Evening star., 1935-09-29
THE attitude of Navy officials to-
ward music has changed since

ward music mas changed since
Vice Admiral D. D. Taylor.
u commandant of the Naval
Academy at Annapolis in 1867, issued
an order that read:
''Midshipman Thompson, first class,
who plays abominably on a fish horn,
will oblige me by going outside limits
when he wants to practice or he will
hnd himself coming out Of the little
end of the horn"
Precedent and custom being what
they are in military circles, perhaps
1t is not astonishing that 1t was So
years later that the Navy Department
in June, 1895. authorized the estab-
lishment of the United States Navy
School of Music, Navy Yard, Wash
ington, D. c., under the jurisdiction
of Lieut.. Charles Benter, leader of
the Navy Band.
This school has been a dream of
Lieut. Benter for many years. He Or
ganized the Navy Band in 1919 and
has been its leader since. He is the
first musician in the Navy to attain
the rank of officer In the midst Of
his routine duties he has composed
marches. potpourris and fantasies,
among the most popular of which. are,
"Strike Up the Band, Here Comes the
Sailor
The Navy Band in Washington is a
full symphonic band of rs pieces. The
excellence of its performance has been
recognized in many ways. President
Harding took the band on his trip to
Alaska in 1928. For several years the
group has been broadcasting twice a
week over a national hook-up. 1t is
in much demand for official gathe:-
ings and functions in the Capital and
for concerts in the Summer time.
Success in developing the Navy Band.
coupled with a study of conditions
under which ship bands we're formed
and operated, led Lieut.. Benter to lay
plans for Navy School Of Music n
Washington in which to train muSi-
clans for ships and shore stations.
MO MATTER what ones theory
about music for the Navy may be,
one will agree that if there are to be
ship bands they may as we'll be ex-
pertly trained and well balanced, as
reminiscent of the German street
bands of the mauve decade. The Navy
theory of music aboard ship is that
it strengthens morale, accompanies
naval movements and routines, pro-
vides entertainment for the crews and
shore stations and has a definite cul-
tural value.
That there have been excellent ship
bands in the past is despite, rather
than because of, the system IN vogue
in forming them. To organize band
survey of the crew is made. Men,
bers of the crew who play instruments
are listed and the most experienced
musician is appointed bandmaster.
Bands in the past have been COM
posed of II pieces. These should pe
balanced to produce proper results.
The balance is indicated by the Navy
schools requirement for a 20-piece
band, which will be the standard band
of the future. 1t will have two E fat
clarinets, one piccolo, two B fiat
clarinets, one E fiat saxophone. one 5
fat tenor saxophone, four B fiat cor
nets, two horns, two trombones, one
baritone, two basses and two drums.
Under the volunteer system one
ship crew might yield plenty of saxo-
phones and no BASES, many cornets
anG no clarinets, all drums and no
tubas. The bandmaster had to do his
best with the material at hand. AS
men passed out of the service and new
enliStments came in the equilibrium
was often changed. so that to keep
a band up to well-balanced compile
ment was frequently impossible. All
this will be changed when the new
school begins to function. The requisite
number of players will be trained in
all Of the instruments necessary to
make perfectly balanced bands.
THE Navy School of Music will
accommodate 80 students, 40 of
whom will be graduated each year.
The equivalent of two full ship bands
will leave yearly to be assigned to
ships.
The demand for musicians can be
seen from the number Of ships and
other units that rate bands. Forty
six battleships now have 17-piece
bands, and this number will be in
creased to 20 pieces, the new standard,
as soon as possible.