Windsor changing of the guards Sat 14th March 2009 * COLDSTREAM GUARDS BAND*.

[1950accordionman]

The band is smart, the policewoman isn't interested by the look of it, to lazy to move her arse.

[arbuckle123]

@1950accordionman The policewoman doesn't have to move anything. She's there for traffic and crowd control and that's it. The Guards are the ones on parade. As a matter of fact, I find distracting and unnecessary when a policeman tries to participate as part of the procession. It might look funny but it's not his job and is attracting attention from the real protagonists.

[MrGoldsable]

Why did they have to build the castle under the Heathrow airport flightpath?

[windy344]

@MrGoldsable If you think about your questions you may realize that as the castle is more than a few hundred years old, it was built long before aeroplanes were even thought about.

[MrGoldsable]

@argo84 English heritage??? The Coldstream guards is a Scottish regiment.

[Musicgutbucket]

I just love the sound of the Coldstream guards band.....

[PiggusVomitus]

British heritage? hmm would that include starving the people in Ireland during the potato famine? Or massacring Africans to secure the future of the diamond trade (Cecil Rhodes era).

[md0u9186]

@PiggusVomitus Your 'history' is obviously much distorted by left wing politicle opinion. I suggest you look into history somewhat deeper i.e improve your education and grow up!

[pelforthpelforth]

Well done, Coleys!  Worthy succesors to Lt.Col.Douglas Pope of respected memory......BUT..... what moronic mind sanctioned the visual to be virtually destroyed by

that sad sack in PC dress shambling along front and centre ......hopeless!

[SwingKid148]

Haha, just noticed this was on Pi Day!

[PiggusVomitus]

I'm not so sure that being English is an admirable ethnicity. If you read history, we find that England was directly responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths in Ireland, Scotland, the Americas, India, Africa. If Cecil Rhodes was alive today, he would be tried as a war criminal. England's legacy is not a proud one, sorry!. Yes, I am English.

[md0u9186]

@PiggusVomitus What a load of absolaute rubbish. You need to get your history sorted Pig vomit!

[md0u9186]

@PiggusVomitus What rubbish! Cecil Rhodes is a hero, he brought great benefits to the African peoples by sorting a lot of tribal problems that have been the curse of Africa for generations!

[md0u9186]

Makes me proud to be British!

Well done the Guards!

[stealth1692]

makes me proud to be british 

[cl0vvntiem]

Are their bearskin hats still made from real bearskin, or is it synthetic nowadays?

[dean11081988]

@cl0vvntiem they did try using other fibers but they just looked like mad afros so yes they are made from real bear skinns glad i could help if i did

[harpharpharpharp]

@cl0vvntiem Some of the bearskins are real but the officers are cardboard cut outs left over from Ponty Pythons Flying Circus.

[malcolmwesson]

Pity about Constable Chubby Cheeks leading the parade.

[basscymro]

@danmeyers55 The Irish Guards Band is starting a tour of USA on Sunday. They fly to Charlotte NC and start from there.  Check out the itinerary on line. The IG band is one of the best, as good as the Coldstream.

[basscymro]

Nijmegen Company is effectively the 2nd battallion of the Grenadier Guards. The regiment consists of the 1st Batt and the 2nd Batt, which has been reduced to a cadre, which is Nijmegen Company. Soldiers are transferred between the 1st Batt and Nijmegen Company,according to operational needs. The other Guards regiments also have 2nd Batt cadres, with the exception of the Irish Guards. The Coldstream have No 7 Company, the Scots have F Company and the Welsh have the Prince of Wales Company.

[accordionman1950]

London is electrifying, sheer magic.

[rocky26951]

Does anyone know the name of the first march been played.  Great video by the way!

[emptyangel]

@rocky26951 Trafalgar.

[argo84]

Great video, terrific band. Makes me proud of my English heritage!

[harpharpharpharp]

@argo84 Why "proud"? Are you in some way responsible for British Heritage? Did you create it? It makes no sense. You have no more reason to be proud of what you perceive to be good about it than you have reason to feel ashamed of what is not good about it. Get a life, Be the individual you could be.A Citizen of wherever you happen to be Neither proud nor ashamed but lucky to be still breathing. Responsible for yourself but with respect for others.Pride is excess baggage.

[argo84]

@harpharpharpharp You're right I had nothing to do with creating my British heritage, but it sure had a lot to do with creating me. Thanks for your input!

[brettcog2000]

Never knew that this was the suite for bass trombone with band. Try a little thing called blend.  Might work for ya.

[tubaluigi]

geweldig die bastrombone

[Musicgutbucket]

You've got to love that Bass Trombone player, awsome sound...real attitude ;0) I remember the first time I heard that march Trafalgar was when I took part in the Edinburgh Tattoo the Scot Guards came out to this..all we heard was this beefy bass trombone wow.

[leeful83]

best band ever

[siddywinkles42]

is it just me or are the traffic lights broken? at 7:15?

[woodenz]

Security counter measures are carried by the guard , and interrupt the signal on the lights

[emptyangel]

I thought they stopped using those two radiomen sometime during 2008?

[woodenz]

SSSSsssssssush , it's a secret !!!!!!

[bgrobin66]

what is the name of the march the band is playing as they depart their barracks

[Gokstaaf]

The march is named Trafalgar.

[brasszebra]

Do you mean as is: boom-boom-boomboomboom?

If it's that, I think it's the cadence for the guard:

left-left-leftrightleft.

My regiment doesn't do that, we beat on every step.

[emptyangel]

Yeap, exactly what I mean.

Sounds terrible especially when they 'force' it on all the music.

[Someloke8895]

I dunno, it seems a bit odd to go left-left-leftrightleft.

To me it's left-right-left-right-left, if you watch the foot movement of the band you'll see what I mean.

[custard24]

Is that what happened to Inkerman Company?

[louislungbubble]

re nijmegan co, were the 2nd battalions of the grenadiers,scots and coldstream not placed into "suspended animation" rather than having been disbanded. this allows the battalion to be re-formed without an act of parliament? the independant company thing is not new, back in the seventies the argyll and sutherland highlanders were reduced to a single company (balaklava coy) for two years,before being reinstated.......unfortunatley only a temporary reprieve!......marty

[trapezemusic]

I agree with the comment about the bass trombones. The effect is unnecessary and somewhat distracting. Otherwise, the band is outstanding. I recognize the first and final selection as "Trafalgar". Does anyone know the other marches?

[emptyangel]

I believe the names of the marches have been posted a few comments down.

[24263744]

It would be better if they played in the octave that is writtern on the part, instead of keep going down the octave

[24263744]

This was refering to the comments about the 2 bass Trombones

[brasszebra]

The reason you hear the bass trombone is because there at the front. If the clarinets were at the front you would hear them more.

[24263744]

Thanks for your reply, but if only the Bass Trombones played what is writtern on the part it would not sound so bad. Why not balance up with the rest of the section.

[brasszebra]

It's more fun that way. I play in a band(the Queens Own Rifles of Canada) and sometimes it gets a little old.

[emptyangel]

Maybe you could answer why the Canadian Guards, or is it the 22e Royal Regiment, love to play bass drum beats like Germans do.

As in those 3 consistent beats every 2 seconds, if you catch what I'm trying to say. =/

[collegiateguy]

Just a slight correction - The Canadian Guards regiment was disbanded several years ago as was their very fine regimental band. The Royal 22nd Regiment band is one of six permanent force military bands in Canada. I played for a number of years in the band of The Royal Regiment of Canada, an exceptionally fine militia band in Toronto. Cheers!

[noskcajluap]

The Coldstreams Bass Trombone has been rather over the top recently which has sounded pretty rough! I am a Bass Trombonist myself with another British Military Band and I like a strong Bass Trombone with occasional dropping of the octave but I always try to blend with the section.

As for the bass drum I think it should be on every beat apart from where it sounds out of place. Some of the smaller bands in the army just have a constant bass drum regardless of the music and it sounds pretty silly!

[k0smon]

nosk: Will they ever bring back the G trombone?

[noskcajluap]

In short, No!

The G trombone was used up until the 1950's but was a long awkward instrument to play. I have played one and did not like it! The advantages of the Bass Trombone as we know it today is that it is fully chromatic down to the very lowest notes it can play. It is pitched at Bb along with tenor trombones so it is very easy to swap between to two and means the bass trombone part could be played on a normal tenor trombone, providing it does not go below a low F.

[noskcajluap]

Hope that answers your question! Feel free to ask me any more!!

[2050qwerty]

Emptyangel - Let me assure you, the words 'Hike' or 'Pike' do not feature in any Britsh Army Drill Manual. It's the manner in which the Drill Sergeant/WO projects his voice!

[emptyangel]

That still doesn't answer my question.

I wish someone from the Grenadier Guards would answer me.

I don't know why this is bugging me so bad! :( Sorry to be troublesome.

[Ed4RMAS]

Formerdoc, my response?

Ed

[formerdoc]

There is a website about British military ceremonial and the response to my question about "hike" vs. "arms" was "The command is called 'Slope ARMS!' but you may have heard it as 'HIKE!' due to the way the last word is given. The last word is meant to be delivered as an Execution Order and as such quicker than the other words."

[emptyangel]

But the weird thing is that I've yet to see anyone outside of the Grenadier Guards say, "hike".

Sorry to keep dragging this on and on. =P

[emptyangel]

Then again, it could be that they're saying, "Pike".

=/

[CeremonyConnoisseur]

Quick Marches on the way to the Castle: Trafalgar by Wilhelm Zehle, Sons of the Brave by Thomas Bidgood and The King's Guard by GH Keith.

On the way back to Victoria Barracks: Through Bolts and Bars by Ernst Urbach, Standard of St George by Kenneth Alford and finally again Trafalgar.

[2050qwerty]

Great video!  The word of command is what's is within the Drill Manual which all are bound by. But, different individuals will raise their voice and project their words of command in different ways. Have a look at the videos Guards1, Guards2 etc to see some screaming Drill Sergeants at Pirbright in the 60s!

[emptyangel]

It's definitely not that.

The Grenadier Guards are the only ones who seem to say it this way.

I'm desperate to find out. :(

[emptyangel]

watch?v=L6eMumzkNG4

You can hear the difference in that video too.

[Melikethecake]

The HQ for the Grenadier Guards is in Aldershot. Nijmegen refers to the company of Guards based at Wellington barracks when it's there turn to Guard the palaces (I think).

[formerdoc]

After listening again, I agree that it sure sounds like "hike". As you may know, American football teams say "hike" when the ball is snapped to start the play and perhaps this is a similar usage

[wrightez]

@emptyangel yes these videos were taken on the same day.

[formerdoc]

I think the order is "slope arms" and that what you hear or interpret as "hike" is "arms"

[emptyangel]

After watching an innumerable amount of Changing the Guards video, I have made the observation that the Grenadier Guards are clearly the only ones who say, "hike" in place of "arms".

It's pretty obvious in this video; watch?v=oli6TGbWWHo

What I'd like to know, is why? It's been bugging me a whole lot recently so you'll have to excuse me. =/

[emptyangel]

Oh wow! I think video was taken the same day as this one; watch?v=-2qAEvVs_hc

[emptyangel]

Fantastic. :D

[emptyangel]

Has anyone figured out why the Grenadier Guards say "Hike" instead of "Arms"?

[rmorecook]

Hi friends - looking it up in Wikipedia it says the Nijmegan Company is the one to which soldiers just out of initial training are assigned. Maybe it's just the newbie company. Great video! Bob M

[formerdoc]

Outstanding! Rates a 10.

As an American, I am a bit leery commenting on British Military Traditions but I believe that the Nijmegan Company is a honor unit of the Grenadier Guards and the name has its origin in the Battle for Arnheim (" A Bridge Too Far") and refers to the Nijmegan Bridge where a unit of the Grenadier Guards was involved