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88 MILITARY MUSIC AND ITS STORY.
perform on the instrument at Dublin, and was so struck with the innovation that he encouraged its adoption by our regimental bands. Halliday out of compliment to his patron called the instrument the Royal Kent Bugle, and not only did it become the mainstay of our bands, but also found its way into the orchestra. The excellent performances of Distin, the solo bugle player in the Grenadier Guards band, led Sir Henry Bishop to assign it a solo in his overture to "Guy Mannering" (1816).
From the idea of the key-bugle, an instrument which afterwards became a valuable adjunct to both' the military band and orchestra, was evolved, viz, the ophicleide. It was simply a bass key-bugle, being an octave lower than that instrument. It is recorded4 that at the Battle of Waterloo the ophicleide was used by both the English and Belgian armies, and Grove says that it seems agreed on all hands that the French were made acquainted with the instrument during the occupation of Paris by the allies in 1815.
This brings us to the war with France, which I must not forget to mention in connection with bands. During the campaign in the Peninsular the line regiments had their bands with them at "the front." Although it was the regulation, or at least the custom to send bands to the rear whenever a battle was imminent, yet we frequently read of them in the " fighting line." At Busaco, our soldiers, weary and |
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'Rose, "Talks with Bandsmen." |
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