Band of the Grenadier Guards


The Band of the Grenadier Guards is one of the bands in the British Army.

History

In 1685 Charles II allowed the band to maintain 12 "hautbois" players. His death in 1685 was so significant for the band that until the Second World War, the Bass Drummer, wore a black armband in mourning of the king's death.
The Band was given the freedom of the City of Lincoln on 8 May 2008.
The "British Grenadiers March” is one of the most recognizable and memorable tunes in the world, part of Britain's musical heritage. One of the band's admirers during the 18th century was George Frideric Handel. He demonstrated this by presenting the march from Scipio to the regiment before he included it in his opera of that name when it was first performed in 1726. George II gave Handel the task of scoring the Music for the Royal Fireworks, most commonly performed with strings, for the king's own musicians, who were wind players from his foot guards. Handel would have likely come into contact with musicians from the Grenadier Guards during the first performance at Vauxhall Gardens in 1749.
in 2019.

Band membership duties

Musicians currently in the band have secondary roles in the British Army as chemical decontamination assistants, medics and drivers.
The band is based at Wellington Barracks in St James's, London.

Key personnel

There are several ensembles within the Band of the Grenadier Guards:
Other ensembles include:
The Band of the Grenadier Guards plays regularly for many events. Some of these occasions that are most famous are listed below, although this is not a comprehensive list.
The band also performs at other non-military events such as Henley Regatta, Royal Ascot, the FA Cup Final and international rugby matches and opened the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester. The Band of the Grenadier Guards also visits schools to take part in musical concerts and workshops.

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