Posted by Barry Guerrero on October 29, 2002 at 00:56:19:
In Reply to: Finding an Eefer posted by Matt Goosen on October 28, 2002 at 22:20:30:
I have to warn you about the Willson. Apparently, it's not for everybody. It was probably THE most ergonomically uncomfortable horn I've ever tried to play. I have long legs, but a relatively short torso. When I sat the Willson comfortably in my lap, the m.p. receiver pointed straight into my forehead. I would have had to either get the leadpipe lowered at least four inches, or used a playing stand. I don't have long thumbs, and honestly had problems depressing all five valves at once. For me, the fifth valve throw was located way too far back. I would have had to either move it forward several inches, or glue a big cork on to the thumb throw itself. Given how complicated low end fingerings can be on a 5-valve Eb tuba, I would have had the 5th valve slide stocking extended to sound the low tritone "A"-natural, a half step below the 4th valve Bb. That's the set-up that's available on the Gronitz Eb, and it works really well. I also found the first valve slide to be an awkward reach. I would have had an extention rod soldered on to the 2nd valve slide, which would have been easier to get at. The thing weighed a ton, and I didn't care for its stove pipe bell either. I also found the high range to be a lot more work than it is on the 983. If I wanted to go for this kind of horn, I think I would have searched for a really good 3/4 CC instead.
While I can't say that the Willson was "out of tune" per se, neither did anything quite sound right to me either. All of the octaves seemed to be in a different place than where they should have been, and thus, all of the notes in between the octaves seemed slightly out of whack as well. Other people may have a totally different experience with this issue. The 983 that I now own, sounds much better in tune to my ears. My guess is that it was just not one of the best Willson Eefers ever to have been made, is all. I was told that the Willson Eb is mouthpiece sensitive, but I don't believe in that. I didn't care for it regardless of what m.p. I stuck in it. The 983, on the other, seems to blow with any old m.p. shoved in there. Perhaps truly great horns are m.p. sensitive, but I'm not going to invest the time and money to find out. Like everyone, I already own a big arsenal of m.p.'s.
By all means, don't discount the Willson Eb. However, I would advise you to try one first. I think I could have made the Willson work fine for me, if I had had another 1K to invest in modifications (and perhaps the correct m.p., whatever that might have been). I didn't. Instead, I found someone who was willing to trade the Willson for a 983, and we're both happy campers. The moral of the story: regardless of the hardships involved, try before you buy. I had to learn that lesson the hard way.
Again, if you're looking a single, all purpose horn, don't discount a good 3/4 CC. You'll certainly find the low end fingerings a lot easier. What if you got called to do Mahler 5 out of the blue? (I know, it's unlikely).
Barry Guerrero