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Started on trombone now doubling. About the turn of this century sometime my church music director decided she did not like my bass bone as the bottom of the brass section and I bought an Eb mostly as a lark. Now I'm spending probably 70% of my time on tuba. I still play bass trombone in an community symphony and occaisionaly in a trombone choir and I do rarely play trumpet when I have to. I've always found it interesting that my high range is about the same on all the brass intruments, but my low range expands as I get larger. Maybe it's because I don't have a high range on trumpet. Are there others in my situation?

bloke wrote: To this day, I can do "pretty good" with one of those things. I can actually sit in a band and play the first trumpet part...

...for about ten minutes.

Me, too. However, I started on tuba, not trumpet.

I started out on trumpet in the 4th grade, bought a cornet in 8th grade, and switched to tuba in 10th grade. In jr. high, I was 1st or 2nd chair, but when I went to high school in 10th grade, the band director told me that he had too many trumpet players and I wouldn't have much of a chance to make the band. He asked if I was interested in tuba and I haven't looked back. I still have my Getzen Capri cornet and play it some, but my wife has a real nice Bach Strad trumpet that I play occasionally. She plays the trumpet in our church ensemble while I play tuba at church & community band.

I started out on trumpet in 4th grade after the two years of piano my parents required of us before we could play another instrument. This gave me a leg up on most of the other kids who had to learn to play, AND read music. As a result I was first chair up through and into 7th grade. We had no tuba in the band so the director asked for volunteers. He wasn't real thrilled to have me volunteer but he wanted a tuba player. So I made the switch and played an Eb (reading bass as treble clef). I think I subconciously felt my days as 1st trumpet were numbered. I don't regret the switch at all.

What I do wish was maybe to have stuck with it a little longer to have gotten into some more advanced music before switching and playing the not very challenging Jr. High tuba parts. It definitely would have helped my reading skills for when I finally did get some more difficult tuba parts

I love to play the trumpet and have a pretty good range. I started up again about six months ago and am starting to be able to do things I have never been able to do before.

I also have a flugelhorn and love the tone. I love to play those big band era ballads like "Misty", "Moonglow" and "Tenderly". Nice low range, nice dark tone. Looking forward to playing "Misty" on the tuba.

I once fancied myself a French horn player. I was delusional. I had no idea what it really took to play one and don't currently own one.

I now have the King 1140 and am having a hard time getting going on it. I'm thinking that I should stop playing the trumpet and flugelhorn until I successfully can play and place the open tones on the tuba. I'm going to try a Kelly 25 (half the price of a Bach) because it was suggested in a PM that a smaller mouthpiece might help until I could handle the Helleberg I've been using.

Tubawise, the 1140 will do fine until I find a real need to have a 4th valve. I think those 6/4s are cool but, damn, I can't play the tuba I have!

Jeff

I'm with you Bloke. I started on trumpet, and really, didn't think I was much of a trumpet player. Two years later switched to tuba on one of those "We really need tubas" invitations, and the rest is history, been playing tuba over 25 years.

I have a couple of trumpet students has kept me playing trumpet the last few years, and I know because of air support, and technique, I can blow away most students-for 30 minutes tops.

Funny story, 2 years ago our community band was suffering through a period when the trumpets weren't showing up. My good friend, a trumpet palyer, I knew would be arriving late, and I told him if he came, I would join him. So there were were, over an hour into rehearsal, my friend showed up, I put down the tuba, and went over to the trumpet section. It was fun, the director didn't know what to say, but my lips were shredded within 30 minutes.

Occasionally I have a really good day at the trumpet and I think like you, Bloke, but then I usually have a reality check a day later.

Really, who wants to work that hard ? And how could I develop that attitude?

I started out on cornet in 5th grade, made first chair in 6th, then due to a real funky embrochure I started my slow descent in horns. It wasn't until I hit tuba as a sophmore in music school that my tuba teacher straightened them out properly, identifying the cause. Then, I was able to play solo euphonium, Eb alto trombone, and cornet for cornet band gigs while I was doing the symphony-thing.

Even played trumpet at my sister's wedding.

Life was good.
Only trouble was, I'd never learned how to be better than everybody else...

I suppose I could get the car, and get the hair plugs, and work on the weight-maybe a 3 year plan, and I'm there !!!! Eureka, I can get the girls !!!

Seriously, the highlight of my trumpet resurgence has been to be able to play at a Veteran's Home the last 2 Veteran's Days, I played in a duet the first year, actually played first in a trumpet trio last year, and was able to cover TAPS both times.To me, that's the highest honor a trumpet player can have.

dunelandmusic wrote:I suppose I could get the car, and get the hair plugs, and work on the weight-maybe a 3 year plan, and I'm there !!!! Eureka, I can get the girls !!!

Seriously, the highlight of my trumpet resurgence has been to be able to play at a Veteran's Home the last 2 Veteran's Days, I played in a duet the first year, actually played first in a trumpet trio last year, and was able to cover TAPS both times.To me, that's the highest honor a trumpet player can have.

Agreed. When I retire, one of my activities will be playing funerals for vets. I felt so bad a few years ago when my HS band director passed away. A great man- Percy Bronson. Played for 65 of his 80 years, usually in a band he fronted on the sax or clarinet. Last ten were stolen by Alzeheimers. I didn't realize that he had spent time in the American army because he had always said he was Canadian (which he was but naturalized in the 50s). Came time to put him to bed, there was nothing but an electric bugle. Family had too much to worry about to think of it at the time and I didn't know he was an Army man. Would loved to have played taps for my friend, Mr. Bronson. But....

Yep--cornet 4th-9th grade, then nothing for about 12 years. Then I saw the light and got a tuba.

About a year or two ago I decided I ought to give the cornet a try again, so I bought one from a guy on the net. It was a lovely horn, but I was much further away from being able to play it well then I thought I'd be. My 'playing' on it also thoroughly aggravated my wife and my dog, so I sold it on eBay a couple of months later--made $50 in the deal!

I don't/won't miss it any more.

I love my tuba.

How the heck are you guys getting photos on this site. I've been killing myself to try to post stuff (photos). Can somebody show me the light?

Bonde

My third year of tuba I got interested in trumpet. I had a gig with a monastery pep band as a drummer. I had two hours a day I could spend playing ball or praying. I found a mint condition Olds trumpet nobody knew about. I had a dramatics hall to myself to practice in. I wanted to be Harry James and have ladies paltipating over me. I busted out of the monastery.
If you want to play trumpet, you have to marry the damn horn. Doc Severinsen would play ugly lip slurs and God knows what three hours a day and then a four hour gig most every night.
And NO KISSIN' WOMEN (a lot) or the chops turn to rubber.
You want to be like Satchmo and hit your "F" late in an eight hour gig, you gotta put in the time.
I got no business playing trumpet. I can sneak up on a high "C" if I don't warm up and can only be consistent to "G" for ten minutes-as bloke wrote.
I often ask my fellow Creekers if I need play only tuba and they think that if we play joints that have only had guitar bands for entertainment for the last 20 years, the more brass we throw at them, the better.

Dennis Gray
tubatooter1940
www.johnreno.com/

I began on Trumpet in 5th grade.. was like 3rd chair thereabouts.

come 8th grade I was approached by my band director with a, "hey big guy, want to be awesome? play a bigger instrument!!!"

have not looked back

I sometimes wonder if I should have taken up Euphonium. None of the problems of the slide yet nice sounding and you get to play some cool melodies.

I still play trumpet and trombone from time to time. Like most I can usually play trumpet for about 30-60 minutes before the chops give out. I have been seriously considering practicing the trombone and playing in a summer band this year. I will probably be awful but I think it will be fun.

Oddly enough I remember a few semesters in college where I was playing bass trombone in a quartet, tuba in the wind ensemble and covering euphonium when needed. I think I was almost equally awful on all but it was many years ago. I was practicing way too much to have classes.

Henry Gertcher

played trombone throughout hs and college. Only got into tuba seriously in college and then more seriously after college, since I found I could get more work on tuba than trombone....

k

For some reason, as soon as I became proficient with tuba, I never had any wistful pangs, longing for the "good ole days" as a Jr. Hi. cornet player. I've always enjoyed tuba.


Cheers,