Marching Percussion

The original instrumentation of the fife and drum corps during the Revolutionary War was simply a field snare drum slung over the shoulder of a soldier. Fifes were augmented by brass instruments and the percussion expanded from field snare drums to include bass drum and cymbals in military performing ensembles. Marching bands came into being in the mid-1800s at Mid-West universities and with the passage of time; the military influence has led way to varying styles of pageantry. The Drum & Bugle Corps movement has heavily influenced most public school and university marching bands. Originally these groups were sponsored by VFW posts (Veterans of the First World War) and consisted of marching snare drums, tenor drums, bass drums and cymbals. This has evolved over the years to high tensioned snare drums, multi toms - called tenors, tonal bass drums, cymbals and a "pit" or front-line percussion ensemble, consisting of concert percussion instruments, including timpani, keyboard percussion, accessory percussion, and sound effects to enhance the score. Repertory no longer consists of military-style marches, but has expanded to include everything from symphonic to popular music.