www.hornguys.com - AKA Ferguson's Music - First Impressions
Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:35 am
Hello tuba friends,
Yesterday I visited Steve Ferguson's (http://www.hornguys.com) shop in La Crescenta California, about twenty minutes outside of Los Angeles and thought I would chime in with a thought or two about the wonderful "candy shop of brass" he has going on right now near Pasadena.
I have a student who was interested in trying out a BBb tuba they had in stock, and contacted Steve to see if he could come in on a Sunday, a day in which the shop is usually closed. Being that I'm a Sabbath observer and will not work or go out on Saturday, I thought it was very kind and respectful that Steve took the time to meet us on a day the store is usually closed.
Now I have hoped for a long while that somebody would open a professional brass music store in the Los Angeles area, and I don't think it could have come from a better person. Although I just met Steve yesterday, I can tell you that he is a knowledgeable salesman and an honest gentleman, and I look forward to visiting his shop again in the near future. He let us take our time trying instruments and was open to any questions we had while giving us plenty of space to decide.
My student walked out the door with a very fine deal on a Yamaha BBb tuba, and was given plenty of extras in the deal. The horn was used, but had been looked over and fixed up by the great Robb Stewart and played better than most BBb tubas I've tried. Steve was very accommodating to my student, who is a beginner and gave us all the time we needed to test the horn with NO PRESSURE and a friendly and honest attitude. I was mighty impressed! Of course Steve is a bass-trombonist, so in some ways it all makes perfect sense. He even gave us these fantastic "Ferguson Music" beer-openers (even more obviously a bass-trombonist).
I also got a chance to try many of the horns he had in stock, and thought I might chime in with a few impressions, as I don't get to try many tubas and this was a special treat for me.
The first horn I tried was the Yamaha YBB-641 BBb tuba, which is the horn my student ended up buying. I was happily surprised by the way this horn played, as I've heard mixed reviews of the instrument. It played very much like a Miraphone 186 BBb, but even a little bigger in breath-of-sound. I was also quite impressed with the intonation, being that it’s a horn designed like the 186. This good intonation may have been exceptional for this particular horn (as it is an early production model) but I was surprised at how easy the notes slotted in pitch and at the response of this instrument. I actually tried it next to a 186 BBb and thought the sound, intonation, and feel of the instrument was even better than the new Miraphone, which was over twice the price-tag.
I then moved on to a new Miraphone 186 CC. I thought it might remind me of my old 185 (that I was “ohâ€
Yesterday I visited Steve Ferguson's (http://www.hornguys.com) shop in La Crescenta California, about twenty minutes outside of Los Angeles and thought I would chime in with a thought or two about the wonderful "candy shop of brass" he has going on right now near Pasadena.
I have a student who was interested in trying out a BBb tuba they had in stock, and contacted Steve to see if he could come in on a Sunday, a day in which the shop is usually closed. Being that I'm a Sabbath observer and will not work or go out on Saturday, I thought it was very kind and respectful that Steve took the time to meet us on a day the store is usually closed.
Now I have hoped for a long while that somebody would open a professional brass music store in the Los Angeles area, and I don't think it could have come from a better person. Although I just met Steve yesterday, I can tell you that he is a knowledgeable salesman and an honest gentleman, and I look forward to visiting his shop again in the near future. He let us take our time trying instruments and was open to any questions we had while giving us plenty of space to decide.
My student walked out the door with a very fine deal on a Yamaha BBb tuba, and was given plenty of extras in the deal. The horn was used, but had been looked over and fixed up by the great Robb Stewart and played better than most BBb tubas I've tried. Steve was very accommodating to my student, who is a beginner and gave us all the time we needed to test the horn with NO PRESSURE and a friendly and honest attitude. I was mighty impressed! Of course Steve is a bass-trombonist, so in some ways it all makes perfect sense. He even gave us these fantastic "Ferguson Music" beer-openers (even more obviously a bass-trombonist).
I also got a chance to try many of the horns he had in stock, and thought I might chime in with a few impressions, as I don't get to try many tubas and this was a special treat for me.
The first horn I tried was the Yamaha YBB-641 BBb tuba, which is the horn my student ended up buying. I was happily surprised by the way this horn played, as I've heard mixed reviews of the instrument. It played very much like a Miraphone 186 BBb, but even a little bigger in breath-of-sound. I was also quite impressed with the intonation, being that it’s a horn designed like the 186. This good intonation may have been exceptional for this particular horn (as it is an early production model) but I was surprised at how easy the notes slotted in pitch and at the response of this instrument. I actually tried it next to a 186 BBb and thought the sound, intonation, and feel of the instrument was even better than the new Miraphone, which was over twice the price-tag.
I then moved on to a new Miraphone 186 CC. I thought it might remind me of my old 185 (that I was “ohâ€
