Military bands charm with desi tunes

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Spectators watch the military bands perform during the Beating Retreat ceremony at the illuminated Vijay Chowk in New Delhi

After leaving the nation awe-struck with the display of their military might on the Republic Day, the defence forces on Saturday enthralled the audience with their bands playing various martial tunes at the Beating Retreat ceremony at Vijay Chowk here. The ceremony formally marked the end of the Republic Day celebrations this year. Earlier, the Delhi traffic police had announced various restrictions and all roads leading to Vijay Chowk had been closed for normal traffic from 4.30 pm to 9 pm.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who could not attend the Republic Day Parade due to illness, was in attendance on Sunday enjoying every moment of the exciting performance of the bands. It was also probably the first time that the bands played mostly Indian compositions. Earlier, they used to rely on the popular tunes of foreign musicians that had been passed on year after year. Out of the 25 tunes, as many 19 were Indian compositions this time. However, the four popular tunes by foreign musicians, interspersed twice with “Fanfare”, a collage by buglers, the “Drummers’ Call” and a traditional performance only by the drummers, were retained. Other than “Abide with Me”, a western tune, and “Sare Jahan se Achchha” composed by Urdu poet Mohammed Iqbal in pre-independence India, the rest of the tunes were played after a gap of at least a decade.
Two new compositions — “Gajraj” symbolising the fanfare associated with elephants and “Reshmi”, a silky melody — were played for the first time at a Beating Retreat ceremony.
A total of 12 Army bands and four each from the Navy and the Air Force, besides 15 pipes and drums bands, 72 buglers and 12 trumpets performed at the ceremony, attired in their traditional finery.