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British Brass Band: playing Eb tuba part on Eb tuba

Posted: Sun Mar 27, 2022 9:13 pm
by barry grrr-ero
Help! I know you folks have been asked this many times before, but here goes. I'm going to be joining a British style brass band. I'll be playing an Eb tuba part on an Eb tuba. I haven't played Eb tuba in a long while, and I'm worried I'll get confused with F fingerings from Cimbasso.

Worse, the parts are in treble clef and have been transposed up a major 6th (or down a minor 3rd, same difference). I've been told that one solution is to read the part as though it were bass clef and add three flats to the signature. OK, that makes sense. I've also been told that you can simply think in terms of CC tuba fingerings (in treble clef, I presume). Is that correct? . . . read it as treble clef and think of CC tuba fingerings?

Barry - holy crap! - Guerrero

Re: British Brass Band: playing Eb tuba part on Eb tuba

Posted: Mon Mar 28, 2022 12:17 am
by GC
The bass clef trick works, but you still have to deal with accidentals. TC F# is BC A♮; TC C# is BC E♮, and so on.

I recommend buying a beginning and intermediate trumpet book and just getting used to TC fingerings. And get used to playing in sharps. Don't be hesitant to write in fingerings till you get used to it.

Re: British Brass Band: playing Eb tuba part on Eb tuba

Posted: Mon Mar 28, 2022 3:01 am
by GeoffC_UK
http://www.musica-orichalcinus.uk/Eb%20 ... 0sheet.pdf
Go to page 9 of 10 of the linked document, above.

http://www.musica-orichalcinus.uk/bbtub ... gchart.pdf
This may be useful, too.

Don't panic!

G

Re: British Brass Band: playing Eb tuba part on Eb tuba

Posted: Mon Mar 28, 2022 4:57 pm
by FreeBandMusic
Thinking way too much! Take your Eb tuba part and play your Eb tuba with the same fingerings you would use on a trumpet. Or a treble clef baritone part. And don't do anything to the key signature.
John Thompson

Re: British Brass Band: playing Eb tuba part on Eb tuba

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2022 12:45 pm
by barry grrr-ero
Thank you. I printed out the fingering chart and will get it laminated today. I haven't spent much time on treble clef euhponium parts over the years, so it'll still be somewhat new to me. I've read flute music in treble clef, but very little of transposed trumpet parts.

Re: British Brass Band: playing Eb tuba part on Eb tuba

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2022 8:45 pm
by ken k
If you have any experience with trumpet, you basically read it like you were playing trumpet.

I play bass clef normally but in the brass band I just think trumpet, because the accidentals can trip you up otherwise.

you will enjoy it immensely!!!!
good luck and have fun!
ken k

Re: British Brass Band: playing Eb tuba part on Eb tuba

Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2022 2:13 am
by barry grrr-ero
Thanks guys. It went pretty darn rough at first, but it get better as rehearsal went along.