March, March, March March, March, March Marches are an important style of music that has been around for centuries. The first marches were military pieces intended to accompany and regulate the footsteps of soldiers. The style and format of marches were developed and perfected in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. There are many types of marches today, including those written for weddings, funerals, ceremonies, sporting events, and circuses.
All marches share some characteristics.
Every march has a strong rhythm and a meter of two or four beats per measure. Of the 136 marches that Sousa wrote, over 50 are still played by wind ensembles worldwide. After the turn of the century, Sousa was joined by Karl L. King, Henry Fillmore, Fred Jewell, and Edwin Goldman. The march speaks to a fundamental rhythm in the human organization and is answered. I can speak with confidence because I have seen men profounly moved by a few measures of a really inspired march.