Posted on 06/12/2004 7:52:58 PM PDT by Cannoneer No. 4
:-))
Very informative thread. Thanks for posting this info.
A friend recently commented that my last ex would have taken my sense of humor
if it had been worth anything.
Some info here about the school of music, which is located at the Little Creek Amphibious Base in Virginia Beach, VA.
As to choral groups, I believe that is more voluntary because I am not aware of a specific MOS designation. I am, however, willing to be corrected by superior knowledge.
Good article, thanks for posting it. The only incident I have heard of while firing blanks was the M4 tank at Ft Knox having a roll of pink TP stuffed down the barrel. I guess it was quite spectacular for retreat that evening.
I had to audition for the Fifth Army band to be assigned there. Upon completion of basic training, I was sent to the U.S.Navy School of Music at little Creek Virgirnia which is the equivilent of a three year colledge level music school condensed into six months. I came in with the highest incoming audition score for a tuba player with a 3.29 out of a possible 4.0.
An assignment to a military band is a permanent assignment. However, Army protocol at that time, mid 60's, was to rotate personnel every three years to prevent stagnation in any location. Transfers were always to other band units.
If a person was assigned to one of the 'special' bands, ie The Army Band, West point Band, the assignment was considered more permanent and transfers were less frequent.
Each 'Army' 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, etc had what was considered to be the 'headquarters' band where the band master also had oversight for any other bands in that 'army'. The Fifth Army band was a headquarters band. The headquarters band usually was able to get the 'pick of the crop' from each band within it's area and had a higher authorized strength than the smaller bands within it's area.
Being assigned to a band is easy duty, but still no guarantee of not being in combat. I am aware of at least 8 bands being in Viet Nam during that war and of several band members being killed there. Often when a band is transferred into a combat zone, they assume routine patrol and other duties like any other infantry unit.
When bands are playing outdoors in a live performance, it is hard to record and pick up all voices. Even indoors such as the Natonal Cathedral, where there is a lot of echo present, a clear recording is difficult to obtain. When I was with the fifth, we used several microphones and amplified speakers to distribute the sound while playing outdoors concerts.
Having said that, I was most impressed by the Air Force band that played the Hymns at the gravesite. They were playing continously for a very long time and still possessed a very nice rounded sound. They sounded extremely good for an outdoors performance.
Owned by a 5th Co. member, the bronze heavy 12-pounder shown in this sepia-tinted photograph was originally a Confederate artillery piece. At the end of the War, it was surrendered to the Federal Army and sent to Washington, D.C. as one of the "spoils of war", where it went into storage. The Federal Army stored it in the basement of Ford's Theater, the same theater in which John Wilkes Booth assassinated Federal President Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865. It sat in storage there for more than 120 years before finally being sold as surplus.
The photograph records the first time since the end of the War Between the States that this specific Confederate piece had been fired. The last man to pull the lanyard on that cannon prior to Private Cangelosi is unknown to us by name; but it was a Confederate private who last stood at that position with that cannon.
When the bronze heavy 12-pounder fires, it rings like an old plantation bell. The resemblance to the sound of the deep, resonant tones of a plantation bell is even more striking when a live round is fired from the cannon.
I was always in awe of the British gun competitions, where
the teams have to dismantle the gun(I don't remember what kind, small maybe 3 pounder?), cross a ditch, go over a wall, through a door way, set up and fire, then go back and set up and fire. Archaic and a good way to lose a finger or two, generally appeared to be something in the way of casualties no matter how well it went.
I have seen the one in the picture at several reenactments and we even pulled it a couple of times. The cannon I owned is now in a massive collection of cannon located in Clear Lake, Wisconsin.
I am limited in my knowledge of artillery but my area of expertise is the horse drawn equipment of 1840-1865. I have horse artillery equipment that I donated in museums at Ft. Leavenworth (Ringgold's equipment), Fort Sill, and Savannah, Tennessee.
Ironically, years ago horse drawn artillery equipment was in barns all over the country and recognizing this, I traded my vet fees for the old equipment if the farmer would trade. It was a gold mine for about ten years until I exhausted the "mines".
A real close friend of mine, Doug Ray Kidd, just recently redesigned the saddles and tack for the Old Guard. The old McClellans were too vertical and did not fit well upon the backs of the modern horses and pathology was developing in the lumbar regions of the horses. He refitted the horses with McClellan looking saddles with the bars wider and better suited for the modern horses. Also, over the years the Old Guard had lost some knowledge about all of the equipment necessary to effectively pull a caisson. Straps from the hames to limber pole had been "lost" and several other Mordecai safety features had been left out resulting in a couple of funeral runaways....(Can one imagine at a funeral the caisson with the casket running away out of control...talk about a cluster...)They have fixed the problems at the Old Guard...it was nice to see reenactors and the current Old Guard get together to make the funeral caissons look and perform well.
Robertson's (Dent's) Artillery Battery
The nature of the ground over which the battle was fought did not admit of the free use of artillery, but Dent's battery, which was attached to my brigade, followed it closely during the morning attack, firing, however, only a few shots, but in the afternoon rendered signal service, fighting at the time with other commands on my right. But the officers deserve special mention for their conduct.
FIELD GUNNERS: The annual competition at the Royal Tournament gained a reputation as the hardest team sport in the world.
Royal Navy's Field Gun Competition
Thanks, I had seen this on cable a few years ago, just
the most amazing athletics and spirit I've ever seen.
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