History
In 1974, the musical formation l’Indépendance Musicale de Waterloo, under the initiative of its former director Pierre Grapin, created among themselves a group of highly trained and qualified musicians under the name « Musique de la Garde », the purpose of which would be to revive memories of the glorious historical formation that was La Musique de la Garde Impériale at the time of the first French empire.
The group was present at every key moment during the reign of Napoléon the 1st (battles, official ceremonies, the wedding of the emperor, first entries in conquered capital cities, …) and, at the evening of the 18th june 1815, for the last sacrifice, the grognards of the imperial army, those giants still holding on to a glory that time hasn't tarnished.
Among many others, it is that memorable war effort that made Waterloo famous worldwide.
Armed and carefully dressed following historical depictions of the original formation, the members of our group are meant to follow strict military discipline and thorough musical training with their being part of the group strongly depending on those qualities.
Warmly welcomed everywhere it goes and highly praised, the group is now known in Germany, England, Scotland, France, in the USA, in Italy, Holland, Russia and Switzerland while still receiving numerous invitations from these countries for participation in various historical events.
La Musique de la Garde was seen in many prestigious cities like New York and St Petersbourg, as in many other places where history was written (Ajaccio, Cap Juan, Fontainebleau, Boulogne sur Mer, Marengo, …).
