bands were the only protocol bands utilized in theOttoman Army. As part of Atatürk's cultural reform, it was moved toAnkara with the administration of Osman Zeki Üngör and was separated from present-day presidential symphony orchestra in 1933 under the command of Turkish Armed Forces.^[109] The harmonic band performs protocol duties at theÇankaya Köşkü (the official residence of thePrime Minister of Turkey until 2014) inAnkara, formerly with the honour guard of thePresidential Guard Regiment and currently with ceremonial units of the Gendarmerie.

TheTurkish Gendarmerie also maintains its own military band, alongside the bands of the official branches of the military. TheTurkish Air Force Command maintains its own marching and dance band, both founded in 1961 with the directive of the Air Force Commander İrfan Tansel.^[110][111] The Turkish Armed Forces School of Music provides musical training and education to all current and potential members of these bands.

A Drum and Bugle Corps is also maintained in theNaval High School of theTurkish Navy. There are three independent jazz orchestras within the TAF: "Türkay" of the Land Forces Command, the "Eagles of Jazz" in the Air Force and Starfish Jazz Orchestra from the Naval Forces Command. The latter was formed in 2008 consists of non-commissioned officers, being considered to be the "flagship" ofTurkish jazz.^[112][113] The harmonic band has a specialized small ensemble called Harmony Stars Orchestra, which was established within the body of harmonic band in 2006.^[111]

Military bands inUzbekistan were inspired and follow the pattern of Russian military bands. On top of this, theArmed Forces of Uzbekistan pioneered a specific tradition with military bands, having a different march step and repertoire. TheBand of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Uzbekistan is the seniormost band in the military that reports directly to theUzbek Defense Minister. It is primarily responsible for the arrival ceremony at theKuksaroy Presidential Palace for world leaders visitingTashkent.

The band operates as a music center for the military, having authority over other affiliated military bands such as the following district bands:

TheMinistry of Internal Affairs operates several musical ensembles, including the Exemplary Band of the MVD (founded in 1993), of which notable members included Lieutenant Colonel Yunus Gulzarov^[114] and its founder Colonel Grigor Terzyan.^[115] The Band of theAcademy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs was founded in 1981 as a military band for the TashkentMVD High School, beginning its public activities in the 1982 academic year. In 1992, Lieutenant Khasan Nazarov took control of the band, re branding it to reflect the new name of the school. It was originally a volunteer band composed of unpaid musicians from the academy. This would change in 2004 when its members were replaced with professional Uzbek musicians.^[116]

The Band of theUzbekistan National Guard supports the musical activities of the National Guard. Founded in 1944, the Republican Specialized Academic Lyceum of Music of the National Guard provides special military training for musicians in their youth aged 14 to 18 like theMoscow Military Music College inRussia.^[117][118]

Other bands include those that are part of theChirchiq Higher Tank Command and Engineering School and theFrontier Service.^[119]

Modern military bands that are part of thePeople's Army of Vietnam are heavily influenced and inspired by military bands inRussia andChina, as well as bands from their former pre-independence colonizer,France. The first modern military bands inVietnam were organized between 1944 and 1954, during the first 10 years of the establishment of theSocialist Republic of Vietnam. The Military Band of the General Staff Command of theMilitary Honour Guard Battalion of the Vietnam People's Army supports the ceremonial activities of the VPA and is the seniormost band of the armed forces, with bands stationed in formations from the regimental level above and in all educational institutions. Military bands are also maintained in theVietnam People's Public Security.

Military bands of Austria are for the most part similar to the German musical format, although some military bands lack aCorps of Drums, which is the most notable part of the German format. TheGardemusik Wien of theGuard Battalion is the seniormost band in the armed forces and is the one responsible for playing at all state ceremonies and events.

The first military bands in Austria were organized in 1741, with ensembles being restricted to infantry and artillery units. They reached their golden age between the 1820s and the mid-1840s, being inspired by French military tradition and reforms. Military bands at this point, were led by a director of music and were composed of 50-60 civilian musicians.^[120] By the turn of the 20th century, Austrian Military Music Bands included 178 regimental bands in the Army alone (majority in the infantry), which was composed of over 10,000 musicians.^[121] Outside the Gardemusik, military bands are divided into the following regional bands:

From October 2014, the abandonment of five Austrian military bands, including the military band in Vorarlberg, was discussed for cost reasons.^[122] In December 2014, the government agreed to keep the nine locations with a reduced staff.^[123] Instead of the previous 47, there are to be 20 musicians per state in the future.^[124] In May 2016, during the Austrian governors' conference, together with Defense MinisterHans Peter Doskozil, it was decided to that military bands should be preserved in every federal state, consisting of 43 to 47 musicians.^[125]

The massed bands of theMilitary Band Service of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus follow the Russian traditional model with elements of Belarusian music in its repertoire. Regional bands from each of the military commandants form the basis of the band service along with the Exemplary Band (also known as theBelArmyBand), the Band of theHonor Guard Company, the Central Band of theInterior Ministry and the Band of theMinistry of Emergency Situations. The bands of the regional departments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are also affiliated as well to the service.

TheBelgian Armed Forces have three professional military bands, each representing one of the service branches. Bands of the Belgian Armed Forces include theRoyal Band of the Belgian Guides, the Band of theBelgian Navy, and the Royal Symphonic Band of the Belgian Air Force. All follow the British precedent due to these bands being based in the United Kingdom for much of the Second World War, with elements from the band traditions of France, the Netherlands and Germany.

The oldest and largest of these is the Royal Band of the BelgianGuides (former cavalry) dating from 1832. The bands of the Belgian Navy and of the Royal Belgian Air Component both date from 1947. The combined bands are known as the Music Bands of the Belgian Defense and consist of a total of nearly 200 professional musicians, all of whom holds a diploma from a Royal Conservatory.^[126]

Military bands inBulgaria are under the jurisdictional authority of theBulgarian Armed Forces. They are shaped by the Russian and German examples as well as follow their own precedent. The senior band is theRepresentative Guards Band from theNational Guards Unit. It was formerly the Central Brass Band of theBulgarian People's Army and the Band of the Bulgarian Life Guards Squadron before that. The armed forces also maintain three service bands: theGround Forces Band fromSofia, theNavy Band fromVarna and theAir Force Band fromPlovdiv.

The Ground Forces Band was established in 2000 as a direct successor to the Band of the 4th Infantry Regiment of Pleven, which has a more than 120 years of history.^[127] On 28 February 1884, Franz Minarick was appointed as the bandmaster of the newly formed Navy band.^[128] The air force band was created on 1 October 2000 (Bulgarian Music Day) from the Tactical Aviation Corps Band and the Plovdiv Garrison Brass Band.^[129]

The Military Music Department of theCypriot National Guard is the official music band in the Republic of Cyprus. It is based on Greek and British military traditions. The National Guard Band was founded in 1968 and its staff comes from conscript musicians performing their service term within the Guard.^[130]

The modern daySecurity Forces Command Band of theTurkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is based in primarily Turkish influences. It dates back to British rule over the island, when Captain Zeki Taner established the foundations for a Mujahideen Band to be formed in 1958 from makeshift tools. In 1960, when theRepublic of Cyprus was declared, the guarantor countryTurkish government sent instruments to the island that the Mujahideen Band needed through Cyprus Turkish Forces Regiment. In 1971, the Mujahideen Band took the name of the Cyprus Turkish Police Band, performing at many concerts under the name of "Student Band" due to the problems faced while crossing to the other districts. When Turkish Cypriots gained an independent state with theTurkish invasion of Cyprus, Security Forces Command was established on 1 August 1976 and the Police Band took the name of the Security Forces Command Band.^[131]

TheCzech Army Central Band is the primary unit of theCzech Land Forces responsible for providing musical support to theArmy of the Czech Republic and theArmed Forces of the Czech Republic. The band is currently based inPrague where it fall under the Army Music Service of the Czech Armed Forces, which heads all bands in the CAF. There are two other bands in the CAF:Military Band Olomouc, Military BandPlzeň, Military BandBrno, Military BandTábor^[132] and Military BandHradec Králové. The latter descends from the former Band of theCzechoslovak Air Force (founded in 1949) and has since 1963 been working mainly in the EastBohemian Region.^[133] Many graduates of these bands come from the Prague Military Music School. Primarily, the band tradition in the republic stems from the Austro-Hungarian tradition, with latter influences from the United Kingdom and Russia. On 11 December 1918, it was decided to establish the first military band in the larger garrison towns.^[134]

Danish military bands are known to have been influenced greatly by the traditionalGerman andSwedish examples that it often surrounded itself with. TheRoyal Life Guards Music Band is the seniormost military band in theDanish Defence, performing at all national events, especially ones involving theMonarchy of Denmark, theDanish royal family and foreign dignitaries. The squad-sizedMounted band of theGuard Hussar Regiment Mounted Squadron, which consists of one Timpani and nine bugles, is the only mounted military band in the country and is used during processions and ceremonial escorts.^[135]

TheRoyal Danish Naval Academy sports the navy's only military band, the Royal Danish Navy Band (Danish: Søværnets Tamburkorps), established in 1964 and composed of 24 cadets. The army also maintains several regimental and battalion bands such as theSlesvigske musikkorps, which are stationed at their home barracks.

Band formations inFinland have been heavily influenced byRussian,German andSwedish military traditions. Finnish military music has an over 400-year history which began in 1544 when KingGustav I of Sweden promoted the strengthening of musical structure in the Swedish-Finnish army. The first Finnish military bands were composed of pipers, drummers, cavalry buglers and kettle drummers who began to serve on the front lines in theRusso-Swedish War (1554–1557). Gustav's son,John III, settled atTurku Castle after his father's death, and created his own personal court band, whose first directors were the Dutch-born Jören van Heiden and Blasius Fischer. This provided the basis for modern military bands in Finland.

In the 1600s, a four-member band was added to the ranks of an army regiment on the basis of the Hautboist model in Europe. In the early 1700s, there was a period of repression of Finnish military music, which would only improve later on in the century. In the early 1800s, the last band to be founded in Swedish Finland was the Band of the Queen Dowager's Life Guard Regiment in Pomerania. Bernhard Henrik Crusell, who was a musician in the and an internationally known Swedish instrumentalist, is known as the "Father of Finnish military music" and has "Crusell's March", named in his honor.^[136]

In the period of theGrand Duchy of Finland, a total of 23 military bands were in service, growing to 28 from 1812 to 1905. During this time, bands such as the Cavalry Band of the Dragoons Regiment and theGuards Band were founded. Army bands in independent Finland received their initial training at Korsholma Military Music School (now the Military Music School) nearVaasa.^[137] TheFinnish Defence Forces sports 6 professional military bands with 180 musicians combined. The six professional Finnish military bands are theKaartin Soittokunta, theConscript Band of the Finnish Defence Forces, theFinnish Air Force Band,Finnish Navy Band, the Lapland Military Band, and the Dragoon Band.^[138] Lapland Military Band fromRovaniemi is the only professional wind orchestra in Northern Finland and is the northernmost military band in theEuropean Union.^[139]

The Finnish Armed Forces also hosts and participates in the biannualHamina Tattoo.

Since the 17th century, France has sported one of the oldest military band traditions in all of Western Europe, providing the Western world with a collection of French marches composed by eminent composers from the Ancien Régime, the Revolution, the Napoleonic era up to the present. TheFrench Revolution brought many changes to music and military bands. As a result of the increase of musicians, military bands grew to sizes never seen before. TheFrench National Guard had 45 musicians in 1789 and expanded to 70 in 1790. The band dissolved in 1792 but became the nucleus for theParis Conservatory of Music. In 1827, all French bands were cut to 27 players at minimum due to economic reasons.^[140] While modern instrumentation somewhat mirrors those of British and American military bands, it is based on uniquely French military music traditions. These bands are led by a conductor and a drum major.

There are four types of military bands today in France: military marching bands (subdivided into marching and mounted brass bands), Corps of Drums (only in theForeign Legion),Fanfare bands (attached to the marching band or as separate marching bands) and Pipe bands (more known in Brittany as theBagad). Examples of these are theMarching, Fanfare, and Mounted Bands of the French Republican Guard, and theCentral Band of the Foreign Legion, the only remaining French military band to use the fife. The French ArmyCavalry and Armored Branch maintain mounted and dismounted fanfare bands featuring cavalry trumpets and bugles plus kettledrums and marching percussion. Another example is the band of the FrenchChasseurs Alpins (theband of the27th Mountain Infantry Brigade (France)), which uses theAlphorns in displays.French Armed Forces bands are also of the headquarters element from the regimental or brigade level onward and can also provide musical elements for civil and military events. These bands are distinguished by their service dress uniforms. All army bands are part of theArmy Music Command (CMAT).^[141] Outside of this framework, army bands include the Fanfare Bands of the9th Marine Infantry Brigade^[142] and the6th Engineer Regiment.

The military bands of Germany have two or more components depending on instrumentation.Military bands in Germany'sBundeswehr today are only composed of a military band and a Corps of Drums. Another distinguishing features are the presence of theTurkish crescent in the military bands when they are on parade and the band's conductor being assisted by aDrum major, as well as the inclusion offanfare trumpeters. The military bands of Germany have also influenced the development of military bands throughoutSouth America.

In types of ensemble, these bands are called as:

The bands of theBundeswehr today are mainly composed of the band proper, Corps of Drums, and the occasional fanfare section, several bands have historical sections wearing period uniforms and playing either modern or classic instruments. Other such bands are led by Drum Majors, Conductors/Directors of Music, and Bugle Majors in the case of mounted, bugle, and fanfare bands.

During the Imperial era, such bands existed all over theGerman Empire, and later on during theWeimar Republic and theThird Reich (but the mounted bands were reduced to only a few by that time). TheWehrmacht and theWaffen-SS had maintained a considerable amount of military bands in its ranks. TheSS-Verfügungstruppe and theAllgemeine SS had also maintained bands, giving way for theSS lead the way for German musical units inNazi Germany to be part of thisparamilitary organization. By 1934, a musical unit had been set up in the1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler, which was Germany's most senior military band in the pre-war years.^[143] ProfessorHans Felix Husadel, who was theLuftwaffenmusikinspizient of air force bands, was primarily responsible for the 1930s reorganization of bands in theLuftwaffe, which was notable in its inclusion of the saxophone in 1935.^[144]

East Germany's official band service was theMilitary Music Service of the National People's Army (Nationale Volksarmee), organized into the same ensembles as in theBundeswehr, as well as added ensembles based on Soviet influence.

Greek military bands have a long history that goes back since the country's establishment in the early 19th century. When theHellenic Army's regular force was under the command of French ColonelCharles Fabvier, army culture was expanded into different areas, including the establishment of military music detachments for the first time. TheHellenic Armed Forces operates three musical units, including the Military Band of Athens, theHellenic Air Force Band, and theHellenic Naval Band

TheMilitary Band of Athens, which is the seniormost military band in the army and the armed forces, has an over 190-year history. The band in its current form was established in 1856, and was the only professional musical band of the Greek State.^[145] All three bands partake in rendering honors and performing in military parades and concerts. Like the British Army, the Greek military also maintains unit bands at the regimental/brigade level to provide ceremonial support to these specific units.

With theHungarian Defense Forces Central Military Band (HDF Band) (Magyar Honvédség Központi Zenekar) being the official military band of theHungarian Defence Forces, it represents the HDF on every occasion, including parades as well as ceremonies and has done this since its foundation in 1962.^[146] Military bands in Hungary have an over 120-year history dating back to the founding of the first military band in the capital ofBudapest in the late 1890s. The central band also acts as the headquarters for all separate garrison bands.

Italy has a long tradition of military music. Today, within theItalian Armed Forces, Italian military bands (called in theItalian language as both eitherbanda orfanfara) have an instrumentation order similar to British, French, and American military bands, although it retains the Italian musical flavor and heritage.

Mounted bands in the Italian Army, Carabineri and the Polizia di Stato formerly used only the bugle and the natural trumpet from the 16th century, up to the middle of the 20th century, from the late 19th century to now also they use brass, woodwinds, timpani, single tenor drums, snare drums, cymbals and glockenspiels.

Brass bands belonging to theBersaglieri have no percussion and march on the jogging pace of their attached units on the lead.

The following bands serve the servicemen and women of the Armed Forces:

• Italian Carabinieri Bands
  • National Carabinieri Band
  • Mounted Carabinieri Regiment Band
  • Band of the Carabinieri NCO School Rome
  • Band of the Carabineri Basic School Turin
  • Band of the Warrant Officers' School (Florence)
  • Band of the "Lombardy" Battalion (Milan)
  • Band of the "Campania" Battalion (Naples)
  • Band of the "Sicily" Battalion (Palermo)
• Italian Army Bands
  • Italian Army Band Rome
  • Alpine Brigade "Taurinense" Band
  • Alpine Brigade "Julia" Band
  • Bersaglieri Brigade "Garibaldi"
  • Cavalry Brigade "Pozzuolo del Friuli" Band
  • Mechanized Brigade "Aosta" Band
  • Mechanized Brigade "Pinerolo" Band
  • Mechanized Brigade "Sassari" Band
  • Anti-aircraft Artillery Command Band
  • 1st Regiment "Granatieri di Sardegna" Band
  • 7th Bersaglieri Regiment Band
• Guardia di Finanza Bands
  • Central Band
  • Academy Band
• Italian Air Force Bands
  • Central Band
  • Air Force Academy Band
• Italian Navy Bands
  • Central Band
  • Band of theSan Marco Marine Brigade
  • Band of the Corps of the Port Captaincies
  • Naval Academy Band

A military band was maintained in the formerNational Republican Guard.

Latvia developed a tradition of having military bands right after it gained its independence from theRussian Empire in 1918. In February 1919, Captain Ludvigs Bolšteins of the newly formedLatvian Army ordered an infantry company to form a band composed of 11 volunteers in what was considered to be the first military band in independentLatvia. Beginning in 1940 and again following the end of the German occupation in 1944–45, theRed Army began stationing army bands on its territory. As the Soviet band tradition grew and progressed over the years, bands of theBaltic Military District stationed in theLatvian SSR were aligned towards the standard of the Bands of theMoscow Military District. Since 1991, theCentral Military Band of the Latvian National Armed Forces (also known as the NAF Staff Band) has been the flagship ensemble of the national armed forces and has participated in every protocol events. Officially coming under the command of theLatvian National Armed Forces Staff Battalion, it mostly performs in the presence of a major public figure, such as thePresident of Latvia.

In addition to the Central Band of the Armed Forces, three other military bands are also associated with the NAF Staff Band and are on the National Armed Forces National Orchestral Board:^[147] They include the Central Band of theLatvian Land Forces, based inDaugavpils and mostly provides music for theLatgale; Central Band of theLatvian Navy, based inLiepāja; and the Central Band of theLatvian National Guard.

The Central Band of the Latvian National Guard is the newest band established by the Latvian Armed Forces. However, although it was officially founded in 2011, it actually succeeded a military band that was under the supervision of the National Guard and was active in the 1990s. At the time, it was simply under the command of an Ordnance Battalion of the National Armed Forces. At present, the National Guard Band sports a saxophone quartet, jazz ensemble, a choir, and abig band, which combined totals up to 40 musicians. The current conductor of the National Guard Band is Captain Andis Karelis and Major Viesturs Lazdins.^[148]

TheMusique militaire grand-ducale is the sole military band of the small country ofLuxembourg, based inConservatoire de Luxembourg. The band performs close to 50 concerts per year, mostly inLuxembourg City. The band is divided into a chamber orchestra, brass band, bugles and drums, an instrumental ensemble, as well as several quintets.

TheNetherlands Armed Forces's military music component is made up of eight military bands and two field music formations, which perform ceremonial duties and give concerts to the public, these bands are a hybrid of the German, British, Spanish and French band traditions. TheRoyal Military Band "Johan Willem Friso" is the main military band of theNetherlands, serving as the seniormost band of the entire armed forces. The band was formed in 1995 as a fusion of both the Royal Military Band of the Grenadier Guards Regiment, elements of the Brass Band of the Rifle Guards Regiment and the Band of the Johan Willem Friso Regiment and thus is the largest and oldest among all the bands. The other four bands are theNational Reserve Korps Fanfare Orchestra, the Brass Band of theRoyal Netherlands Army Regiment of Engineers, the Fanfare Orchestra of the RNA and Mounted Fanfare Band Section and theGarderegiment Grenadiers en Jagers Brass Band. All five report to Headquarters,Royal Netherlands Army.

The Royal Netherlands Navy is served by theRotterdam Marine Band of the Royal Netherlands Navy, the Royal Netherlands Air Force by theCentral Band of the Royal Netherlands Air Force and theVeterans' Brass Band of the Royal Netherlands Air Force and theRoyal Marechaussee by the Fanfare Band of the Royal Marechaussee.^[149]

Of the many field music formations in active service during the Cold War only theFanfare Band of the Royal Marechaussee's Traditional Drum and Bugle Corps is in service, together with the Royal Netherlands Air Force Traditional Drum and Bugle Corps, the eight bands currently active were only a few of the many bands that existed for public and ceremonial activities from the 19th century up to the 1990s in the Armed Forces.

Former bands and field music formations were:

TheNorwegian Armed Forces have several military bands that play a prominent role during ceremonies and parades. Norwegian bands date back to the 1620s, when platoons of drummers (tambur) were stationed at all military fortresses in the country under the Army. Five brigade bands were established during the restructuring of the Norwegian Armed Forces in 1817. Following World War II, military bands became popular among civilians and government officials, eventually leading to theNorwegian Parliament to give the green light for establishing over six bands in 1953.^[150]

The following bands, among others, serve the ceremonial duties of the Norwegian Armed Forces:

Polish Armed Forces military bands follow the Austrian model, but follow also the German and Russian band and march music tradition too. The main military band inPoland is theRepresentative Central Band of the Polish Armed Forces which is part of the1st Guards Battalion, Representative Honor Guard Regiment and has served the leadership ofPoland since 1918. All service branches of the armed forces also have their own military band. The representative ensemble of the armed forces also maintains a full chamber orchestra attached to the unit.^[151] In addition to the central band, the three main service branches of the Polish military maintain their own representative bands.

The Representative Band of thePolish Air Force (Orkiestra Reprezentacyjna Polskich Sił Powietrznych) was established in 2002 following the merger of two military bands fromJelenia Góra andOleśnica. The majority of band members are graduates of the former Military Music High School inGdańsk, as well as graduates of Music Academies inPoland and abroad. It takes part in numerous festivals and tattoos inWestern andCentral Europe. In 2009, thePolish Air Force Band was the winner of the 44th annualPolish Armed Forces review of military bands. It is currently based with the 34th Air Defense Missile Squadron inBytom and is placed under the command of Lieutenant Krystian Siwek.^[152]

The Representative Band of thePolish Land Forces (Orkiestra Reprezentacyjna Wojsk Lądowych) supports the everyday ceremonial activities of thePolish Land Forces from its headquarters inWrocław. It was established in 1952 by order ofVladislav Korchits, who was the then chief ofPolish General Staff. In over 50 years, the band was led by acclaimed Polish musicians such as Major Czesław Kęstowicz, Captain Franciszek Minta, and Major Mariusz Dziubek.^[153]

The Representative Band of theNavy of Poland (Orkiestra Reprezentacyjna Marynarki Wojennej Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) serves the ceremonial and musical needs of thePolish Navy. The band was formed in 1920 in the city ofPuck, which was the then headquarters of the Polish navy. It was transferred toGdynia with other units in 1925 and has been based there ever since. Its activities were suspended duringWorld War II due to theoccupation of Poland. ThePolish government created aBig Band as part of the band in 1982.^[154]

The history of the Representative Band of thePolish Border Guard (Orkiestra Reprezentacyjna Straży Granicznej) dates back to 1956 and is closely related to the history of theCarpathian Brigade of the Polish Army. It has performed its current functions as a military band since 1973 and has been based inPodhale since its founding. It is known as a perfect interpreter of symphonic, brass and classical music. The band prides itself on the over 10,000 concerts that it has performed over the years and the several prizes and awards it has been given by musical and government officials inPoland and abroad.^[155][156]

The following military garrisons have military bands under their jurisdiction:

Portugal has a long military music tradition. Military type bands exist not only in the Military forces, but also in security and emergency forces, with some influences from Spain, France and the United Kingdom.

The senior band of thePortuguese Armed Forces is the Army Symphonic Band (BSE), based inLisbon and formed in 1988 by order of the Chief of Staff of the Army, General Mário Firmino Miguel.^[161] It is the heir to the oldest musical traditions of thePortuguese Army, historical predecessors of which include the Band of the 1st Infantry Regiment and the Band of the 5thCaçadores Battalion^[162] On 7 October 2005, it was awarded by the PresidentJorge Sampaio theGold Medal of Distinguished Services. The Army also has four regional military bands, the Army Fanfare Band and three other fanfare bands. The Fanfare Brass Band of thePortuguese Rapid Reaction Brigade has the particularity of including bagpipes and its members being all qualified paratroopers. The youngest of the formations, it has been active since 1986.^[163]

TheBanda da Armada (Navy Band) is the official band of thePortuguese Navy, dating back the 1740s when there was a band called "Charamela" in the Portuguese Royal Navy. The Navy also includes theFanfarra da Armada (Fanfare Band of the Navy), adrum and bugle corps which is part of thePortuguese Marine Corps, with origins dating to the Royal Brigade and in existence since 1837.^[164][165] Both carry the long history of bands and field music in this branch.

ThePortuguese Air Force Band was created on New Year's Eve in 1957, five years before the founding of the actual air force. Like the army band, it is a recipient of the Gold Medal of Distinguished Services, awarded in 1997.^[166][167]

Outside those bands, all of which are part of the main framework of the Portuguese military, theSymphonic Band of theNational Republican Guard (GNR), the country's gendarmerie force, serves as an official military band and serves as the official state band of the republic. The GNR also includes the Horse Brass Band (Charanga a Cavalo), which is the only mounted band in the world which plays while on the gallop.

The Military Music Service of theRomanian Armed Forces (Serviciul musical militar al Forțelor Armate Române) and the Military Music Inspectorate (Inspectoratul Muzicilor Militare) are the principal military band departments inMinistry of National Defense of Romania. It is responsible for the organization and instruction of military bands in the armed forces. It is currently housed at a military base on 13Iuliu Maniu Boulevard,Bucharest. July 1 is considered to be the "Day of Military Music" (Ziua muzicilor militare), which is observed as a professional holiday.^[168][169]

In 1864, it became a special section in the Ministry of War, which controlled its subordinate military bands and music schools. The section became the basis for the subsequent establishment of the Military Music Inspectorate in 1867, which had CaptainEduard Hübsch being the first commander. In the nearly 30 years since Hübsch was the inspector of the military music, the special regulations for the bands of the band were elaborated and the military musicians were given a new status in the army. On May 26, 1895, inspector generalIon Ivanovici (the author of the most famous Romanian waltzesWaves of the Danube) endowed the inspectorate with new instruments, introduced a valuable and diverse repertoire, while supporting the training of future military instrumentalists.^[170] On October 10, 1936, the Military Music School was established and was designed to ensure the training military music staff. In the middle of June in 1954, the representative military bands of each service branch of theRomanian People's Army were formed. The current inspector general of the military music service is Colonel Valentin Neacsu, who has served in this position since October 11, 2007, succeeding Colonel Ionel Croitoru.

The Romanian Armed Forces maintains a central band for its respective service branches. They include the Representative Central Band of theRomanian Army, the Representative Central Band of theRomanian Air Force, and the Representative Central Band of theRomanian Navy. In addition to centralized bands, the Romanian Armed Forces also maintains several other bands, which include the Regimental Band of theMichael the Brave 30th Guards Brigade, theDoina Armatei Folk Band,^[171][172] and the bands for the Military Training Center for Music, and the Military Music School. All the bands follow a mix of the Russian, French, British and German traditions with field snare drums on the front rank occasionally when in massed bands formation, during the period of the Socialist Republic of Romania a typical massed bands formation on national holidays in Bucharest (until 1989) sported bugles and chromatic fanfare trumpets following the Russian practice at the front rank in front of the percussion.

Starting in the late 17th century with the birth of the regular Russian armed services, each unit of the Imperial army and navy formed their own bands using regular enlisted personnel and NCOs and led by officers as directors of music andbandmasters. This tradition stayed even in the Soviet era, and one of the finest band conductors of that era was Major GeneralSemyon Tchernetsky, who founded and became the first director of music of the Central Band of theMinistry of Defense of the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1951. Indeed, Russia has a long tradition of military bands and so many military marches have been composed by various composers throughout the years. These bands were modeled after the German military bands, with the addition of the chromatic fanfare trumpet. Some but not all Russian marches then were made in Germany and other locations as the rest were locally composed military marches. They would usually have a conductor, and a drum major using his mace with/or a bugle major playing the chromatic fanfare trumpet. Brass instruments formed the first tier of the formation followed by the percussion and the woodwinds. Mounted cavalry bands were similar to German ones but were different in many aspects.

Military bands (also loosely translated toВоенный оркестр, which meansMilitary Orchestra) when massed would add field drums and fanfare trumpets to the ensemble for large parades and state ceremonies. The formation used by these massed bands mirror today's formations.

By the time that the Soviet Armed Forces came into being in 1918, military bands began to change for the better. With the establishment of the Central Military Band by Semyon Chernetsky in 1927 came the birth of today's Russian and ex-Soviet Union military band culture. In the late 1920s and the 1930s the typical Soviet Massed military bands that perform on May 1, November 7 and from 1945 onward, May 9, would be composed of a Military band and a Corps of Drums marching past and until the 1970s would later join the military band in place.

Soviet massed military bands in the 1930s and 1940s tend to have a drum major, a conductor, and an optional two to three deputy conductors in the front of the band. Mounted bands had the same formation, but with only a director of music and the optionally mounted band drum major, only a few bands sported woodwinds. The Soviet military bands of the pre-war days played not only on May Day and Revolution Day but in the NationalSports Day parades at the Red Square, the various sports competitions, and other occasions, and after the Second World War, at Victory Day celebrations across the USSR. In the 1930s, the Turkish crescent holders were shaking during the sports parades, but in the 1940s, they were not shaking them. Their formation mirrored those used by Russian military bands in the Imperial era.

By the 1950s, Soviet military bands evolved in instrumentation. Their positioning, especially in the Moscow bands, changed for the better as newly composed Soviet military marches soon created the Soviet military band sound common to Westerners during the Cold War days. A conductor and one to four drum majors and several bandmasters led the massed military bands of the Soviet Union in Moscow, Leningrad and republican capital cities into a new decade of progress for Soviet military music as many new compositions entered the song-list of marches played during state parades. The reform of the bands begun in 1948-1949 under the assistant director of the band service, Major General Ivan Petrov, and continued on until the 1970s. Bands from the Moscow Military District took part in the opening and closing ceremonies of the1980 Summer Olympics, which was the international television debut of Soviet military bands, broadcast to numerous countries around the world.

Today, military bands in theRussian Federation are also of the headquarters element from the regimental level onward, and also provide musical support to the different units of theArmed Forces of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Federal Protective Service, theFederal Security Service and theMinistry of Emergency Situations. The military bands here also provide musical support in civil and military events, in a wide range of groups and ensembles. Some can even continue the old Russian military band traditions by donning the old imperial military uniforms of theRussian Empire, especially the uniforms of the bands. Examples of such are theCentral Band of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, theExemplary Band of the Moscow Garrison Guard of Honor, theSt. Petersburg Admiralty Band, theCentral Band of the Western Military District and thePresidential Band from theKremlin Regiment.

The first military band inSerbia was founded in 1831 by decree of PrinceMiloš Obrenović under the title ofKnjaževsko–Serbska Banda.^[173] This band served the then-Royal Serbian Army and is the ancestor to the modernBand of the Guard as the official ceremonial band of theSerbian Armed Forces. TheRoyal Yugoslav Army and theYugoslav People's Army have also maintained military bands in their ranks throughout the 20th century, with the former having a band in its Royal Guard.^[174] There was also a Military School of Music in the early 1900s.^[175] Military bands also include theNiš andBinički Bands of theSerbian Army.

All bands follow the Austrian practice with added Russian and Turkish influences.

Military bands inSpain are of very long-standing. There are reports of primitive bands dating from theCeltiberian tribal and Roman periods. However military music in the modern sense began with the expansion of theSpanish Empire between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, during the numerous Spanish military campaigns in Europe and the wider world when the first bands were formed in theTercios of the Spanish Army, equipped with fifes and drums and later with wind instruments of the period formed under a drum major. The influence of Spanish military marching bands is very important, especially in Latin America and the Philippines. The characteristic marches are the "touch" of trumpets, bugles and cors de chasse, and the steady rhythm of the percussion section, with contrasting festive spirit and martial beats. In the 19th century, the light infantry of the Army adopted a militarized form of the civilCharanga tradition of southeastern and northern Spain, a tradition theSpanish Navy would adopt for naval units and ship's company bands.

Band formations in theSpanish Armed Forces, all under the Band Corps within theCommon Corps, follow the British model, but Spanish bands tend to have the most senior bandsmen or bandsman, playing a tuba, positioned at the head of the band or at the second line. The tubaist is usually the band sergeant major or the band corporal, mostly stationed in between the trombone players or leading a file of tuba and euphonium players in some bands. Bugle bands are part of the Spanish musical tradition since the 19th century when the bugle replaced the fife in the Spanish Army and Navy, and these bands consist of drummers and buglers (or trumpeters in the cavalry dismounted bands since the 20th century). Such formations, when massed together, are led by a Director of Music and a Drum Major (with a Bugle Major or a Trumpet Major depending on the specialty arm). The century-old Corps of Drums of theRegulares is led by a Drum Major and a Bugle Major with personnel playing the snare, bass, and single tenor drums, bugles, North African flutes and sometimes bagpipes, and the Spanish Royal Guard (as well as the1st King's Immemorial Infantry Regiment of AHQ) sport Corps of Drums playing drums and fifes and wearing 18th-century uniforms. Plain bugles, by tradition, are used in the bugle bands of theSpanish Legion and theParatrooper Brigade instead of the valved bugles used by other bands and the trumpets and bass drum used by the Royal Guards. Within units based in Galicia and Asturias, military pipe bands are in service as well. Only theCivil Guard and theRoyal Guard retain mounted bands with cavalry trumpeters, both of which also having mounted kettledrummers.

Today, there are 26 bands or "Music Units" (Unidad de Música) whose members belong to the Band Corps. They are divided as follows: 15 of them in the Army, 5 in the Navy, and the rest in the Air Force.^[176] Their areas of operations include:Andalucía,Aragon,Canarias,Castilla-La Mancha,Castilla y León,Ceuta,Comunidad Valenciana,Galicia,Madrid,Melilla, andMurcia.^[177] A school of music is based in theCarabanchel district of south westernMadrid as part of theCentral Defence Academy with the purpose of training individuals in the Band Corps.

Traditionally, every Swedish regiment had a band. During the 20th century, many of them were disbanded and in 1957 all remaining military bands were merged into one per garrison or disbanded entirely. The Swedish military music was made into a non-military organization in 1971 but this proving unsuccessful, theRoyal Swedish Army Band was set up in 1982, followed by several other bands in the 1990s. As of 2010 the Swedish Armed Forces no longer have conscripts, but professional soldiers. The military musicians in the Swedish Armed Forces Music are now professional musicians with civil ranks (CR-1/8) or professional soldiers with military ranks (OR-1/5). Today, Swedish military music has undergone new cuts, retaining two bands only in the army and one in the navy and only a single field music formation. In addition, there are 25 bands in the SwedishHome Guard, all of which are under the command of theHemvärnsmusiken.

Formations in these bands are a mix of the Italian, German and British band traditions. The current active bands of the Swedish Armed Forces includes theRoyal Swedish Army Band, and theLife Guards' Dragoon Music Corps, both of which are based inStockholm; and theRoyal Swedish Navy Band, based inKarlskrona. All three report to theSwedish Armed Forces Music Corps.

TheSwiss Army Central Band is the main military band in thelandlocked confederation. It is based on mostly German and French, but also Italian and British influences. It serves as theSwiss Armed Force's sole ceremonial ambassador as the military does not have a permanent ceremonial (guards of honour are mounted by regular units).^[178] Despite having affiliations with the military, as well as its 18th century uniforms and precision drill, the civilianTop Secret Drum Corps is not a Swiss military band. The Military Music Competence Center (Kompetenzzentrum Militärmusik) is an organizational unit which specializes in the training of military musicians for service.^[179][180]

Also in service is the Conscript Band of the Swiss Army, which is manned by musician conscripts serving their national service term in the Armed Forces. Other bands include the Swiss Army Strings, the Swiss Army Big Band, Swiss Army Brass Band, the Swiss Military Small Band and the Swiss Army Concert Band. The Swiss Military Small Band is composed of musicians from the Brass Band Recruit School who finished an 18-week basic training in May 2018.^[181]

Military bands inUkraine are subordinated to theMilitary Music Department of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The following bands that form part of this department can be categorized into the following:^[182][183] band centers, academy bands and unit bands. The three seniormost bands in theUkrainian Armed Forces are theNational Exemplary Band of the Armed Forces of Ukraine andNational Presidential Band of Ukraine and theBand of the Kyiv Presidential Honor Guard Battalion. The National Exemplary Band is the largest in the armed forces, employing over 100 musicians. There is a quota for the number of musicians different bands, with the headquarters bands of music centers of each armed service branch employing 52 members, and academic bands employing 21 members.

The Military Band Service of theNational Guard of Ukraine consists of the Central Band of the National Guard of Ukraine, the Band of theNational Guard Military Academy of Ukraine, the Band of theNGU National Honor Guard Battalion Kyiv and the Band of the National Guard NCO Training School. Ukrainian massed bands are known for their unconventional use of stationary instruments such as theTimpani andtubular bells. Since theRussian Army annexedCrimea in 2014 followed by theRusso-Ukrainian War, Ukrainian military bands have been ordered to orient their marching styles, as well as their drum majors to military bands in theEuropean Union andNATO armed services.

In May 2016, soldiers from the Band of the44th Artillery Brigade inTernopil performedShche ne vmerla Ukraina nearly 300 metres underground, breaking a world record.^[184] The Band of the 194th Pontoon-Bridge Regiment of the State Special Transport Service (established in October 2001^[185]) also serves as a military band despite it not being part of the armed forces.^[186]

Since later medieval times and the formation of the first bands, the United Kingdom has had a strong military band tradition. In 1993,Richard Morrison, the chief music critic ofThe Times noted: "One of the oddest statistics about British cultural life is that theDefence Ministry spends more to maintain military bands than the government spends on all the professional orchestras and opera companies in the country."^[187] The oldest military band in theBritish Armed Forces is theRoyal Artillery Band. This can trace its origins back to 1557 at theBattle of St. Quentin, although it was not made 'official' until 1762. A series of army reviews starting in 1994 reduced the number ofBritish Army bands from 69 to 22 and the number of personnel from 2,000 to 1,100.^[187]

All regular bands in the British Army are part of theRoyal Corps of Army Music and there are currently 22 in service. They range in personnel number from 64 to 15 and include: traditional marching, mounted and concert bands, as well as rock bands and a small string orchestra. The bands of the Royal Corps of Army Music are:^[188]

The British Army also has 20 reserve military bands located across the United Kingdom and Gibraltar:^[189][190]

TheRoyal Marines Band Service is, since 1950 and the disbandment of the Fleet Divisional Bands, the only remaining musical wing of theRoyal Navy in service. It currently consists of six bands. Without doubt, groups of musicians existed in the service before 1767, when Royal Marines Divisional Bands were formed at the naval dockyard-bases ofChatham,Plymouth andPortsmouth and the naval gathering-point ofDeal in theDowns, and marine bands (along with professional bands paid for by captains) plus their respective corps of drums provided music aboard ships before and during battles of the Napoleonic Wars (e.g. during the long sail into action at theBattle of Trafalgar).

At present, there are a total of five Royal Marine Bands and aCorps of Drums:

The band of the Royal Marines School of Music in Portsmouth (The Training Band) brings the total number to six.

TheRoyal Air Force Music Services is the organisation which providesmilitary musical support to theRoyal Air Force. Based atRAF Northolt (previously atRAF Uxbridge) andRAF Cranwell, it forms the central administration of one hundred and seventy musicians divided between theCentral Band of the Royal Air Force,The Band of the Royal Air Force College,The Band of the Royal Air Force Regiment andHeadquarters Music Services. These main military bands contain within their ranks the Royal Air Force Squadronnaires, Royal Air Force Swing Wing, Royal Air Force Shades of Blue, and The Salon Orchestra of the Central Band of the Royal Air Force.

In theUnited Kingdom, theMounted Band of the Household Cavalry and theMassed Bands of the Household Division perform atTrooping the Colour, an annual ceremony held every June onHorse Guards Parade to mark the officialKing's Birthday celebrations. The Massed Bands and the Mounted Band play a central role in this ceremony. The term "Massed Bands" denotes the formation of more than one separate band performing together, whether belonging to one or more regiments, or indeed countries.

The various volunteer reserve bands in the British Armed Forces' three services mirror those of the regular forces bands, as well as civil military-styled marching bands (for example,The Royal British Legion, which maintains its own bands).

The various youth military uniformed services of the United Kingdom have their own bands using the very same formations mentioned earlier:

• TheArmy Cadet Force bands, as well as the air cadet organisation bands in the United Kingdom which are under the banner of theRoyal Air Force Air Cadets, use the general formation used by the British Army and the RAF, but several RAF Air Cadet bands have drums at the front similar to the Royal Marines
• The RM/DYRMS formation is standard practice forSea Cadets (United Kingdom),Royal Marines Volunteer Cadet Corps, and theCombined Cadet Force bands.

Uniformed organization-based and civil Corps of Drums mostly follow the format by most army regiments while those with links to the light infantry do not use fifes at all. In the case of those that are part of the Sea Cadets and the RMVCC, they follow the RM (and former RN) Corps of Drums traditions, adding glockenspiels and in some bands wind and brass instruments.

British style brass bands have the same positioning as the British Army brass bands as they are composed of only brass instruments,saxhorns and percussion. The same applies tocarnival band formations, though these have the option to include woodwinds.

British military bands have served in the Australian colonies since their arrival in 1788 all the way up to 1870. During this period, the bands came from visiting British and non-British naval ships. These bands include the Band of theNew South Wales Corps and the Band of the73rd (Perthshire) Regiment of Foot.^[191] With the formation of the Regular Army in 1947, military bands were raised in each of the five commands and by 1955, there were 12 army bands. The seniormost of these bands was the Northern Command Band fromTownsville. The RAAF Band was the first to take up the concert band format reflected local community bands at this time.^[192] At one point, theAustralian Broadcasting Commission maintained its own military band. Branded as the ABC Military Band, it was formed in October 1933 and comprised 40 players from allAustralian States, playing a concerts during the war to raise funds for Australian soldiers. It was disbanded in September 1951 due to low funding.^[193]

Military bands of theAustralian Defence Force, and their formations on ceremonies and parades, are derived from those of the United Kingdom, with each service –Royal Australian Navy,Australian Army and theRoyal Australian Air Force – having their own approach, based on the service military bands in the UK. For example, theRoyal Australian Navy Band marches with drums at the front, whereas the bands of the other service branches have their trombone section at the front. The instrumentation also varies from band to band, as does the size of the ensemble.

The Royal Australian Navy Band maintains two sections of musicians, one based in Sydney and one near Melbourne (at H.M.A.S. Cerberus).Australian Army Band Corps has full-time bands based in Canberra, Wagga Wagga, Sydney, Brisbane, and Townsville, as well as part-time (Reserve) bands in Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth, Sydney, Newcastle, Hobart, and Darwin. There are also many Reserve pipes and drums bands attached to various units. TheRoyal Australian Air Force Band consists of a single 43 piece band based in Melbourne. The bands of all three services perform at ceremonial functions, such as Commemoration ceremonies and ANZAC Day marches, in addition to providing music capability for their respective services.

TheRepublic of Fiji Military Forces sports only one military band, theFiji Military Forces Band. The perform in the RFMF's ceremonial dress uniform, which consists of a red uniform with a traditional FijianSulu, which is also worn by the country's Presidential Palace Guards. The RFMF Band's formation is similar to their British counterparts, particularly the Royal Marines Band Service, which has its drum section at the front of the formation.

Military bands inNew Zealand derive their formations from other Commonwealth and United States bands. They originated during the early 1840s, at the beginning of British rule. Since then, military bands have supported British and later New Zealand military events and commemorations. Before 1910, New Zealand military bands were attached to volunteer force units, with few regulations about the structure of bands.

In 1964, the number of army bands was reduced to seven, with the intention that the New Zealand Army Band replace the smaller part-time units with a central band.^[194] In 2012, nine of the then existing twelve New Zealand military bands were disbanded for reasons of economy.^[195] A single full-time band is now retained for each of the three armed services making up theNew Zealand Defence Force: theNew Zealand Army Band, theRoyal New Zealand Air Force Band, and theRoyal New Zealand Navy Band.

Although theNew Zealand Defence Force now formally maintains only these three military band services, there is also one (that of theRoyal New Zealand Artillery) which survives as a voluntary unit separate from the regular armed services. As of 2024, thisAuckland-basedBand of the Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery is the oldest surviving military band in the country, having been founded in 1864.^[196][197]

ThePapua New Guinea Defence Force raised a platoon-sized military band in 2016, with the assistance of music personnel from Japan.^[198] The PNGDF Band traces its traditions and practices back to formations in other Commonwealth bands, specifically its former rulers, the United Kingdom and Australia; the latter of which Papua New Guinea was a former administrative territory of. Up until 1975, the Australian Army Band Corps, as well as other military bands of the Australian Defence Force provided musical support for theRoyal Pacific Islands Regiment, which is still based on the island to this day.

Some military bands fall under the command of a certain political or military organization such asNATO or theEuropean Union. Other military bands belong to a certain country however recruit most of its members from foreign countries in itsarea of responsibility (such as theUnited States Naval Forces Europe Band).

TheSHAPE International Band is the official military band for theSupreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) ofNATO. Officially, it is based out of theSupreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe inMons,Belgium and functions as a public relations unit that represents the SACEUR and NATO as a whole. Although being mostly composed of musicians of theUnited States Armed Forces, it also consists of musicians from other countries in the alliance.^[199][200]

The North American Air Defense (NORAD) Command Band was a military band sponsored by theUnited States Air Force and was composed of members from theUS Army, Navy, and Air Force as well as theRoyal Canadian Air Force. It was created in 1959 and operated as a 90-member touring orchestra. Notable members include Scottish-Canadian musician Bobby Herriot.^[201][202] In 1991, the band was re-designated as "America's Band in Blue" before being merged with the 15th Air Force Band of the Golden West in 1994, providing the premise for what is today theUnited States Air Force Band of the Golden West.^[203]

The International Military Music Society (IMMS) is a public organization based in theUnited Kingdom that is dedicated to encourage interest in military bands, their activities and history internationally. The society has branches and members in 38 countries.^[204]

• March (music)
• Martial music
• Military drums
• Ruffles and flourishes
• Marching band
• Mounted band
• Police band (music)
• Corps of drums
• Pipe band
• Fanfare band
• Drum and bugle corps (classic)

• Jack, Kopstein (1992).When the Band Begins to Play : a History of Military Music in Canada. Apple Jack Publishers.ISBN 978-0-9695836-0-8.
• Pearson, Ian (2004).The Heritage Of Canadian Military Music. Vanwell Pub Ltd.ISBN 978-1-55125-050-2.
• Kopstein, Jack; Pearson, Ian (1994).The History of the Marches in Canada: Regimental/Branch/Corps - With a Special Section, Marches of the United Kingdom. Privately Printed.ISBN 978-0-9698257-0-8.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toMilitary bands.

• Military Music in American and European Traditions, Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History,The Metropolitan Museum of Art
• Brassmusic.Ru Russian Brass Community(in Russian)
• German Military Music(in German)

• Types of musical groups
• Wind bands
• Marching bands
• Military bands
• Military supporting service occupations
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