Military Music

Definitions, History and Importance

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to systematically discuss music and its utilitarianism in the military universe. It is a bibliographical research, whose methodology consists of a qualitative approach based on the exploratory investigation of the outlined objectives. Questions about definitions of military music; history of military music; and, finally, its importance in the military context will be discussed. Within this general panorama, some aspects will be approached: 1) the artistic expression and the relationship between the work of art and the artist; 2) the understanding of music within the scope of science and its various disciplines; 3) the interdisciplinary characteristic of music and its interaction with multiple areas of knowledge and of culture; 4) the musical phenomenon and its concrete and abstract dimensions; 5) its possible definition and utilitarianism within the military context; 6) the presence of music in the various military activities of the various peoples and nations since Antiquity; 7) its use as a means of communication and a way to regulate displacements of troops; and 8) the consolidation of the Marching music as a Brazilian music genre, mentioning its complex structure and expressive techniques. Finally, regarding the importance of military music, its interrelated functions and its role in the triad of life, combat and work will be listed.