Posted by Pat on December 06, 2002 at 23:22:04:
In Reply to: What horn for Tubachristmas and Why posted by Jeff Hicks on December 05, 2002 at 07:56:15:
I play an old 4-valve Josef Lidl oval euphonium at TubaChristmas with a Bach 3 or 6 1/2 mouthpiece, jury-rigged with some extra tubing so that it can tune with an ensemble (it must have been designed to the old Austro-Hungarian high A, because the open note on it is just about B-natural even with the main slide all the way out). It's easier to handle in a crowd than a CC piggy tuba, sounds pretty good, and, while I treat it with respect, it's in a condition in which new dents are not conspicuous. Plus it's sort of a curiosity and people ask about it.
A real euphonium player probably wouldn't say this but, being normally a tuba player, I find both euphonium parts very challenging and a bit strenuous. Starting out, I can usually play either part for a couple of the songs and then my mouth starts to swell up so that it's hard to continue as written. By new year I almost have decent euphonium chops. But then it's back to tuba.