Decency in the discussions of heavy caps


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Posted by Klaus on June 18, 2001 at 10:19:36:

All of you know I have kept a quite high profile in the discussion on heavy caps. Which in my pistons tuba/sousa situation is translated to the use of a mouthpiece weight used on my PT-50.

Personally I go for a large bore, open leadpipe, expanded backbore, giant mouthpiece cup set-up. This allows for the free and unrestricted airflow, that my very sore lungs need.

But the flip side of such a set-up can be a slight lack of focus. Reinterpreted that could be called a content of unwanted out-of-tune overtones and a lack of tonal core.

A personal anecdote might illustrate my point.

During a stay in Copenhagen in the summer of 1998 I learned about the Yeo signature bass bone mpc. Bought it immediately. The only problem, was that my mouthpiece weight, used on the Schilke 60, had to be adapted, as the Yeo goes very far into my King 7B bassbone receiver. Hence I did not use the weight, as I doubled on bassbone and euph in a local band.

Fate had its way that a former student and then current band fellow died shortly thereafter. As I was/am a friend of the family I arranged the favourite tune of the deceased (Amazing Graze) for a holidays season situation, where nobody could know how many band members would appear at the funeral. Hence I placed the lead with cornerstones. My own euph being one of them, the single one in the tenor range.

The outdoor playing was extremely hard for me without the mpc weight, as I sensed none of the ressonance and projection I was used to in such situations.

So I fixed the mouthpiece weigth by filing a groove for the King finger ring. And everything has been happy ever after.

Back to my main point: There are other playing styles than mine, generally used by players that are physically stronger than me.

When I see the pics of the beautiful Eb York helicon, which I more than once have linked to, then I from the bare pics of the leadpipe can see, that this instrument is too resistant for my use. The high resistance of the leadpipe has been confirmed by its maker. And he is a confessed player of medium to small mouthpieces.

So demanding exactly this player, repairman, inventor, and much more to express his opinions on the heavy valve caps is very unfair. He never needs anything like that for his own playing.

What should be a hallmark of this board is, that we inspire each others across needs, styles, levels, ambitions, and goals in tuba playing. But no boarder shout be ridiculed for not taking part in threads beyond his interests.

Klaus


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