(October 2006)

Sidney Basney and Bolton's Instruments of War
by Bolton Town Historian Hans DePold

        The drum is not a "pretty" instrument; it is an instrument of war. The drum is simple, prehistoric, and used in various forms and combinations in nearly every culture. The needs of extended military marches, encampment discipline, and warfare encouraged the development of fife and drum music in Europe in the 1400s. The American patriots and the British Army faced off against each other while directing their military maneuvers with this music. Today, fife and drum music is closely associated with the birth of America.
        The heaviest concentration of fife and drum corps happens to be in Connecticut. There are only four fife and drum corps in the United States that continue as part of actual military organizations--one is the Second Company Governor's Footguard in Connecticut. The oldest actual continuing military cavalry in America is Sheldon's Light Horse (Dragoons), which was formed in Connecticut during the Revolution. Bolton's David Loda and Jamie Klim are both Dragoons. We had both the Footguard and the Dragoons present in Bolton at our recent Washington-Rochambeau Heritage Day celebration on June 24.
        A regiment of 800 to 1,000 men was just about the largest military unit that could be commanded by a single voice. It would typically have 16 to 20 fifers and drummers who sometimes "banded together" to form a regimental band. The musicians provided music for the army on the march and to broadcast when to get up, breakfast, assemble, lunch, sup, and lights-out. The "Tattoo" was a signal for the taverns to turn off the beer spigots so the soldiers would retire for the night. It consisted of the fifes and drums parading up and down the streets. They would conclude the Tattoo with a beautiful hymn.
        Fife and drum signals were used to position the troops on and off the battlefield. Musical signals were given to make troop formations turn in various ways, halt, march, extend, and retract lines. An important daily duty was the Parade, where troop strength and equipment could be inspected, awards and punishments conferred, orders could be given, and formal announcements issued. Fife and drum music continued to be used by the American military into the American Civil War. But the increased scale of battles required a louder instrument, so the bugle replaced the fife.
        Drum competitions were held after the Civil War. Sidney Basney, the lead drummer for the Bolton Drum Corps in the late 1890s, was a black man who could beat everybody of his time. Yet curiously he received seven second places and never won a first prize. In 1895 the economy was beginning to pull out of a depression when on August 28 the 10th annual convention of the Connecticut Fifers and Drummers Association was held in Meriden. Fourteen corps participated. Once again, Basney, now 61 years old, painted the afternoon breezes with his drum cadences. Hardened Civil War veterans were entranced by his drumming skills and brushed aside a tear or two. Again, people agreed he was probably the best in America but the judges gave him the second place. How could that be? The judges sat behind a solid wall and could not see who was playing. The names of the contestants were not told to the judges. Use of rudiments (prescribed exercises) allowed for the objective comparisons of skill. Yet Bolton's Sidney Basney still got second place!
        Battlefield commanders wanted short, simple drum codes that were easily understood and to the point. Basney created music with grace notes, flams, and taps... and he held back, "sweetening" the attacks of the prominent, left-hand lead, and Seven-Stroke Roll. But such phrasing was not militarily useful because openly spaced notes were best understood in battle. No, the judges did not discriminate against Sidney Basney. First place went to the most militarily useful presentation. Second place went to the most skilled and beautiful presentation because the drum is not a "pretty" instrument; it is an instrument of war.
        For more information on Sidney Basney and drum music see: www.cadre-online.ca/images/binder1.pdf.

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