Posted by Jay Bertolet on January 05, 2003 at 10:57:33:
In Reply to: I need advice on buying a tuba posted by Brandon E on January 05, 2003 at 03:15:08:
As someone who has been on both sides of this fence, I'll comment on the basic premise you're working under, that of playing everything on a 5/4 CC. It is well documented that I've purchased a Nirschl York 6/4 CC almost three years ago. Before that I owned a Cerveny 601 5/4 (they call it a 5/4, I always thought it qualified as a 6/4 because it is every bit as large as what they call 6/4 tubas these days). These two horns are the largest tubas I've ever owned. I went through college and the first 15 years on the job with a Rudy 4/4 CC as my primary instrument. While I owned the Cerveny 601 for almost 10 years, I hardly ever used it. The volume of sound was just too large for the music director we had here during that time. I bought the Nirschl very near the end of his tenure and he never objected to it. He also never said he liked it so I have no idea what his bottom line assessment was of the horn.
Since his departure, I've been using my Nirschl for most everything I do. Let's define exactly what that is. I play in a major symphony, with a section of very accomplished brass players, and in an orchestra that puts out a very large amount of sound. In this environment, a large tuba has some advantages. What else do I do? Mostly teach at the local colleges. Does the horn matter there at all? No. Every now and then, maybe 5 or 6 times a year, I play with our brass quintet. Do I use the Nirschl then? No. For that, I use a Miraphone 184 CC. I played two midnight masses this last Christmas Eve and I brought my Miraphone to use on those services. In retrospect, it was a mistake. Combining a good brass quintet (5 professional players all pumping out a good amount of sound) with very loud organs in both churches meant that I had to really push that Miraphone. I was able to play plenty loud but it was a lot of work. Next time I'll bring my Rudy 4/4 so that I won't have to push so much to balance the organ.
Basically that's all the playing I do. When was the last time I did a solo? I think it was 5 years ago, on a faculty recital at FIU. Before that? The 1989 Southeast Regional Tuba Conference. Before that? College. Do you get the picture? I just don't have a call to play solo work. Besides, of the three solo pieces I played on those occasions, only one of them (the Penderecki Capriccio) was done on a CC tuba. All the rest were done on Eb. The only other solo playing I'm doing is in a practice room. Would I use the Nirschl on solos? I'm hard pressed to imagine anything but the most basic solos that I'd use that horn on. Granted, playing something like Carnival of Venice on the Nirschl might be pretty impressive but I think it would be quite a bit of work. I haven't tried any yet but I would think the only solos that would work really well on this horn would be things that didn't have a bunch of technical fireworks. In technical pieces, the horn's size and size of sound would become a disadvantage.
To graduate from college these days, you have to demonstrate a thorough knowledge of both solo and ensemble literature. Unless you have a good bass tuba (Eb or F) to back up your 5/4 CC, how're you going to do that? People thought I was nuts playing the Kraft Encounters II on my Rudy 4/4 CC. Most opted to do it on F. I never liked the piece on a bass tuba (same thing with the Penderecki) but even I can see the folly in doing such a piece on a big 5/4 CC. I would think having only a large 5/4 or 6/4 CC tuba would limit what you can do in terms of solo playing. Some pieces would either be a horrific struggle on the big horn or a challenge to make sound really good on the bass tuba, if you had one.
I don't know that I'd say that buying your only horn as a 5/4 CC is a "stupid thing to do". But it will mean a lot more work for you. My opinion is that there will be certain things you won't be able to do satisfactorily at all. I have a student right now who has a Rudy 5/4 CC as his only contrabass tuba. He also has a really nice Yamaha F to go with it and his options are pretty solid. Of course, he's in a conservatory setting and is playing mostly orchestral stuff, with some solo and brass quintet thrown in. Sound familiar? I believe he uses his F in the chamber ensembles and I haven't heard him use his 5/4 on any solo works. That sounds about right to me. Of note, the 5/4 Rudy seems to match him extremely well so he might be a tad more flexible in the application of this instrument than others I've heard. You won't know that about you until you try and do some of this stuff on the actual horn you're contemplating.
My advice would be to take some of the music you expect to play on the horn you purchase with you when you try the horn out. Hopefully that will give you some idea of what kind of work you'll have to do to make any horn you purchase work. Unless your individual case warrants a larger tuba as an option, I'd suggest trying to find a somewhat smaller horn for your primary. 4/4 horns are generally a bit more flexible in their use, they'll be able to function with more of the solo repertoire than larger tubas, and they'll be of use in chamber settings as well. Unless you see yourself only playing in larger ensembles in the short term, it seems to me like a mistake to buy such a big horn that won't really match the type of playing you're doing right now. It's worth pointing out that if my newer contrabass tubas suddenly disappeared tomorrow, I could still comfortably do all my playing on my Rudy CC. I functioned that way for many years before I started branching out into other styles (and sizes) of contrabass tubas. I think if you're patient and give yourself time to determine exactly what type of playing you want to do in the long term, you can always add the larger horn options later.
Whatever you decide to do, please be very thorough in your testing of horns. Pick the ones that match you the best and produce the sounds you want to hear. Good luck!
My opinion for what it's worth...