Regimental Bands

[Manassas 1861]

How was a regimental band organized, and what ranks could musicians have?

 

[Sowbelly and Hardtack]

Musician (rank) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

"The rank of Musician was a position held by military band members, particularly during the American Civil War. The rank was just below Corporal, and just above Private. In some units it was more or less equal to the rank of Private."

 

[Sowbelly and Hardtack]

How Civil War Regimental bands were organized.

The Civil War Bands | The American Brass Band Movement | Articles and Essays | Band Music from the Civil War Era | Digital Collections | Library of Congress

Colored lithograph [Detail] from "Zouave Grand Parade March," Duett for Four Hands, composed by S.D.S. (Philadelphia: Lee & Walker, 1861). Music Division. The colorful uniform of the Zouaves d'Afrique was imitated by many regiments, Northern and Southern, at the outbreak of the Civil War. Only a...

www.loc.gov

 

[Sowbelly and Hardtack]

Civil War regimental bands: banned and disbanded?

In 1862, Congress passed a law dissolving all regimental bands. So most of them went away. For a while. Regiments that wanted music would not be denied.

music.allpurposeguru.com

 

[Dan Kohli]

There were from 16 to 24 musicians for the regimental band besides the two principal musicians. Although the musicians of the band were paid more than the privates and company musicians, they still did not have any more authority than the previous two positions, and could be drawn from these ranks. The principal musicians did have more authority and duties, such as supervising the band and the company musicians, and the instruct the musicians in their assigned instrument and duties. Some regiments were allowed a drum-major who could act as the leader of the band. The chief trumpeter was in charge of the musicians in cavalry regiments. The ranks in command of the band can be confusing, convoluted and dependent upon the type and who organized the regiment.
When the volunteer regimental bands were dissolved in 1862 they were replaced with a 16 man band attached to the brigade staff.
I apologize for adding to the confusion.

References
Captain Kautz, August V. Customs of Service for Non-Commissioned Officers and Soldiers. Pp. 31-34

https://www.11thovc.com/_files/ugd/0d3674_a9349839c81b4115ac8c728bc3790440.pdf

1861 Revised Regulations for the Army of the United States page 19.

https://www.11thovc.com/_files/ugd/0d3674_a7e008b9c9234cd3988fd599a585b895.pdf

 

[Claude Bauer]

How was a regimental band organized, and what ranks could musicians have?

This is the only picture I've seen of a regimental band with someone on cymbals! There may be others, but it's rare. (I guess, "Needs more cowbell" wasn't a thing then either...)

 

[Chris Troiano]

This is the only picture I've seen of a regimental band with someone on cymbals! There may be others, but it's rare. (I guess, "Needs more cowbell" wasn't a thing then either...)

View attachment 499908

Here's a few more pictures of cymbal players

 

[SgtDarby8OVI]

This is the 104th Ohio band. Formed in August 1862, it kept its band when the officers contributed to pay for the instruments. It was formed and trained in northern Kentucky during the fall of 62 and went with the regiment to Knoxville in the summer of 1863. While in Knoxville, it engaged in a battle of the bands with the Jack Leland band out of Cleveland, OH, which had been brought to Knoxville by the 103rd Ohio's colonel Jack Casement. This photo shows the band with the regimental mascot, Harvey. The drum is in the Massillon Museum in Stark County, Ohio.

 

[Sowbelly and Hardtack]

Civil War bandsmen pictured with cornets and saxhorns.

A gallery of 42 images of Civil War bandsmen is focused on musicians pictured with cornets and saxhorns.

www.militaryimagesmagazine-digital.com

"Bandsmen: Musicians who inspired esprit de corps and patriotic fervor with their horns"

 

[Sowbelly and Hardtack]

This is the 104th Ohio band. Formed in August 1862, it kept its band when the officers contributed to pay for the instruments. It was formed and trained in northern Kentucky during the fall of 62 and went with the regiment to Knoxville in the summer of 1863. While in Knoxville, it engaged in a battle of the bands with the Jack Leland band out of Cleveland, OH, which had been brought to Knoxville by the 103rd Ohio's colonel Jack Casement. This photo shows the band with the regimental mascot, Harvey. The drum is in the Massillon Museum in Stark County, Ohio.
View attachment 508184

@SgtDarby8OVI do you by chance have a photo of the 104th Ohio drum?

 

[Sowbelly and Hardtack]

https://www.cantonrep.com/story/news/local/massillon/2013/01/07/the-monday-after-massillon-museum/42227974007/

 

[RedRover]

Every infantry company had at least two "musicians" among its enlisted men. These were drummers and fifers generally. In battalion, they were combined into the "field music."

The regimental band was separate, and attached to the "field and staff" of the regiment.

Frank Rauscher of Collis' Zouaves (114th PA) recalled:

Rauscher says he and his band-mates enlisted as privates in Company A of Collis' Zouaves, and did guard duty, camp duty, etc. He stated that by Antietam they were the only band left with their division. He was a private on initial enlistment, but mustered out as "Principal Musician."

From the 1863 edition of the US Army regulations:

From Casey's 1862 infantry tactics, a regimental band formed behind the field music in line of battle.

Musicians when present at the front, were generally employed in battle as stretcher bearers, etc. From a reference to the 6th New Jersey Volunteers:

During 1864, the musicians of the Union 2nd Corps were employed for hospital purposes generally...

 

[19thOhio]

@SgtDarby8OVI do you by chance have a photo of the 104th Ohio drum?

I have a photo of the drum. I check my files and put it in this thread.

 

[19thOhio]

 

[19thOhio]

 

[4thMichigan]

This was written by Johnson White, a member of the Fourth Michigan Infantry's Regimental Band on November 5, 1861:
"The band aren't playing, and they play nice, but I get so sick of music — that is, band or field music — that I do wish that I never would hear another note. It is nothing but rumble jumble all of the time, night and day. In the first at sunrise, we pile out and slam off reveille. Then in about 16 minutes the officer of the day will cry out, "Boys, first call!" for company drill & in about an hour after, beat a call for guard mounting. Then a little while [later], beat a call for Battalion Drill. Then, when they get at that, the band, or the field music is at it all of the time. Now you can tell how much time that there is not music playing."

 

[4thMichigan]

This is one of my favorite images in my personal Fourth Michigan Infantry collection. It's not only a neat image, but all of the members of the Reorganized Fourth Michigan's Band were identified by one of the band members in period ink on the verso. According to him, the short member in the center of the photo is Private Edmund Dodge, who was about 16 years of age, when this photo was taken in San Antonio, Texas, in 1866. But back in April of 1861, Ed had enlisted as a fifer in the original Fourth Michigan Infantry at the age of 12. As you can see from the photo, he was playing a horn a few years later.

 

[19thOhio]

This is one of my favorite images in my personal Fourth Michigan Infantry collection. It's not only a neat image, but all of the members of the Reorganized Fourth Michigan's Band were identified by one of the band members in period ink on the verso. According to him, the short member in the center of the photo is Private Edmund Dodge, who was about 16 years of age, when this photo was taken in San Antonio, Texas, in 1866. But back in April of 1861, Ed had enlisted as a fifer in the original Fourth Michigan Infantry at the age of 12. As you can see from the photo, he was playing a horn a few years later.

View attachment 508233

 

[SgtDarby8OVI]

View attachment 508230

Thanks for sharing this. The 104th was in Knoxville in the fall of 1863, not 1862 as the text reports. Is this a museum guidebook? I have not seen it before.

 

[19thOhio]

I took the photos and am totally responsible for the text. That was early in my C W interest and I was still working out some geography and chronology. Thanks for pointing that out.