Taps Throughout America 2007

[sailordoc]

For anyone who may be interested, the Department of Veterans Affairs and Bugles Across America will be conducting Taps Throughout America on Armed Forces Day in May, 2007. One of the main reasons for the event is to alert people to the critical shortage of Buglers needed for funerals with Military Honors. The project will attempt to have buglers play Taps at all National Cemeteries, State Veterans Cemeteries and VA medical facilities in areas distant from a National Cemetery. BAA needs Project Directors who will work with the VA's contact person to coordinate individual events. Visit the BAA website at http://www.buglesacrossamerica.org for more info.

I run the Military Salute Project at http://condocat.home.att.net and have volunteered to coordinate the event at Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis. We have started to post information about the project in our Military Salute Reference Forum at http://militarysalute.proboards45.com/index.cgi?board=national

Shortly after Labor Day, we're going to begin contacting Minnesota groups who might be interested in providing Buglers, Pipers, Color/Honor Guards, etc. I would very much appreciate it if everyone begins passing the word. If you are a bugler, a piper, or are a member of a Color/Honor Guard, please consider volunteering to participate in Taps Throughout America. Thank you!

[MineralMan]

There is a shortage of buglers. That is a fact.

What is also a fact is that there is a first chair trumpet player in every high school band in the United States. In fact, there's a whole row of first trumpets in the same bands.

My recommendation is, and has always been, that veterans organizations recruit these young men to play Taps at military funerals.

They can do it just fine. Taps is easy to play for any competent trumpet player, and the opportunity for these high school students to honor our fallen soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines, is a great one.

For many of these young musicians, there would be great honor in playing Taps at such solemn occasions.

Just one ex-high-school-band musician (not trumpet, although I can do a good rendition of Taps on the trumpet).

[kcmt01]

Thanks for the heads-up! I just volunteered to play.

[Woodstock]

Civil Air Patrol may also be a good place to find young people who would be proud to be of additional service.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

Taps is easy to play for any competent trumpet player, and the opportunity for these high school students to honor our fallen soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines, is a great one.

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BUMP! and please ping

[sailordoc]

We are now posting the following information in Military and Veterans-related forums. Please feel free to copy it and re-post it, especially on boards that have Minnesota members ...

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EchoTaps Worldwide is a joint project of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Bugles Across America scheduled for Armed Forces Day in May, 2007 (Saturday, May 19).

The event is intended to increase awareness about VA programs for America’s Veterans as well as the availability of BAA Buglers to play “live” Taps at Veteran's funerals. Buglers will render a cascade of Taps at National Cemeteries, State Veterans Cemeteries and American Armed Forces Cemeteries overseas.

I have volunteered to be the BAA Project Director for the event in Minnesota. With the assistance of those who help me with the Military Salute Project, I will be coordinating EchoTaps Worldwide at Fort Snelling National Cemetery.

We are looking for a wide range of Volunteers, including Buglers and Pipers, Color/Honor Guard units, and Staff personnel for logistics. We have detailed information posted in the Military Salute Reference Forum (see below).

There are actually two parts to the event. The first part is a rehearsal exercise requiring 20 Buglers to assemble at Fort Snelling National Cemetery on Veterans Day 2006 to play Taps immediately after the scheduled events so we can get an idea how to best position Buglers for the Armed Forces Day 2007 program.

Buglers who volunteer to play on Veterans Day 2006 will receive a certificate from the Department of Veterans Affairs. All those who volunteer for the "main event" on Saturday May 19, 2007 will receive a pin from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

We have started a special section in our Military Salute Reference Forum to post details about the national event as well as the Minnesota effort. You do not have to register or log-in to access the Forum. Please click on the following links for more information:

Military Salute Reference Forum (scroll down the page to find the EchoTaps section): http://militarysalute.proboards45.com/index.cgi

Or, you can use the following links to access each part of the section directly:

EchoTaps Worldwide General Information
http://militarysalute.proboards45.com/index.cgi?board=national

EchoTaps at Fort Snelling National Cemetery
http://militarysalute.proboards45.com/index.cgi?board=fortsnelling

If you would like to volunteer to participate at Fort Snelling National Cemetery on Veterans Day 2006 (Buglers only) and/or Armed Forces Day 2007, please contact me at condocat@att.net and be sure to type EchoTaps Worldwide in the Subject line. Include your first and last name and your city/town so we can post the information in the “Confirmed Volunteers” section of our Forum. Thank you!

Jeff Seeber - Woodbury, MN
Military Salute Project – http://condocat.home.att.net

[El Gato]

My recommendation is, and has always been, that veterans organizations recruit these young men to play Taps at military funerals.

A lot of those "first trumpets" are girls. But girls can play taps as well as men, they do it in the military.

Both my daughters played in the brass section, but not trumpet, baritone/euphonium in the case of the one who stuck with it through high school, trombone for the other one.

[MineralMan]

"A lot of those "first trumpets" are girls. But girls can play taps as well as men, they do it in the military.

Both my daughters played in the brass section, but not trumpet, baritone/euphonium in the case of the one who stuck with it through high school, trombone for the other one."

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Very true. I'll tell you a funny story. Even though I never actually played any brass instruments, I could do all the bugle calls on any of them.

At our school, back in the early 60s, one of the band trumpeters played "To the Colors" for the flag-raising every morning.

I got an idea. I got all the sousaphone and tuba players together and we all practiced "To the Colors" on tubas until we got it absolutely perfect. A couple of trombone players and baritone players also grabbed sousaphones and joined us.

Once we had it down, we showed up at the flag-raising and played "To the Colors" two octaves below the normal pitch. Not a mistake was made.

Well, I got called into the principal's office. He started to chew me out for disrepecting the flag. I explained to him that a bugle and a tuba were essentially the same thing, and that we had practiced a long time to pull this off. No disrespect was intended.

He got it. After that, the flag-raising was accompanied by a whole range of brasswinds. Just about every brass player in the band took a turn at "To the Colors."

BTW, it's not the easiest bugle call on the planet...it has a long range and some relatively fast sections. I can still play it on any brass instrument.