Budget cuts to silence military buglers, replaced with recorded renditions of Taps at New York funerals

As budget cuts are set to silence live performances of Taps at military funerals in New York, one military bugler told FoxNews.com the iconic musical piece should always be performed by an Honor Guard musician.

Jari Villanueva, director of the Maryland National Guard Honor Guard and a bugler at thousands of military funerals, said having a phony hornsman hold up an instrument while a recording plays isn’t befitting of the somber task of burying a veteran. Yet, the piped-in version is what mourners will hear at virtually all New York military funerals beginning Oct. 1, due to a 25 percent reduction in federal funding for the state's Military Forces Honor Gaurd


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/09/05/budget-cuts-to-silence-live-performances-taps-at-new-york-military-funerals/?test=latestnews#ixzz25hA4ujcl

A total lack of respect for the people who lost thier lives.

I saw this story the other day. This is not a new issue. Very, very few funerals are done by real buglers. It's been that way for years.

My son was in the army for 7 years or so. His specialty was in the field of military intelligence. But while he was stationed at Fort Gordon, Ga, (this was 7-8 years ago) the Army told him that they wanted him to spend 6 months on bugle duty. He told them that he didn't know how to play the bugle. They told him that he would use a bugle with a recording in it and pretend that he was actually playing it. So for 6 months he and a couple of other soldiers traveled around Georgia and outlying areas of Fort Gordon and performed at veteran's funeral services doing the flag ceremony and bugle playing. My son's job was the bugle. He would press a button on it and then pretend to play as the recording played. The most important thing was that he remember to turn it off when he was done "playing" because it would repeat the recording if it wasn't turned off. Sometimes, family members of the deceased veteran would come up to him and tell him how beautifully he played. He could only say "Thank you sir or ma'am." And he HATED that because he felt that he was lying to families and disrespecting veterans by pretending to play. It really bothered him a lot. I had several conversations with him about it, with him telling me how much he hated playing a "lie". Well, here is what I told him: What is important is that you do the best job you can to honor the deceased veteran. This is what the Army told you you have to do, so it's what you have to do. If the family tells you how much they appreciate the job you did, that means that they were pleased with what you did and the respect you showed their loved one. And what is most important at these funerals is that you respect the veteran and his/her service to country and respect his/her family. So my son did his duty and he "played" his bugle. And he did that for 6 months. He didn't like it, but he did it and he said his reception from the veterans' families was always positive. And I told him that was what was most important, that the family felt that it was a respectful military service to honor their loved one. And he learned a lot during that 6 months. He did services for all types of veterans .. from high ranking officers to E-1s. He did lots of WW2 veterans and Korean veterans funerals. And Vietnam veterans, too. And some funerals of young service people who died in the line of duty. And when his bugle duty time was up, he went back to doing what the Army had trained him to do. I guess that is the way it's done with the Army. They rotate their soldiers for funeral duty.

**Oh, the other really important thing was that the batteries in the bugle were kept fresh.

In 1985 when my Father was buried it was a recording.. What's new?

I think it would be best if live buglers did the services but that just isn't feasible.

My son told me that he never heard any complaints about any services he "played" at. I think a nice and respectful service can be done with a recording. But my son's greatest fear was that something would go wrong--the batteries would go out or he'd forget to turn it off when it was done playing. But neither of those things every happened with him.

Nekochan wrote:I think it would be best if live buglers did the services but that just isn't feasible.

My son told me that he never heard any complaints about any services he "played" at. I think a nice and respectful service can be done with a recording. But my son's greatest fear was that something would go wrong--the batteries would go out or he'd forget to turn it off when it was done playing. But neither of those things every happened with him.

Thats interesting. I wonder why this Durr fella and the verterans afairs would say this then?

A 25 percent cut in the $3.3 million in federal funding for New York’s Military Forces Honor Guard in fiscal year 2013 led to a 29 percent reduction in the program that funds Honor Guard units, said Eric Durr, a spokesman for the New York National Guard.

Due to that reduction, Durr said New York State will no longer hire musicians to play Taps as of Oct. 1 unless someone volunteers services free of charge.

“Since about 2003, the New York National Guard has been using the electronic bugle for most [funerals],” Durr said. “Prior to that, it was basically a guy with a boom box, so the electronic bugle is much nicer.”

In a statement to FoxNews.com, the Veterans of Foreign Wars said it was “extremely disheartened” to learn of the development.

Well, it's New York and the National Guard and maybe they have been able to have more real buglers up there for Guard veteran's funerals. Maybe they used some of the federal funds they received to hire buglers for New York Guardsmen funerals?

My son was in the Army and there is no way that the Army can have a real bugler at all Army veteran military funerals. And the Army doesn't hire outside buglers, apparently.