There are currently 9 main military bands currently belonging to the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), which represent the different branches of the SANDF (South African Army, South African Navy, South African Air Force, South African Military Health Service) and providing music on ceremonial occasions. Since military bands were introduced in the country, they have played a prominent role in public and military life. Pipe bands also play an important role in South African military music, with notable pipe bands coming from the Cape Town Highlanders, Transvaal Scottish Regiment and the South African Military Health Service. Military bands of the SANDF are also affiliated with the police bands of the South African Police Service. In addition to military music, military bands in the SANDF perform different genres, including classical, jazz, pop and light music.
Main functions
The main responsibility for military bands in the SANDF is to provide musical support to the South African Army, as well as indirectly foster high morale and pride. The bands of the SANDF provide musical accompaniment for official ceremonies such as the Armed Forces Day parade and the swearing-in of the President of South Africa. Bands also perform for heads of State and government, most notably the Elizabeth II, President Bill Clinton, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Vladimir Putin. Educational requirements include musical knowledge, as well as basic infantry training. The members of these band regularly make visits to foreign countries as well as host other bands and musical groups in South Africa.
Corps of Bandsmen
Founded in 1969, the South African Army Corps of Bandsmen (SACB) is the main military band service of the South African Army. It presides over the 5 military bands of the army as well as the NCG Band. Army Bandsman are required to wear the No 1 Dress Uniform, which is also worn by the National Ceremonial Guard (NCG).
Army Band Cape Town
The South African Army Band Cape Town is based in Cape Town and is the oldest regular force band in the country. It originated in 1915 as the regimental band of the 1st Battalion, The Cape Corps, a famous fighting unit of World War I. When the Cape Corps was disestablished in 1919, the band continued on a part-time basis. When the Cape Corps was re-activated at the start of the Second World War, the band returned to full-time service in the regiment. Although Cape Corps was disbanded for the last time in 1992, the 42-member band was retained as one of the five regional Army bands and was renamed to SA Army Band Cape Town under the directorship of Major Chris Nicholls.
In 2006, Lieutenant Martin Chandler, the youngest qualified director in the Corps of Bandsmen, succeeded Nicholls as Director of Music. The band has won the best many marching band awards and is widely regarded as one of the foremost military bands in Africa. In 2000 the SANDF initiated a music-training program at the band's headquarters in Cape Town, to assist young recruits of the Military Skills Development System and various African countries such as Namibia, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Congo and Botswana in training military musicians. The band has performed extensively at various events, including the Grahamstown National Arts Festival and the Klein Karoo National Arts Festival amongst others. The band has also received much praise for their involvement in the first Opening of Parliament and the inauguration of President Nelson Mandela in 1994.
Army Band Limpopo
The South African Army Band Limpopo, based in Polokwane, traces its roots back to the first South African Permanent Force Band, which was formed in the 1930s. The band Limpopo came into being when the former Venda Defence Force Band and the Far Northern Transvaal Command Staff Band were combined. The current Director of Music, Captain Benedict Sibande, is one of only a few South African bandsmen to study at the Royal Military School of Music in the United Kingdom.