Re: Re: CC or BBb???


[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ TubeNet BBS ] [ FAQ ]

Posted by Joe S. on February 24, 2000 at 01:11:13:

In Reply to: Re: CC or BBb??? posted by Steve Dedman on February 23, 2000 at 23:26:44:

Of course, I am USED to MY CC tuba (once I've owned it for a month or two - I ditch a lot of horns and get different ones, as some of you know.), but I don't feel that necessity of "anticipating" the beat as much on a given CC than on a two feet longer BBb tuba.

The comment about the sound that you made might be valid...

...I started thinking about the "blending" comments: When I find myself playing some concert band gig, as "loud" as bands ARE, still, there are usually two or more tubas, and I NEVER feel obligated to play as loud as I possibly can in a wind band. On the other hand, I recently found myself playing Tchaik 6 in a subscription series with an orchestra. I was going with the "gas pedal" down about "to the floor", and the high D's, etc, were "zinging" out with a lot on "insistance". I hardly ever play like that in a wind band.

Summary: Regardless of the model of tuba, I think that CC tubas might get their reputation of having (were you possibly intimating?) a slightly more "blantant" tone quality in general (quite a generalization, considering all of the different sizes 'n' shapes of these CC gals) than their "sister" BBb's because they generally tend to get pushed to farther volume extremes in public performances.

Man, that sentence above is a MESS. Is this better?: I think that CC tubas, no matter their size, get a reputation for having a more "direct" or "brighter" sound than BBb's because CC's often happen to be played in orchestras and because volume levels of tuba playing are often pushed to more extremes in orchestras, and band tuba playing volume levels are just a wee bit "tamer" (more often utilizing BBb's), because BAND tuba playing is usually SECTION tuba playing. Therefore BBb instruments are (perhaps mistakenly) associated with mellower, darker sounds. This BBb "dark" reputation is reinforced by the fact the wind bands, in general, sound "darker" without the "shimmer" of the violins in a symphony orchestra.

No, that next group of sentences was just as big of a mess. Oh well, someone else state it more clearly...or DISagree, if you can tell what I was trying to say. {:^/)


Follow Ups: