Re: Tuba Returnee seeks Eb advice


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Posted by AW on December 22, 2002 at 21:14:58:

In Reply to: Tuba Returnee seeks Eb advice posted by Don Shirer on December 22, 2002 at 00:09:46:

If you want to play contrabass tuba parts, you are probably better off with a contrabass tuba.

I was away from tuba playing for as long as you. I used to play BBb mostly, and some Eb. When I went to get a tuba for serious playing, I thought I would get a BBb. Instead, I fell in love with a particular CC tuba, and bought it. This was my first experience with CC fingerings, and it took me a couple of weeks to get familiar with CC, and a couple of months to get to the point of not even thinking about it. In other words, except for a few initial weeks, the "key" of the tuba was a non-issue.

No, I'm not suggesting you get a CC tuba. There are plenty of good BBb tubas available for good prices. The very cheap 3-valve Eb tubas out there are cheap for a reason! They were used for giving little school kids their first (relatively) low brass playing experience. I've got one of those around -- it's wall-hanger quality -- but even if it were in good shape, I would consider it for an extremely limited set of uses. [As it is, I only bring it out to scare the neighbors.]

Go ahead, try out a real contrabass tuba. Borrow or rent one if you are unsure. Don't worry about the key. After some practice you will wonder what the big deal was about key.

Best of luck from another returnee,
Allen Walker



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