The United States Army has maintained multiple military bands in its over two centuries of service. These bands provides musical support for military camps and bases, military areas, and communities across the mainland United States and other territories such as Puerto Rico. United States military bands also serve in army units outside the country and in regions such as Western Europe or Eastern Asia. There are currently 88 army bands, which consists of 20 active duty regional bands, 13 reserve bands, 51 National Guard bands, and four premier bands. Many bandsmen are trained as part of Band of the Army School of Music at Virginia Beach before their assignment in these bands.
See main article: List of United States military premier ensembles.
| Ensemble | Activated | Garrison | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| data-sort-value="U.S. Army Band" | U.S. Army Band | data-sort-value="0" | 1922[1] | data-sort-value="0" | |
U.S. Army Field Band | data-sort-value="0" | 1946[2] [3] [4] | data-sort-value="0" | ||
Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps | data-sort-value="0" | 1960 | data-sort-value="0" | ||
West Point Band | data-sort-value="0" | 1817[5] | data-sort-value="0" |
| Band | Garrison | City | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States Army Europe Band and Chorus | data-sort-value="0" | Sembach | data-sort-value="0" |  Kaiserslautern, Germany |
| United States Army Japan Band | data-sort-value="0" | Camp Zama | data-sort-value="0" |  Sagamihara, Japan |
| Army Training and Doctrine Command Band[8] | data-sort-value="0" | Joint Base Langley-Eustis | data-sort-value="0" | Newport News, VA |
| Army Maneuver Center of Excellence Band | data-sort-value="0" | Fort Moore | data-sort-value="0" | Columbus, GA |
| 1st Armored Division Band | data-sort-value="0" | Fort Bliss | data-sort-value="0" | El Paso, TX |
| 1st Cavalry Division Band | data-sort-value="0" | Fort Cavazos | data-sort-value="0" | Killeen, TX |
| 1st Infantry Division Band | data-sort-value="0" | Fort Riley | data-sort-value="0" | Manhattan, KS |
| 3rd Infantry Division Band | data-sort-value="0" | Fort Stewart | data-sort-value="0" | Hinesville, GA |
| 4th Infantry Division Band | data-sort-value="0" | Fort Carson | data-sort-value="0" | Colorado Springs, CO |
| 8th Army Band | data-sort-value="0" | Camp Humphreys | data-sort-value="0" | Pyeongtaek, South Korea |
| 10th Mountain Division Band | Fort Drum | Watertown, NY | ||
| 11th Airborne Division Band | Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson | Anchorage, AK | ||
| 25th Infantry Division Band | Schofield Barracks | Oahu, HI | ||
| 56th Army Band | Joint Base Lewis McChord | Tacoma, Washington | ||
| 77th Army Band | Lawton, OK | |||
| 82nd Airborne Division Band and Chorus | Fort Liberty | Fayetteville, North Carolina | ||
| 101st Airborne Division Band | Fort Campbell | Clarksville, Tennessee | ||
| 282nd Army Band | Fort Jackson | Columbia, South Carolina | ||
| 323rd Army Band | Fort Sam Houston | San Antonio, Texas | ||
| 399th Army Band | Fort Leonard Wood | Waynesville, Missouri |
| Band | Garrison | City | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78th Army Band | data-sort-value="0" | Fort Dix | data-sort-value="0" | Trenton, New Jersey |
| 100th Army Band | data-sort-value="0" | Fort Knox | data-sort-value="0" | Kentucky |
| 191st Army Band | Camp Parks | Dublin, California | ||
| 198th Army Band | Rochester, New York | |||
| 204th Army Band | Vancouver, Washington/St. Paul, Minnesota | |||
| 208th Army Band | Concord, North Carolina | |||
| 300th Army Band | Bell, California | |||
| 312th Army Band | Lawrence, Kansas | |||
| 313th Army Band | Birmingham, Alabama | |||
| 338th Army Band | Fort McCoy | Whitehall, Ohio/Livonia, Michigan | ||
| 380th Army Band | Richmond, Virginia | |||
| 395th Army Band | Oklahoma City | |||
| 484th Army Band | Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
See also: HBCU band.
During World War I, the mobilization of all African-American bands became common.[9] Among them was the Band of the 369th Infantry Regiment (nicknamed the "Harlem Hellfighters Band") led by James Reese Europe who uniquely utilized black blues and jazz and notably introduced jazz to Europe. The 404th Armed Service Forces Band was the only all-black all-female band in military history.[10] Other colored bands include the Band of the 107th Colored Infantry and the Band of the 805th Pioneer Infantry.[11]
The first all-women military band, the Women's Army Band, was organized at Fort Des Moines in 1942 by Sergeant Mary Belle Nissly. By early 1943, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) had been at a capacity to where it could sport five bands:[12] [13]
WAAC bands were later redesignated and officially activated in the Women's Army Corps (WAC) in January 1944. For a long time, the only Army Band made up of women, was the 14th Army WAC Band, which reported to the Women's Army Corps Training Center at Camp Lee in August 1948.[14]
See main article: Mounted band. In the first 100 years of the country's existence, mounted bands were relatively common in the ranks of military units. Mounted bands began to be assembled in the 1840s, taking multiple years to assemble. Mounted band that existed have included the 3rd Cavalry Regiment Mounted Band[15] and the Mounted Band of the 2nd U.S. Cavalry. Mounted bands in the US Army were ultimately disbanded in the 1930s and 40s and by the end of the Second World War, there were no mounted bands left in the U.S.[16]