brass band

American

noun

Music.

a band made up principally of brass wind instruments.

brass band British

noun

See band 1

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

brass band Cultural

A musical group composed of brass and percussion instruments. Sometimes called marching bands, brass bands often play at athletic events and military exercises and in parades.

Etymology

Origin of brass band

First recorded in 1825–35

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Mobile being the site of America’s first Mardi Gras celebration in 1703, a brass band led a second line march.

From The Wall Street Journal

Posters from the same brass bands I knew from home hung outside music venues.

From The Wall Street Journal

All of a sudden, a brass band appeared, goading the star into a few bars of his song.

From BBC

Alongside the orchestra was a brass band, 120 strong.

From The Wall Street Journal

Other highlights of the year included a stage production of the Railway Children inside an engine shed, Bradford-born artist David Hockney's work recreated using drones and a celebration of local brass bands.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023