Posted by Klaus on June 12, 2002 at 07:41:39:
In Reply to: Alternate Fingerings posted by New F Tuba Player on June 12, 2002 at 06:15:37:
Guess that is LZ, who shall be congratulated to his new tuba?
All brasses call for compromises in their tuning. Conical low brasses often call for even more compromises.
Your 1 valve loop has been kept short to avoid extreme flatness of your top space G.
So for the problematic low D you must consider some strategies.
Fortunately 2&5 does not work, as that would have proved your 5 valve loop being far too short.
That leaves the 3rd valve as the most obvious solution. As it is sharp, start out testing how much you can fix the tuning by lowering and protruding your lower jaw (and to some degree the same goes for your abdomen). If the D still is sharp, then try to pull the 3rd slide a bit. Be sure that it is not pulled so much, that the 2&3 series goes impossibly flat elsewhere through the range.
To keep a reasonable minor second between the notes fingered 1&2 and 2&3 it might be necessary also to pull the 2nd slide a tiny bit.
Klaus