The Central Band Of The Royal Air Force
Director of Music: Squadron Leader G Bain BA LRAM ARCM MIL RAF
Bandmasters: Warrant Officer Gil Singleton and Warrant Officer Frans J de-Leuw LRSM LTCL ALCM
Band Sergeants: Flight Sergeant Geoff Lawrence and Flight Sergeant Richard Skelton ARCM
Drum Majors: Chief Technician Richard Joyce and Chief Technician Terry Gardner
Music has been a part of the Royal Air Force since 1912, when the Service existed as the Royal Flying Corps. In 1918 The Royal Air Force was formed from the latter and Dr Walford Davies was appointed as the first Organising Director of Music. By 1920 the Central Band of the Royal Air Force and the Band of the Royal Air Force College had been formed.
The Central Band has several notable achievements of interest in its history. On 22nd April 1922 the Central Band was chosen to be the first ever military band to broadcast on BBC radio from Marconi House. This early lead has never been surrendered, and to date no other band has performed on BBC radio more frequently. The Central Band was also the first military band to make a long-playing gramophone record. In April 1955 HMV released a recording by the Central Band of what is to this day the most requested piece in their repertoire - Eric Coates' music for the film 'The Dambusters'. This recording rapidly climbed to number one in the hit parade of the time. More recently the Central Band received the distinction of being the first band outside the U.S.A. to be awarded the 'John Philip Sousa Citation for Musical excellence'.
All RAF musicians are trained to provide medical support in times of war. During the Gulf conflict four out of the five bands established at that time were deployed to various locations in the Middle East, where the musicians were given a variety of tasks, from medical orderlies and stretcher bearers to the everyday running and guarding of war hospital sites. While all of this was taking place history was again being made when the Central Band became the first British service band to employ professionally trained female musicians on the same terms as the men. Just over a year later, on 12th September 1992, these same women broke a 155-year tradition by becoming the first women ever to take part in the Changing of the Guard ceremony at Buckingham palace.
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