Fifes & Drums of Colonial Williamsburg

The distinctive silhouettes and sounds of fifers and drummers are a common sight on historic Williamsburg’s main thoroughfare, Duke of Gloucester Street. These musicians practice and perform an age-old tradition that stretches back to before the American Revolution.

By 1775, military companies commonly employed at least one fifer and one drummer. These men and boys were like their company’s nervous system: relaying messages, transmitting information throughout the battlefield, and boosting morale.

When on the battlefield, fifers and drummers relayed officers’ orders to soldiers loudly and clearly through their piercing music. This played a critical role in their regiment’s movements and safety.

Fifers and drummers also performed a range of duties in camp. Their music conveyed orders and regulated soldiers’ workdays by signaling when to wake up, when to collect rations, and even when to prepare for battle through tunes like "The Roast Beef of Old England" and "Reveille."

From communication to entertainment, fifers and drummers sat near the heart of late 18th-century military life. Thanks to 20th-century efforts to revive the fife and drum tradition, today The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is home to a vibrant corps of its own.

Founded in 1926, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation preserves, restores, and interprets the 18th-century city of Williamsburg. The Colonial Williamsburg Fifes & Drums developed in the 1950s through careful work with similar communities across the East Coast.

In 1958, the first four members began to play in the Historic Area. Here, the 1959 corps is pictured. The program has been developing ever since!

Enjoy this medley of two 18th-century tunes, "Duke of Perth" and "Reel of Tulloch”, as performed by the Colonial Williamsburg Fifes & Drums. The musicians often play music such as this on Duke of Gloucester Street during their weekly marches through Colonial Williamsburg’s Historic Area.

The Colonial Williamsburg Fifes & Drums adheres to the tradition of recruits beginning their training from a young age. As rising fifth-graders, interested children may begin the process of joining the corps.

Members’ experiences are defined by systems of rank and hierarchy, and also by a network of peer and mentor support as they grow through the corps. Progressing from the junior to senior corps awards members with new ranks and responsibilities. Pictured here is a senior corps practice session.

Every spring, fifers and drummers from across North America come together for the annual Drummer’s Call in Colonial Williamsburg’s Historic Area. This event is an opportunity to further enliven the musical tradition through engagement with public audiences and each other.

Fifers and drummers were vital components of the 18th-century battlefield.  Their music, shared today the same as it would have been 250 years ago, is a unique look into the soundscape of Revolutionary America.