Garda Band
The Garda Band is the public relations branch of the Garda Síochána, which is the police service of Ireland. It is composed of 29 full time members and was founded in 1922.
History
Its first public appearance was at Dún Laoghaire Pier on Easter Monday in 1923, and its first Bandmaster was Superintendent D.J. Delaney. In 1938, the Dublin Metropolitan Garda Band and the regular Garda Military Band were merged and were relocated to Phoenix Park. In 1964, the band was engaged in a North American tour of the United States and Canada under the direction of Superintendent J. Moloney. It was disbanded in November 1965 by order of Justice Minister Brian Lenihan Snr but was then reformed seven years later to commemorate the golden jubilee of the foundation of the Garda Siochana. The move to disband the band was questioned during a general debate in the Dáil Éireann by the Labour Party deputy opposition leader James Tully. The decision to reestablish the band was also in part due to the report of the Conroy Commission of 1970. At its reestablishment, Sergeant T. J. Boyle on 1 September 1972, serving until his retirement in October 1988. In 1978, women were recruited to the Garda Band for the first time. All members recruited after 26 April 1990 have not had the option to transfer to other duties.In 2014, acting Garda commissioner Noirín O’Sullivan proposed at the opening ceremony of Dublin Pride that the band could take part in the pride parade for the first time. In May 2019, a band member was involved in an incident which saw the member punching a fellow bandmember backstage at a BBC Northern Ireland event, where the Police Service of Northern Ireland Pipes and Drums were performing with the Garda Band on television for the first time.