| Unit Name: | Military Music Department of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces |
| Dates: | May 1992 - present |
| Country: |  Ukraine |
| Branch: | Armed Forces of Ukraine |
| Nickname: | MMD-GSAFU |
| Role: | The organization of military bands and choirs in the Ukrainian Armed Forces |
| Type: | Military Band and Choir service |
| Size: | 1000+ |
| Garrison: | Kyiv |
| Garrison Label: | Headquarters |
| Commander1: | Colonel Volodymyr Dashkovsky |
| Commander1 Label: | Senior Director of Music of the Armed Forces |
| Native Name: | (Ukrainian) Військово-музичне управління Збройних сил України |
The Military Music Department of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces serves as the official service of military bands and choirs in active service within the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In May 1992, in accordance with the proposal of the Chief of the General Staff, the Military Music Department of the General Staff was founded. It was formed in the basis of the Headquarters Military Band of the Kyiv Military District, which at that time was the top military band in the Ukrainian SSR, part of the larger massed bands of the Kyiv Garrison, and one of the best in the Soviet Union. The MMD was also raised on the basis of existing Soviet Armed Forces military bands within Ukrainian territory, such as the HQ Band of the Carpathian Military District.[1] Since January 2015, a total of 41 bands are currently active within the MMD.
The MMD-GSAFU accompanies activities carried out by the President of Ukraine, Minister of Defense of Ukraine, and the Chief of the General Staff. It is also responsible for the accompaniment of activities carryed out by the regional garrisons of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The military bands of the department are regular participants in the Kyiv Independence Day Parade, as well as participants in many military tattoo festivals and concerts in Ukraine and abroad. The military band department organizes the leadership of its bands, as well as oversees the training of musicians by the Military Music Centers of the different branches of the armed forces.[2]
In 2016, 20 musicians from the Band of the 44th Artillery Brigade broke a record by performing the Shche ne vmerla Ukraina nearly 300 metres underground in a salt mine.[3]
The band service is made up of the following bands:[4] [5] [6]
The National Exemplary Band, as the foremost military band, is the largest in the armed forces, employing over 100 musicians. There are some limits to the number of musicians in each band, with the music centers of each armed service branch employing 52 members, and academic bands employing 21 members.
Formation of massed military bands in Kyiv until 1998
Formation of massed military bands in Kyiv from 2002 to 2003