1st Bn East Surrey Regt pre war
 

Three Regimental Provost and a bugler of 2Bn East Surrey Regt (my grandfather with lanyard) in Gibraltar in the early 1930's.

Its not a lanyard, they are Bugle cords.

It seems he was a bugler.

regards

Drummer Buglers were, I think still are, called Drummers in the army and buglers in the Royal Marines.

James,

The appointment of Bugler in the British Army goes back into history and in the 1880's they were recognised with their own badge of appointment, a bugle worn on the right upper arm.

Mostly used in Light Infantry and Rifle Regiments but also in other Line Infantry Regiments too.

Similar appointments and badges exist for Drummer, Trumpeter and Piper.

regards

Not interested in an argument. My grandfather was a drummer in the East Surrey Regt and was also a bugler. In the Royal Marines Band Service and line infantry regiments, drummers are called buglers and, in infantry regiments, usually form the SF machine gun platoon. Here is a different photo of my grandfather, a drummer bugler, wearing a drummer badge not a bugle.

Not interested either

You are absolutely correct James, regular infantry battalions most commonly had the appointment of “drummer”, apart from light infantry and rifle regiments (in a minority overall), which had bugler. Those Territorial Force/Army battalions that originated from the old volunteer rifle corps sometimes (but not always) also used the appointment bugler purely as a historical thread connecting to their origins. The appointment of drummer is much older than bugler and so to be strictly correct protocol wise, when they are massed the correct designation is drums and bugles, or drums and pipes. The drummers were trained to use fife and bugle in addition to drum and sounded daily routines that demarcated the infantryman’s day as laid down by standing orders. Conversely light infantry and rifles buglers were trained only on the bugle, although naturally they commonly sounded it especially well due not least to the singular focus placed upon it.