Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Best Smaller CC


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Posted by Joseph on April 22, 2003 at 11:42:01:

In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Best Smaller CC posted by Hank on April 20, 2003 at 19:05:49:

Hank,

I understand what you are getting at but I think you are making a mountain out of a molehill. As long as the response of a horn is even and the intonation isn't enough to require anything more than mild lipping and the player is competent and in shape it shouldn't require the player any more thought than it takes to pick up the horn and bring it to his/her lips. Many pros routinely switch between a Yorkbrunner and a rotor F without a lick of trouble. I can think of no two horns that are more different in terms of blow. I would actually encourage the original poster to look for a more german small CC to compliment the BAT so as to have a sound that is notably different from the BAT. Taking the time to learn the mildly different blow of a rotor horn will only make him/her stronger and more versatile as a player and won't take all that long to do. Once you learn this skill it is like riding a bike.. it's yours forever. Transitions are effortless.

Soap box alter:
You write: "who needs to focus on the music, not wrestle instruments"
Once again I appreciate the sentiment but how do you know when the horn really is just a hassle to play and when you just need to learn the d*mn horn and stop making excuses. At conventions it is very common to see college hot shots pick up perfectly amazing horns sound like poop and then declare authoritatively that there is something wrong with the horn. I don't claim to know the answers but I'm very skeptical of anyone including myself knowing in five minutes whether or not a horn is great. The best players(spending more time in the practice room) gel with more horns more quickly and this to me is really indicative of where most of our time should be spent. It's worth pointing out that 99% of tuba players that have never played a BAT and didn't have any preconcieved notions of what kind of horn it is would probably turn their nose up at the playability of a Yorkbrunner and complain that they take too much air. If you are good enough to be winning orchestral jobs then switching between a piston BAT and a german rotor should be completely a non-issue. At that point your only concern becomes does it make the sound that you want. *IF* there are other horns that also fill the sound niche that you are looking for *then* playability becomes a factor.

That's what I think anyhow,
joseph 'focus on the music and *stop* wrestling the horn' felton


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