Edited sentence: It usually involved an introduction played p or pp, imitating bugle calls or drums, then a theme played a little bit louder, then another very loud theme, then a return to the first theme gradually dying away and finishing pp, ppp, or even pppp.The "patrol" format was popular in the second half of the 19th century and a number of compositions are so entitled "Turkish Patrol", "Ethiopian" Patrol", "Owl's Patrol", "British Patrol", "Arab Patrol", and many more.The format was intended to represent a patrol approaching, passing, and fading into the distance.The original piano version of "American Patrol" follows this scheme exactly