Posted by Barry Guerrero on November 06, 2002 at 10:58:10:
In Reply to: Re: british players posted by jeff on November 06, 2002 at 09:31:42:
I'd like to believe all that. However, when I listen to recordings of the Philharmonia (London), I can barely hear the guy behind the tuba. They're touted as being on of the best orchestras in the world, but I have a lot of complaints about both their low brass, and percussion sections. That orchestra seems very mid-range and top heavy to me, and their percussion section seems addicted to making soft, swooshy noises. I've been listening to their ongoing Mahler series with Benjamin Zander (Telarc), among other things, and I really have a problem hearing the guy behind the tuba. I hear some of the same problems with the LPO (London Phil.), but less so with the LSO (London Symphony). Why are the double bass sections often times so weak there?
Anyway, I'm getting away from the topic. I believe that there's a reason that many tubaists are steered towards large equipment for orchestral playing, and that it's not just some sort of fad or something. In Mahler, it's just one guy pitted against a huge orchestra (in most cases), with the tuba being treated as some sort of super bass. I once saw the RPO (Royal Phil.) do Mahler 5 in San Francisco. The guy used his B&H EEb. Yes, he could play the piece OK, but it just sounded undersized and strained to my ears. In all honesty, I'm saying this as someone who only owns one Eb tuba at the moment, so I'm not predjudiced against Eefers at all. My two cents, if it's worth anything.
Barry Guerrero