| Taps echoes around the world | 16 October, 2007 | |||||||||
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On Saturday May 19th 2007 (US Armed Forces Day) buglers around the world formed a common bond – the playing of Taps. The event was patterned after the "Echo Taps" event of May 21, 2005, that saw a line of 674 buglers from over 30 states stretching over 42 miles in New York State from the Woodlawn National Cemetery in Elmira to the Bath National Cemetery. Playing Taps in a cascading rendition, it took the buglers nearly three hours from the first note played at Woodlawn to the final note of Taps sounded at the National Cemetery at Bath. Following the playing of Taps by the last bugler all the musicians gathered for a mass performance of Taps to conclude the event. Echo Taps 2005 was planned as a one-time event but co-organizer Les Hampton was later contacted by the Department of Veterans Affairs, who expressed an interest in seeing if it could be done worldwide. As a result this year’s event encompassed brass players from around the world playing Echo Taps at each of the 123 National Cemeteries across America as well as battlefields, local cemeteries and numerous "unofficial" sites throughout the United States and around the world. At each location organizers performed a musical tribute based on the number of buglers that registered, ranging from 10 to over 1000. The cascade of Taps began at 11:00 a.m. local time on May 19, 2007 at American Battle Monuments Commission cemeteries in Australia, the Philippines, North Africa and then throughout Europe. In the US, Taps began on the East Coast and concluded in Honolulu, Hawaii. The mission of "Echo Taps" was to:
May’s event was a cooperative effort of the US Department of Veterans Affairs and Bugles Across America to create awareness of VA programs and the availability of volunteer buglers to play Taps at the funerals of veterans. Echo Taps Worldwide honored America’s 40 million veterans who have served the country over the course of history. Echo Taps at Bath Veterans Administration It was a beautiful day at the Bath Veterans Administration in western New York as 41 brass players lined the route from the entrance through the VA grounds, concluding at the flag pole in the Bath National Cemetery. At 10:55 a.m. the Harverling High School Band opened the local ceremonies with the playing of the National Anthem. This was followed by a 21-gun salute. As the 11:00 chimes struck, Arnold Rychlicki from Caledonia, New York began Taps. After the first three notes were sounded the second player picked up Taps and the sounds began echoing through the Bath VA grounds. Eighty-two year old Fran Look from Campbell, New York was the final bugler at the flagpole. Fran had also played the final Taps for the 2005 event two years earlier. As the echo of Taps ended a melody of patriotic music was played by the Corning Brass Works while the 41 musicians assembled on the field. The group concluded with the Armed Forces melody which was followed by the final mass playing of Taps by the group conducted by John Cole, director of the Haverling High School Band in Bath, New York. For many of the participants it was their way of thanking the men and women of the United States forces for their service and sacrifice at home and around the world. For more on Echo Taps please visit the website linked below.
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