Eighth Regiment Band

About Us

The Eighth Regiment Band of the Georgia Volunteer Infantry formed in 1986 in Rome, Ga, when the conductor of the Rome Symphony Orchestra asked brass percussion players to stay after a practice and work on Civil War era music.John Carruth, who was conducting the orchestra at that time, said they gathered up the necessary instruments for playing music from the Civil War era, including grabbing an E-flat tuba that was being used as a planter, and were able to play the music.Eighth Regiment now uses all original instruments.

The 14-member band performs music from both sides of the conflict in replica blue and gray uniforms, with appropriate dialogue and action. They create a program intended to be "a museum of 19th-century American emotions." "We dress, feel and act so that you'll think you're in a time capsule. So you can feel what the men and women of the Civil War period felt"said Carruth, a Civil War re-enactor who travels with an artillery unit.

This is a picture of the band of the 26th Regiment while the band was at home on it's first furlough, in July-August 1862. It represents the original eight members who went into the Confederate service in March 1862, with the exception of Alex Meinung, who was sick at the time and could not be present.

The band has appeared at five Great American Brass Band Festivals, concerts with the Atlanta, Chattanooga, Rome Symphony Orchestra, the "Good Morning America Show", "Performance Today" on National Public Radio, the permanent multi-media show at Chickamauga National Park, and the Southeastern United States Clinic. They performed at the memorial interment of the Confererate sub-marine Hunley. The band also appeared in three made-for-television movies, and performed on several college campuses and at numerous battle re-enactments.

The members of the 8th Regiment band are not paid. "We honestly believe that whatever success is gained is due to that fact. Our men are here because we love to keep this great American band music alive. Many of the players have been here for 16 years, and if you've been here that long, there's got to be something to it." said Carruth.

The 8th Regiment Band in 1986