Re: Is the Tuba a Solo Instrument??????


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Posted by JRTapes on January 11, 2000 at 17:42:52:

In Reply to: Is the Tuba a Solo Instrument?????? posted by Erik on January 11, 2000 at 07:33:46:

I think your question is the same one I had back in college, and it made me stop playing the tuba. All of the tubas I had heard up until that time were muddy and nondescript. Not until I heard the Canadian Brass in person did I think the instrument had a chance.After that experience I decided there was one good tuba player in the world. ( I guess I led a sheltered life)

I've only recently started buying tuba solo CD's. I enjoy Patrick Sheridan's Lollipops a lot. But to get to the next level we will have to break away from the sound of a tuba with piano, and make a "commercial" sound, ala Kenny G. or whatever.

I also agree with the idea of range. Cuturally or genetically, we seem to favor higher pitches. The baritone voice analogy is also what I think of as the tuba's voice. A baritone vocal sound can be beautiful, if done well. Perhaps another analogy might be to compare a mezzo-soprano with a lyric or collatura(?). The higher voices always seem to get the first acceptance. If a trumpet player and a tuba player played the same piece, and they both ended on the very highest note they could play, the audience would jump to their feet to applaud the trumpet, and maybe politely nod at the tuba.

That being said, I agree with the programming thoughts. It may seem dull to us, but my last year in college, a professor told us graduating seniors " the audience may not know what they like, but they always like what they know." If you want to be successful, and you want to get asked back, be sure to play something recognizable. Most audiences have no idea about tuba literature, and they don't care how well it is played. They want to relate to the music and the performer.


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