I need help choosing a CC tuba

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CooperBayliff
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Re: I need help choosing a CC tuba

Post by CooperBayliff »

One more question (sorry) i wanted to know about the "hammer" sound. Do they use the term "hammer" just becuase its loud and the tuba is called the thor or does the tuba actually sound different from other tubas?
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Re: I need help choosing a CC tuba

Post by Sousaswag »

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Yeah, it’s pretty easy to make Thors sound nasty, but no easier than any other horn like it. I find smaller horns easier to overblow like that.

Sound is all relative. You need to play a bunch of these things and decide for yourself. Like I said, I owned a wonderful Thor, but I love the way my B&S MRP sounds more than the Thor. Personal preference. I made the switch for the sound.

You may find that you like the way a rotary tuba sounds more than a piston one like I did. Or you may not.

You can only get so much information from here. I don’t like describing sound because I don’t think it’s effective or easy.

My advice to you will echo what has already been said: Talk to your teacher and get yourself somewhere where you can play a lot of different tubas in one place. This is a big investment, and while I was your age and switched horns 4 times, you may or may not be able to. Sometimes it takes a while to find the right fit, but try your best to find that the first time!

Last thing. I’d advise AGAINST a 6/4 York clone. They just make everything harder. Articulation won’t be as clear, I don’t think they’re as in-tune as any Thor or Pt-6, 1293, etc. Better to go with one of these tried and true German instruments that hold their value really well. That’s my thought.
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CooperBayliff
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Re: I need help choosing a CC tuba

Post by CooperBayliff »

Sousaswag wrote: Sat Aug 06, 2022 9:19 pm Last thing. I’d advise AGAINST a 6/4 York clone. They just make everything harder. Articulation won’t be as clear, I don’t think they’re as in-tune as any Thor or Pt-6, 1293, etc. Better to go with one of these tried and true German instruments that hold their value really well. That’s my thought.
Thank you this was actually really helpful
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Re: I need help choosing a CC tuba

Post by royjohn »

I thought I had posted a reply to this, but now I don't see it, so...

I agree with those who think a 6/4 tuba is not the way to go. While it might be best for a few large works in a very large orchestra, a 6/4 tuba usually has more intonation problems and is harder to play than a 4/4 or 5/4. It's a specialty horn for most people. A good 4/4 or 5/4 horn should suit you nicely and you might still be able to use a 5/4 in quintet, too.

You are going to have to play a lot of horns to decide what you like. A visit or some visits to places where you can play a lot of horns would be important enough to spend some money on.

If I were going to school as a music major intent on a career teaching in college or playing in a symphony, I would wait until I had chosen my school and gotten in before selecting an instrument. Your major professor may have strong opinions on the kind of horn or the very horn you should have. You wouldn't want to show up with something he/she didn't like and have one strike against you before you started. You have plenty of time to decide on and buy a horn after you've gotten into school.

You can try out all the horns you want and get some ideas about what you like, but I'd defer my final decision and purchase until I talked with my major professor. Who knows, if you and the prof have wildly differing ideas of what tuba you should have, maybe that school isn't right for you. So wait and see.

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Re: I need help choosing a CC tuba

Post by tubeast »

This is an important decision to You.

With a budget of twenty grand, You should be able to get a set of TWO used, professional-grade horns in perfect playing condition and less-than-perfect optics.
You might get yourself a complementing pair of tubas with different size and/or pitch to set You up well into the beginning years as a pro musician IF
a) You know what You want/need (which, frankly, Your recent questions suggest is not the case YET)
b) You´re not in a hurry and can afford to lurk online-marketplaces.

Both points a) and b) can be adressed simultaneously by renting school-owned horns.
Contact your instructor-to-be on this topic.
I think I remember You posting in another thread that they may not have a lot of time to give advice on that decision.
If they fail to spare the time to at least pass You on to an assistant teacher or some other staff member to remotely guide you on,
chances are they won´t be having time for You on future occasions during your studies, neither.

Ask what kinds of horns will be available to rent / try out at the school´s music program and go from there.
Grant Yourself at least one year of life as a full-time-student of music using those before shopping for horns on your own.

Even though You may be playing very well at this time, be aware that You definitely WILL undergo a considerable amount of development during your studies. You WILL know A LOT more about yourself as a musician after the first one or two years, which will make Your choice of horn MUCH more effective and beneficial FOR YOU.

Life as an aspiring pro musician might turn out much different to what You expect at this time.
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Roger Lewis
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Re: I need help choosing a CC tuba

Post by Roger Lewis »

Just get a Miraphone 188 and don’t look back. It. Is. The. Perfect. Tuba.
Ergonomically great and will do everything with a great sound and great scale. For chamber music use a TU27 mouthpiece. For an organ-like deep sound, use a PT88.

Not just MY opinion.
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