If you had the money - your dream tuba!

[tmuabxa]

I would go out and buy the Meinl Weston 5450 "Thor"
I got a chance to play on one and it's like OMG.

[peter birch]

I really like my courtois 181 but my dream instrument would
hold a low Bb for 25 bars without me having to take a breath,
have a range of 5 octaves and finally have absolutely no wrong notes in it.

[Billy M.]

But what could King and Co. use for American-English?

Gotta think of some American folklore characters and/or animals.

How about the "Paul Bunyan Model"...?

Other "American" models...

John Henry (The Hammer or Nine Pound Hammer)


The list could be endless.

Doc

Would the John Henry model be the equivalent of the THOR by MW and the Paul Bunyan to the MW Baer?

[Lee Stofer]

I think I'd just use what I have, (Rudolf Meinl F, King Cleveland sousa, Olds/Reynolds 5/4 BBb) and be thankful for it. I might buy a 4/4 CC.

If suddenly money was no object whatsoever, then there are three things I'd like to do;

1) donate good tubas to deserving students in need, so they can have their dream tuba.

2) with the help of several colleagues, view and measure the Chicago Yorks, get every bit of information about them that I can, have several manufacturers make some parts for me, and then assemble about 50 really, really authentic York copies, original quirks and all. For all the hoopla about the different copies being made, I think that there are a couple of factors that they are missing, although it is right under their nose. Yes, I'd probably keep one of them! And, since I'm living about 10 miles from the William Cody Homestead, maybe we could call it the "Buffalo Bill" model. At any rate, this area near the mighty Mississippi River has a lot of bald eagles, so like the earliest Yorks, it would probably have an eagle engraved on the bell.

3) get a better lathe and a milling machine, take some classes, buy materials, then start making and selling accurate reproduction Conn .730" 4-front-piston valvesets and reproduction York .750"/.810" valvesets. If these valvesets were available at a reasonable price, a lot of old tuba bodies could become wonderful players again, or better than they ever were before.

[ZNC Dandy]

Melton 198 or Walter Hilgers personal Bohland and Fuchs. Probably a Gronitz FZ126 (the big rotary F) Probably a Viennese F as well.

[Art Hovey]

This is the fiberglass Martin that Rick D. snagged out from under me at the Army Tuba Conference. (I thought I could take my time.) If I had the $ I would have one like that made out of Carbon Fiber with a Meinl-Weston valve set.

[Casey Tucker]

mmm after TMEA it got me thinkin' about some things that could be done to make a really cool horn.

there was a stand called Austin Trumpets that used titanium pistons (not the casings) to cut down on the weight. this struck me as a good idea. the horns sounded good (not just to me but to the trumpet players in my brass quintet) and were amazingly fast. i also like the pistons from trumpets in general. i like that it's one big part (spring and everything combined) instead of having individual parts. this would cut on misallignment between springs and pistons when oiling valves.i also have a problem w/ "condensation" (i.e. SPIT) coming out of the back valve caps and collecting in my lap. so if i had the money to have a horn custom made for me i would:

-have a york wrap similar to that of the nirschl but have it scaled down to a 5/4
-have the lead pipe go in directly to the valve block much like the MW 2157
-have a Thor valve block/set up
-valves like a trumpets and made of lightweight, durable titanium
-those nifty water collecting things that willson puts on their euphoniums on my valve caps
-NO water keys
-silver plated and delivered w/ an MTS hard case and a Cronkite (spelling is horrid) custom bag.

even though some of these things might not be feasible, a boy can dream!

-casey

[OldsRecording]

Firstly, I would like to have that Martin 4v Eb back that I sold when I was a kid, and then I would be very happy with a Mirafone 186 or MW 25.

[tubacdk]

MW Baer CC
my Nirschl 4/4 CC
early vintage Mirafone 188 CC
Rudy 3/4 CC (the one I used to own )
pre-PT B&S F
my Gronitz PF125

[Rick Denney]

This is the fiberglass Martin that Rick D. snagged out from under me at the Army Tuba Conference. (I thought I could take my time.) If I had the $ I would have one like that made out of Carbon Fiber with a Meinl-Weston valve set.

Well, heckfire, I didn't know you were sniffing around the same tree.

Rick "who didn't exactly run to his checkbook" Denney

[BriceT]

Meinl Weston "Thor"

B&S 606P Silver Plate

HB-50

Arnold Jacob's York!

[Steve Inman]

leiderhosen

You want unfortunatepants? That sounds hard to make.

Okay -- since NOBODY picked up on this ....

HA HA HA HA HA !!!!

Now, THAT'S funny!

(hint: what an unfortunate spelling ....)

Cheers,

[bort]

My twist to the question...what if you had a "big" budget (say $10,000), and had to spend it ALL on tubas (instruments only, no cases, bags, shipping, etc.).

Would you get:

- 1 "holy crap" contrabass tuba
OR
- 1 nice contrabass tuba and 1 nice bass tuba?

(I realize there are many factors to this, just looking for gut reactions.)

[Rick Denney]

My twist to the question...what if you had a "big" budget (say $10,000)...Would you get:

- 1 "holy crap" contrabass tuba
OR
- 1 nice contrabass tuba and 1 nice bass tuba?

One advantage to being a "Bb amateur" is that our dreams are a little easier to afford, even when we dream big. Thus, your budget was plenty for purchasing any of the following pairs:

York Master BBb and Yamaha 621 F.

Holton BB-345 (even with current repair work included) and B&S Symphonie F.

York Master BBb and B&S Symphonie F.

Holton BB-345 and Yamaha 621 F.

In fact, I would only have blown your budget by a few hundred bucks to buy either of my larger contrabasses and BOTH of my Fs. Or either of my contrabasses and a new Firebird.

I submit that any of the above pairs would satisfy the needs of any working pro (I'm not saying they would be their favorites, of course). Those instruments or instruments just like them have already done duty in high-end situations with some success. I would put both my contrabasses in the "holy crap" category for Bb instruments, at least compared to the range of Bb instruments I have played. There are a couple of C contrabasses (just a couple) that have extended the boundary of "holy crap" for me, but they exceeded your budget all by themselves.

In the C world, it's a little harder. But since nearly ALL the solo literature for tuba is intended for an F or Eb, I would think it pretty hard to get through a performance degree without one. Sure, guys with the chops can play it on a small C, but it's sub-optimal in the same way that playing a small C is sub-optimal in a large ensemble. It takes more work.

That said, when I observed the Ohio State Wind Ensemble two weeks ago (my niece was the principal bassoonist that night), they performed the de Meij Lord of the Rings symphony, and played the snot out of it. I was hugely impressed. The tuba section included four, and all four had what appeared from my distance to be high-end front-action piston C's, of the 5/4 size like PT-6P's or Gronitz PCK's. So it would appear that it's tough to compete using the sensible choice, which is something like a Miraphone 186 or Meinl-Weston 32 and a used B&S. And we should recognize that it is competition.

(I would also note that my niece's bassoon--just one instrument--substantially exceeded your budget. So maybe we don't have it so bad.)

But short of competition at that level, I would be more fulfilled studying tuba with a Miraphone 186 and a B&S Symphonie than with a PT-6P and no F. Playing orchestral literature even on the biggest F would be a struggle, and playing the solo literature even on a small C would take more work. Thus, to compete at the highest level, your budget isn't big enough, unless you are extremely fortunate to find great instruments that go cheap because they are old or ugly (or don't have a fifth valve), or you are so good that you can still outplay the competition on the instruments you can afford. The good news is that even at twice your budget, the tubas are less expensive than even a budget-minded new car. So, walk or ride a bike and set priorities.

Rick "for whom hearing four tuba players play in time and in tune is a rare treat" Denney

[The Big Ben]

Dream?

1. A tuba I can play in tune. That one's up to me. I should be able to play my 2340 King in tune with a little pulling and pushing of slides.

2. A bass tuba. I like the 'high' sound of tuba and something on the order of a Norwegian Star or some sort of small F tuba might be nice.

3. Just because it is cool: The biggest German Kaiser tuba I can find. Just f'n' huge. I'd put it on and stand and play it as loud as I could.

4. Again, just because it's cool: A Martin BAT with recording bell, toploading three-banger. I'd mount it on a stand and play sea shanties in duet with the fog horn.

I guess I have different needs to the rest of youse guys.

Jeff "Amuse me..." Benedict

[ken k]

My twist to the question...what if you had a "big" budget (say $10,000), and had to spend it ALL on tubas (instruments only, no cases, bags, shipping, etc.).

Would you get:

- 1 "holy crap" contrabass tuba
OR
- 1 nice contrabass tuba and 1 nice bass tuba?

(I realize there are many factors to this, just looking for gut reactions.)

I would buy 3 St Petersburgs!

the elusive Besson CC!

Well maybe not, how about a Willson Eb!
and then a smaller Eb like a Besson 983, that would be over 10k but I could sell my present horns to make the deal go through!
ken k

[iiipopes]

I play in a community band. I play in a Shrine band. I do outdoor gigs. I have a day job at a desk. My "professional" gigs, which were mostly on bass guitar and not brass, are probably mostly behind me, since with my blood clotting issues, I can't stand up for three hour gigs on a regular basis anymore. So I have my dream tubas:

1) My Besson for my personal pleasure, small ensembles where I'm the only tuba player, and small rooms, as the good overtone structure keeps me in tune and blending where a really dark tuba would not. It has perfect intonation, (or will have again after I get a couple of leaks fixed) and so what if a couple of notes are stuffy. Nobody out front can tell.

2) For concert band, my Miraphone. The reputation of a Miraphone 186 BBb for concert band use in section is well deserved, and I appreciate it more each season. I have the detachable bell version, and it has had an upright St Pete bell fitted to it. I have the recording bell as well. It's a shorter bell, so in addition to having Dan Schulz make me a longer tuning slide to offset it, it effectively has a wider throat and less flare, making it darker toned and the perfect foundation to both brass and woodwind. My band director loves it, and actually commented as such from the podium, which he is not prone to do. Usually quite the opposite, if you know what I mean. With my Wick 1L, I can get as dark, broad and "warm fuzzy" as you want, and/or get the "old style" Martin, Holton 356 or Conn 2XJ type of tone (just not quite as "big") that he was brought up with. With my Kelly 18, I can get all the projection and core you would ever need outdoors to keep everything together. Best of all, being a rotary, I have been able to have my tech adjust and reposition the leadpipe and receiver angle for my height and slight overbite, the thumb ring, and the length angle and height set of the paddles to be perfectly tailored to my individual ergonomics so I don't have to fiddle with anything; I can just pick up and play.

3) I am unashamed and unabashed: I love a good souzy for outdoors. I found a pre-WWII Conn 20k in the basement of my undergrad and offered to fix it up for them. All it needed was a receiver repair, unstuck slides and general cleaning. It has the wide throat to get great tone, but only a 24 inch bell, instead of the current standard 26 inch bell. This is actually better, because it tightens the tone a little bit, and it is much easier to manage physically both indoors and out. It is older than offset valves, so it has the standard valve block, so repairs will never be an issue should a mishap occur. It even has the flange on the bugle to distribute the load across the shoulder rather than the bugle just digging into the shoulder. They said I could keep it until they needed it. OK -- the college does not have a football program. They do not have a marching band. They do not do outdoor concerts. You know what I'm getting at.

But the final discourse to all of this: there is no one perfect tuba. If I played any orchestra, I'd have a whole different set of criteria, depending on the size of the orchestra and repertoire, and a whole different wish list for tuba.