Posted by Brian Paul on April 01, 1999 at 01:57:29:
In Reply to: TUBA posted by Brian Paul on March 30, 1999 at 07:03:23:
I realize that my figures are bogus.I invented them as as I was writing.I guess I should have made that clearer because I only used them to try to quantify the situation,which is impossible given the fact that there is not a tuba census.
Let's say that there are 20 players in the visible part of a college tuba section(marching band. If five are music majors(comp,ed,performance,biz,or whatever)then they will probably be involved in some sort of solo performance situation during college,either because of a specific degree's requirements,or at the behset of the professor of tuba as part of the well-rounded liberal education of a music major.When there are recitals,who shows up?
Does anyone like playing to rectial halls containing only family,friends,S.O.'s,a few professors,and the non-major survey of music students that are too honest to take a program and fake a report about the concert?It has been my experience that those people don't amount to much compared to the size of a recital hall.If a local chapter can help bring in more people,even if it just the blue-haired old women and a few high school kids, then why not?
It doesn't take much to make a $20 annual membership (the student group rate) worthwhile to a student.
Have your OcTubaFests, TubaChristmases, a few recitals, a major clinician or two each year, a party at the end of each semester.Recruit high school kids and their band directors,local amateurs,and other interested people so it isn't just college students.
People,especially young people,like social events that put them in contact with other like-minded people.If you make it attractive enough to cause people to forget the price involved,then it could work.
My basic idea was to form TUBA student groups at as many major univeristies as possible.Use these to recruit people into regional chapters that are composed of the student groups at several universities and all other interested people in the region.After the regional chapters are formed and provide a support base for TUBA events,then the student groups can go the way of the dodo,(which will happen to most of them as the charter members graduate,the sponsoring professors move on or retire,and time passes).
Once the regional chapter is on sound footing it won't need student groups to support it,just the students to be members.(I am disregarding having to keep the student groups alive so that the universities can officially sanction events).
My idea isn't something that would happen in a year,more likely it would take a decade or more.But,it is an avenue that TUBA should explore.
BTW it would work best in places with a lot of people,strong secondary music education programs,several universities, and where the professors and students at the universities can work together successfully.I'll let everyone know if it works in a few years after we see how it works for us,and how it works best.