Re: 3-valve Eb/low range/function?


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Posted by Bill on December 14, 2000 at 07:25:11:

In Reply to: 3-valve Eb/low range/function? posted by Jason on December 14, 2000 at 00:53:31:

I play Eb in the Georgia Brass Band. I have a Willson EEb that I use for that purpose but I also own a Conn 1912 very large 3 valve EEb. The Willson, of course, has 5 valves. How do they compare? I play mostly the upper Eb part where there are divisi notes and, in doing that, I have never encountered a part I could not play on either horn. The intonation on the COnn is pretty good but I can play better intonation on the Willson for most notes. If I were playing the lower divisi on the Conn, I would work harder but I could still do it only occasionally using the under priviledged tones, The Bb tuba parts are quite different and never come in to my view in the Brass Band literature. In an ordinary wind band,the upper divsi notes are always playable on the Eb.

I find that the Eb tuba, in Brass Band literature is used more like an English Horn is used orchetral literature than as a bass voice. When used on a bass line, it is a reinforcement, usually. But it is more often used to color a motif or to play a counterline to some other melody. To that end, it complements the baritones more than the euphoniums, the flugel, more than the cornets. But, often, composers and arrangers use it to write an upper octave bass voice and don't exploit its unique charater at all.


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