Strike Up the Band! The Origins of School Bands in Alberta Prior to 1940/En avant la musique! Les origines des harmonies scolaires en Alberta avant 1940

The first school bands in what is now the province of Alberta were in the Indian Industrial schools run by the federal government. Following the inauguration of Alberta as a province in 1905, there was widespread community band activity including at least a few extra-curricular school bands and orchestras. In 1936-1937, the Province of Alberta Department of Education made school band and orchestra curricular programs. The acknowledgement of band as an activity worthy of granting curricular "standing in Music" was the impetus for the initial growth of school band programs in Alberta.