Posted by Rick Denney on July 17, 2000 at 16:54:42:
In Reply to: buying a new tuba--high school posted by ken g on July 17, 2000 at 13:55:14:
On the consistency of Miraphones: Some say yes, others say no. There was supposedly a period in the 70's when they were not as good, but I have one from that era an it seems to be a good one. The better the player you are, the more selective you'll be. I doubt that I could tell the difference between similar Miraphones, unless one was a real clunker for some reason.
On the quality of VMI tubas: Yes, they are the real deal. Some like them better than Miraphones, others don't like them quite as well. I've never heard anyone call them junk (as I have with instruments made further east). Personally, I think the Miraphone shows better detailing and construction, but I admit bias in that assessment.
On the usefulness of rotary valves: Yes, they are just fine for high-school players. They may actually be better, because they require less maintenance of the disassembly kind (which is good, because they are much harder to disassemble). Also, the touch-pieces can be (carefully!) bent so that they are very close to each other, and can be made to fit smaller hands than a piston tuba. Esoteric arguments on the musical effects of difference valves, but those arguments are best left for us boring pedants with nothing better to do. A good player can make good music on a good instrument, no matter what kind of valves it has.
Rick "In my experience: Yes, yes, and yes" Denney