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Royal Corps of Army Music

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The Royal Corps of Army Music
Cap badge of the Royal Corps of Army Music
Active1994–Present
Country United Kingdom
Branch British Army
Size753 regular musicians
HeadquartersGibraltar Barracks, Minley
Motto(s)Unity Through Excellence
MarchThe Music Makers (quick)
Esprit De Corps (slow)
Commanders
Colonel in ChiefSophie, Duchess of Edinburgh
Colonel CommandantMajor General David Eastman
Honorary ColonelRobert Rinder
Arms of the British Army
Combat Arms
Combat Support Arms
Combat Services

The Royal Corps of Army Music (RCAM, widely known by its former acronym CAMUS) is a Corps of the British Army dedicated to the provision and promotion of military music.

History

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The formation of the Corps of Army Music was triggered by a defence review known as Options for Change in 1991 and followed a 1993 announcement by the Chief of the General Staff that the number of regular army bands was to be reduced from 69 to 30. The period saw the number of personnel fall from 2,000 to 1,100, with Lieutenant Colonel Roger Tomlinson of the Royal Military School of Music describing it as "a gloomy time for those of us in the military music business".[1] The Queen signed a warrant on 13 August 1994 to allow the formation of the Corps of Army Music. All regular army officers who were Directors of Music in the various corps and regiments and all regular army musicians would transfer to the Corps of Army Music - now the newest and most junior corps in the army - on 1 September 1994.[2]

The home of the corps was established at Kneller Hall in Twickenham, a site that already encompassed the Royal Military School of Music. The school was founded by the Duke of Cambridge, soon after his appointment as Commander in Chief in 1857, when the first class of military musicians was formed, a 'Class of Music'. The establishment was retitled as The Royal Military School of Music by Queen Victoria in 1887.[2]

The Future Army Structure review of 2004 saw the bands of the Regular Army reduced from 30 to 23.[3] In 2019 the number of Regular Army bands was further reduced to 14.[4]

2019 restructuring

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In 2019, the Corps of Army Music was restructured with a number of bands being co-located and re-named.[5] In a process of 'Military Music Optimization', the regular Army band laydown was adjusted to enable several smaller bands to train and perform as larger bands for more significant Army events: 'Co-locating 11 of the smaller bands in three major garrisons and Sandhurst has increased the flexibility of CAMUS to perform at a huge breadth of events without compromising any of the traditional bands that have been performing for many years'.[6]

Renaming and move

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During a visit to Kneller Hall in December 2020, the Earl and Countess of Wessex announced the Corps of Army Music would be renamed the Royal Corps of Army Music from January 2021.[7] This change was formally marked with a new title presentation in January 2021 with the Countess in attendance.[8]

In September 2021, the Corps Headquarters moved to Gibraltar Barracks in Minley, whilst the Royal Military School of Music moved to HMS Nelson alongside the Royal Marines School of Music.[9]

Bands of the Corps

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The 14 constituent bands of the Corps are as follows:[10]

In addition to providing personnel for all the above bands, the Corps of Army Music provides 'technical support' for the Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas, based at Shorncliffe Camp, Folkestone, which is separately constituted.[14] Other bands may be formed from time to time by drawing together personnel from different ensembles; for example the British Army Brass Band (founded by two Army Bandmasters in 2007) is 'made up of players across all bands of the Army, Regulars and Reservists'.[15]

Army Reserve bands

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All Army Reserve bands are not part of RCAM, reporting to their respective regimental/battalion headquarters, and provide around 30% of all the Army's musical output. The current Army Reserve bands, as of April 2021, are as follows:[16]

Army Volunteer bands

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All Army Volunteer Bands serve in a voluntary capacity and have no army reserves commitment but still perform for various mess functions, church parades and civic functions, supporting their regiment and the wider regimental family. The uniform worn is that of the regular regiment which is headquartered in the Tower of London.[18]

  • The Band and Drum Corps of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (Lancashire)[19]
  • The Band of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (Warwickshire)[18]

Order of precedence

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Preceded by Order of Precedence Succeeded by

Footnotes

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  1. ^ "TRADITION : Stop the Music! British Budget Cuts Out Many Military Bands". Los Angeles Times. 1 May 1993.
  2. ^ a b "Corps of Army Music: history". Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  3. ^ "Army's axe to fall on the marching bands". The Telegraph. 12 December 2004. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  4. ^ "British Army Music". MoD. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  5. ^ "Forthcoming Events". Friends of The Museum of Army Music. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  6. ^ "Bands of the Corps". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  7. ^ "A new Royal title for The Corps of Army Music". Ministry of Defence. 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
  8. ^ "New Title Presentation | Royal Corps of Army Music | British Army". Youtube.
  9. ^ British Army, Soldier Magazine: August 2021, p. 11
  10. ^ "British Army Music". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  11. ^ "Watch Kneller Hall – A Final Farewell Right Here". Forces Network. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  12. ^ Harry Adams (9 September 2021). "Army Engineers To Return To Royal Duties After Nearly 30 Years". Forces Network. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  13. ^ RRF Regimental Handbook, pp. 14–15.
  14. ^ Corps of Army Music facebook page
  15. ^ "British Army Brass Band makes Major return". 4barsrest. 11 May 2018. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  16. ^ "FOI(A) regarding Army Reserve Bands" (PDF). What do they know?. 28 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  17. ^ "71 (Yeomanry) Signal Regiment". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  18. ^ a b "The Regimental Handbook" (PDF). The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (5th, 6th, 7th, 20th). 2019. p. 15. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  19. ^ "Home". The Band & Corp of Drums of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

References

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Corps of Army Music.
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