ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a short history of that arousal in European leftist movements in the twentieth century and shows how such earlier versions provided a precedent for the eventual rise of activist brass bands in the US under the HONK! banner. In addition to some American precursors, the sudden growth of bands in the streets seen in the HONK! movement has some of its roots in the difficult history of post-war Europe. Out of necessity, the early European bands developed the model that most HONK! bands later would, serving at the same time as performing unit, educational opportunity, and social club. In England, the celebrated British brass bands, founded as recreational/cultural activities for miners, were deployed in support of various mineworker’s actions. George McKay reports that many of the Westbrook Brass Bands’ early performances took place “outside the accepted jazz circuit – at communist gatherings, housing estates, outside factories as well as at theater and community festivals”.
