Jump to content
SASS Wire Forum

General Quarters bugle


Recommended Posts

Okay, I officially give up.
My wife and I watched the one movie I was absolutely positively beat fist on pulpit certain and sure it was in:  Midway, with Charlton Heston.

It wasn't.
What I'm remembering ...
One of the great WWII movies, set in the Pacific theater:  the warship goes to General Quarters.
The bugler runs up to a box on the wall, flips it open, bugles "General Quarters" into the box, which is then transmitted shipwide.
I have a .wav file of the bugle call and can replay it when I so desire, but this is driving me to distraction ...
Which movie am I thinking of?
 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Manual for Buglers, U.S. Navy

 

Quote

 

The Bugler is a mighty important man in the US Navy. On board ship the bugle sounds a warning call for almost every activity in which a group of men is to take part. You are probably already familiar with a number of these calls, such as “Reveille,” “Mess call,” “Evening Colors,” and “Taps.” These are but four of more than 100 bugle calls used in the Navy, including a few which are used only in emergencies, such as “Man overboard” or “Abandon ship.”

 

Before the days of electrical communication systems the bugle was one of the few means by which orders could be sent from the quarter deck to any section of the ship. On small ships a single bugle could be heard everywhere on the ship, while on larger vessels sometimes as many as two or three additional Buglers were used to relay the calls down the hatches and into remote parts of the ship.

Even now, with all our modern methods of communication, the bugle is traditionally the means employed to render honors, to attract the attention of the men for a special announcement, or to signal the routine of the day.

 

The use of the bugle or a similar instrument as a military signaling device dates back many centuries, probably originating when someone discovered that a cow’s or sheep’s horn would make a noise when air was blown through it. Down through the ages many improvements were made on these military instruments. No doubt, the first was the substitution of metal for the animal’s horn. This permitted more careful design of the instruments and, since the metal could be formed into almost any shape, it led to a study of the proper size and shape of the tube to produce a pleasing sound.

 

Before the bugle was as well developed as it is now, no one attempted to play a standard call on his instrument. Each player invented his own call and his skill was judged by the loudness of his blasts.

As the instrument has improved, so have the calls. The skills involved in sounding the calls have also changed. Because the calls have progressed beyond single tone blasts to take their place as melodic compositions, mere loudness is no longer considered a standard of excellence. Today, tone quality, rhythm, and intonation (playing notes which are in tune—neither too high, nor too low) are considered much more important to you as a Bugler, than the amount of noise that you can make.

It might be well to mention here that a bugle is sounded, not blown. Remember—you can blow a ram’s horn, but it takes more than blowing to sound your bugle.

 

The regulation bugle which you have been issued is made of brass and is built in the key of G. You will not have to worry about the key of the bugle because the bugle is used only as a solo instrument or in a drum and bugle corps and the key is important only when a number of different kinds of instrument play together.

  

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

GQ is not something you want to hear at 6 am on a Sunday morning.  Ours was a engineering main space fire, two days west of Hawaii.  And you don't dial 911 for the fire department. 

 

BS

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When I was in the Navy we got a new Master Chief of the Command on board. 

We had a new Captain and XO and they thought we needed one...:rolleyes:

What we needed were a newer Captain and XO - these guys were complete @&$$es.

Anyway, this new Master Chief was just like the Capt. and the XO. An @&$.

He decided that calling reveille by announcing “ REVEILLE, All hands heave out. The smoking lamp is now lit in all berthing spaces. Now Reveille” wasn’t good enough.

No, this wasn’t good enough....because he was an @&$ too.

He decided to have a recording of a bugler playing the Army’s version of reveille on a bugle over the 1MC would be better.

After day 3 of this dipstick’s antics me and a couple of other guys convinced the the comm guys, through a bribe of Jack Daniel’s, to turn up the volume to the 1MC speakers in the Chief’s Quarters.

There were two more “bugle reveilles” after that.

That Master Chief was brought onboard to elevate moral. The only things that began with the letter M, like morale, that these magpies elevated was a desire for mutiny and murder...and morons.

 

The Master Chief only lasted a few months on our ship. Our command at that time was a perfect storm for a movie or a tv mini series much reminiscent of The Caine Mutiny. Someone, somewhere pulled their head out and made some changes and adjustments that changed things.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I woke up to bugle calls for a year at Ft Knox, went to VietNam and awoke to helicopters for 6 months. I do dearly despise alarm clocks.

 

Imis  Bugler, sound retreat

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Any other members real deal buglers ?

 

Bugler

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I made a recording for the Independence Day Parade in Dove Creek. We play it on the new pa system on the VFW float. It has the standard service theme songs, various patriotic tunes and bugle calls. You can tell who the vets in the crowd are when they hear reveille and general quarters. There's always a reaction.:D:lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

40 minutes ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said:

Is there an army bugle call akin to GQ.

To Arms. Drop your brisket and grab your musket.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAdvGqWvKhk

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sedalia Dave, that's the one, thank you!
Now I feel even more foolish ...
... a John Wayne movie, and I couldn't remember its name ...
(hangs head)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

While I was Air Force, and whatever bugle calls were on a record played over the loudspeaker system on base (I only heard Taps when I was airdrome duty officer one time, and had to play it).  However, I was familiar with the bugled "battle stations" call (from that movie, I guess).  I was in my local chain grocery store one time, when I heard it played on the loudspeaker, followed by the announcement, "Meat department, telephone!" :o :rolleyes: :lol:  Only heard it once.  I think the security guard, who is a friend of mine, and served in the Coast Guard, Navy and Air Force, probably set them straight!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are several wartime navy films with general quarters bugler scenes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.