Samuel L. Potter (1772–1838) was a British
drum major in the
Band of the Coldstream Guards and an influential fife and drum manual author.
Biography
Potter was born in 1772 and in 1786, at the age of 14, he enlisted in the
Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards. In 1800 he published a set of slow
marches
In medieval Europe, a march or mark was, in broad terms, any kind of borderland, as opposed to a state's "heartland". More specifically, a march was a border between realms or a neutral buffer zone under joint control of two states in which diffe ...
,
waltz
The waltz ( , meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom dance, ballroom and folk dance, in triple (3/4 time, time), performed primarily in closed position. Along with the ländler and allemande, the waltz was sometimes referred to by the ...
es and
quickstep
The quickstep is a light-hearted dance of the standard ballroom dances. The movement of the dance is fast and powerfully flowing and sprinkled with syncopations. The upbeat melodies that quickstep is danced to make it suitable for both formal ...
s. By 1815, Potter had ascended to the rank of Head Regimental Drum Major. During his service he was unhappy with the training and quality of the musical recruits coming into the regiment. He took it upon himself to write
bugle
The bugle is a simple signaling brass instrument with a wide conical bore. It normally has no valves or other pitch-altering devices, and is thus limited to its natural harmonic notes, and pitch is controlled entirely by varying the air a ...
,
fife
Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...
, and drum manuals to train his musicians. In 1817 he published three books: ''The Art of Beating the Drum''; ''The Art of Playing the Fife'' and ''The Bugle Horn Major's Companion.'' His drum manual was especially influential in both Britain and America, with its legacy easily identified in such works as Walter F. Smith's 1897 manual ''Instructions for Trumpet and Drum'' and V.F. Safranek's 1916 publication ''Complete Instruction Manual for Bugle, Trumpet, and Drum'', which both feature
drum rudiment
In ''rudimental drumming'', a form of percussion music, a drum rudiment is one of a number of relatively small patterns which form the foundation for more extended and complex drumming patterns. The term "drum rudiment" is most closely associ ...
s and calls that are obviously taken from Potter's work. Potter set up an instrument-making shop in King Street, Westminster in 1810 where he made horns, bugles, drums, trumpets, and fifes for military use under his son Henry's (b. 1810) name. Military rules prevented him from establishing his own company. He resigned from the Guards in 1817 after 30 years of service to run his business. Henry followed his father into the instrument making business and became a well-known flute-maker and owner of
Henry Potter & Co. Ltd with his brother William. Samuel's third son George opened his own military instrument making shop and founded the company George Potter & Co., which bought his brothers' business in 1918 and continues to produce instruments in
Aldershot
Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...
under the Henry Potter name.
Publications
* ''A Sett of New Slow Marches, Waltzes, and Quicksteps for Fifes and Bugle Horns etc.''
* ''Method for Playing the Fife''
* ''The Art of Beating the Drum''
* ''The Art of Playing the Fife''
* ''The Bugle Horn Major's Companion''
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Potter, Samuel
1772 births
1838 deaths
19th-century male musicians