Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore

1. Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore The Father of American Bands

2. Early Years Born Christmas Day, 1829, in Ballygar, Ireland Began cornet studies at age 13 Joined local youth band soon afterward Began writing marches and polkas at age 15 that were played by the band Emigrated to the U.S. at age 19 and settled in Boston

3. Early Adulthood Made his early reputation as an E flat cornet soloist Leader of the Charleston, MA, band Suffolk band in 1852 Boston Brigade Band in 1853 Salem Brass Band in 1854

4. Contest with Ned Kendall Ned Kendall was the famous keyed bugle player Gilmore and Kendall alternated solo lines on the Wood Up Quickstep, a piece closely associated with Kendall The contest was considered a draw but served to mark the end of the keyed bugle era in the United States

5. Other Accomplishments Established a summer promenade concert series in Boston (circa 1855), the forerunner of what would become the Boston Pops Began an annual Fourth of July concert on the Boston Common, a practice that continues to this day Performed for the inauguration of President James Buchanan in 1856 Nearly beaten up by other Boston area musicians upon their return

6. Gilmore’s Boston Brigade Band Assumed leadership in 1858 and renamed the band after himself The 23 year old Gilmore was paid a salary of $1,000 a year plus all the income he could generate from band activities Increased numbers by adding two woodwinds to each brass instrument Transformed the band from a brash military unit designed for outdoor performances into a more refined, colorful, and larger ensemble suitable for indoor concert repertoire Considered one of the best bands in the country Performed at both the Democratic and Republican National Conventions in 1860

7. The Civil War: 1861-1865 General Order 48 (16 weeks after the fall of Fort Sumter) allowed for military bands to serve Gilmore’s Band enlisted as a group on September 16, 1861, and was attached to the 24th Massachusetts Regiment Provided music for the troops Performed at recruiting events Traveled with a Union Expeditionary Force under the command of General Ambrose Burnside to South Carolina, where they saw limited action as stretcher bearers

8. Civil War Bands 618 bands and over 28,000 musicians by the end of 1861 Infantry regiments were allowed two principal musicians per company and 24 musicians for a band Similar numbers were allowed for artillery and cavalry regiments (cavalry band being limited to 16 musicians) Follows a pattern established by the famous Prussian bandmaster Wilhelm Weiprecht

9. Union Army musicians were paid at the following rate during the war: First-Class $34.00 per month, Second-Class $20.00 per month, Third-Class $17.00 per month, and Drum Major $105.50 per month The Secretary of War’s Office reported to Congress that the Union’s bands had cost approximately 4 million dollars On July 17, 1862, less than a year after the issuance of General Order 48, Congress abolished the regimental band system and replaced it with brigade bands (one band for every four regiments)

10. 1863 Governor of Massachusetts named Gilmore to the position of Bandmaster General and Chief Musician Charged with reorganizing the state’s military bands and was given the authority to enlist musicians for the service In this capacity he trained and equipped 20 bands to accompany volunteer units from the state

11. Civil War Era Compositions Good News from Home, We are Coming Father Abraham, Seeing Nellie Home, and the 22nd Regiment March. When Johnny Comes Marching Home was inspired, at least in part, by an old Irish folk song, Johnny We Hardly Knew Ye Penned under the pseudonym Louis Lambert following the Confederate defeat at the Battle of Gettysburg

12. 1864 Went to New Orleans to organize the musical festivities for the inauguration of the new governor of Louisiana, Michael Hahn Appointed Bandmaster-General for the Department of Louisiana by General Nathaniel Banks, the Union military commander for occupied Louisiana Organized a series of free concerts for the people of New Orleans Put together a production with some 500 instrumentalists, a chorus of 6000, canons, and anvils for the gubernatorial inauguration festivities. This event, the first of Gilmore’s so called “Monster Concerts,” was undoubtedly influenced by his knowledge of the Monster Concerts of the French Revolution and the Grand Festival Concerts of the British choral societies.

13. The Post War Years Returned to Boston and formed the Grand Boston Band, the first fully professional band in the United States Featured guest artists and narrations of Civil War stories of intrigue Developed the idea of a grand concert while on a short trip to New York City in June of 1867, a national jubilee to celebrate peace after four long years of war

14. National Peace Jubilee Opened on June 15, 1869, in Boston Over 1,000 instrumental musicians (for both band and orchestra) Over 10,000 vocalists Worked with the public school system to create a large children’s choir Constructed of a new 50,000 seat performance venue Hired the world famous Norwegian violinist Ole Bull to serve as concertmaster

15. Jubilee Highlights Celebration lasted five days Attended by tens of thousands, including President U. S. Grant and his entire cabinet Included a performance of Verdi's Il Trovatore, which included 100 Boston firemen striking anvils A battery of electrically fired cannons City church bells rung on cue An eight foot bass drum A large organ specially built for the occasion Gilmore netted a $40,000.00 profit and solidified his reputation as the leading American musician of the day

16. World Peace Jubilee Ostensibly created to celebrate the end of the Franco Prussian War Opened on June 15, 1872, and ran for 18 days 2,000 instrumentalists and 20,000 vocalists from around the world Included the United States Marine Corps Band, the Band of the Grenadier Guards from London, England, the band of La Garde Républicaine from Paris, France, and the Kaiser Franz Regiment from the newly created German Republic Biggest name at the Jubilee was that of Johann Strauss, arguably the most popular musician in the world at that time, who made the only journey to America of his life

17. Results Brought Gilmore even more world wide acclaim Was not the financial or artistic success that the National Peace Jubilee had been three years earlier Plagued with technical problems from the beginning, including the collapse during construction of a 60,000 seat performance hall Crowds were sporadic and some of the performances were less than inspiring

18. 22nd Regiment Band Assumed leadership in 1873 Renamed Gilmore’s Band 65 musicians Hired the best musicians available and paid them the highest salaries in the business, in some cases up to $650.00 per week

19. In 1876 Gilmore rented New York’s Hippodrome from P. T. Barnum and renamed it Gilmore’s Concert Garden (or known simply as Gilmore’s Garden) Gave over 150 concerts at this location and in 1879 it became the first of four sites to bear the name of Madison Square Garden.

20. Gilmore’s Band continued to perform throughout the United States for the remainder of his life First American band to tour Europe (1878) By 1880 the band was considered to be the finest in the country, if not the world Began the tradition of a New Year’s Eve celebration in Times Square with Gilmore himself firing his pistol twice at the stroke of midnight (1881) Performed year round, playing summers at Manhattan Beach, winters at Madison Square Garden, and annual tours of the country during the spring and fall.

21. Death In the fall of 1892 Gilmore’s Band departed on what he was calling their Columbian tour First stop on the tour was St. Louis, Missouri, where they arrived in September and began their series of engagements. Gilmore was stricken with a heart attack on the evening of September 24 and died in his room at the Linden Hotel. He was 63 years old. Gilmore’s funeral bore the vestiges of his own performance ideals, with a 100 piece marching band, a detail of 16 soldiers from New York’s 22nd Regiment, and streets lined with mourners.

22. Legacy Transformed the American military band into a concert ensemble and greatly increased the instrumentation considered to be standard for the band, particularly in the area of woodwinds Added to the concept of potpourri programming for American bands, featuring both vernacular and cultivated music on his performances Large and lavish Monster Concerts, combined with a flair for showmanship and first rate musicianship, greatly increased the visibility of the American wind band and elevated the level of public discourse on many subjects related to music and music education. Untimely death ended a rivalry between his band and Sousa’s band before it could gain any real footing Sousa called Patrick Gilmore “The Father of American Bands”

23. References Cummings, M. Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore, Retrieved July 12, 2008, from http://brebru.com/musicroom/musicians/gilmore/gilmore.html Dudgeon, R. T. (1993). The keyed bugle. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press. Gilmore, P. S. (1975). History of the National Peace Jubilee and Great Musical Festival, held in the city of Boston, June, 1869, to commemorate the restoration of peace throughout the land. American culture series, 51 : 3. Boston: Published by the author and for sale by Lee and Shepard. Hansen, R. K. (2005). The American wind band: a cultural history. Chicago, Ill: GIA Publications. Jarman, R. Big boom in Boston, Retrieved July 14, 2008, from American Heritage.com Web site: http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/ah/1969/6/1969_6_46.shtml McCallister, J. Patrick Gilmore and the Salem brass band, Retrieved July 10, 2008, from http://www.salemweb.com/tales/gilmore.shtml McGranahan, R. W. (2006). The american civil war. Retrieved from http://americanrevwar.homestead.com/files/civwar/bands.html National Conference on Music of the Civil War Era, Snell, M. A., & Kelley, B. C. (2004). Bugle resounding: music and musicians of the Civil War era. Shades of blue and gray series. Columbia: University of Missouri Press. Newsom, J. The American brass band movement: a historical overview, Retrieved July 13, 2008, from http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/cwmhtml/cwmpres01.html Patrick Gilmore Collection. Retrieved July 11, 2008, from the University of Maryland Libraries Web site: http://www.lib.umd.edu/PAL/SCPA/ABA/Gilmore/Gilmore.html Rhodes, S. L. (2007). The nineteenth-century American wind band. Retrieved from the Lipscomb University Department of Music Web site: http://academic.lipscomb.edu/windbandhistory/RhodesWindBand_06_19thCenturyAmerican.htm