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What was the first documented tuba solo?
Is there any mention of the opheclide or serpent doing any solo work?

Yes i mean Featured As a soloist

More specifically, I am researching, if there are any pieces documented strictly for tuba and accomp. before the Vaugn Williams

Catozzi's "Beelzebub" leaps to mind... 1920's, I believe.

J.c.S.

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Klaus has uncovered a "Helicon Schottische" from Civil War days.

tubashaman2 wrote:Was that Capuzzi piece for tuba or string bass???

I know the first sonata was Gardyoni (sp), just recently discovered

First Concerto--Concerto #1--Alexi Lebedev

First Concerto by a major composer--Concerto for Bass Tuba --RVW

It's A. _Catozzi_, and it's written for tuba and band... the range is deliberately limited to 3-valve Eb. 1922 or 1932... I can't remember which...

There's also Emmett's Lullaby, but I cannot remember who wrote it.

If we throw in its predecessor, the ophicleide, we have Mephisto Masqué by Edmond Dédé (African American ex-patriot). This isn't currently in print, however.

What is this Helicon march? Who wrote it, when, and is it a solo work? I GOTTA have it.

J.c.

Emmett's Lullaby - Paul G.Holmes, published by Rubank. I often use it with students.

J.c. Sherman wrote:

tubashaman2 wrote:Was that Capuzzi piece for tuba or string bass???

What is this Helicon march? Who wrote it, when, and is it a solo work? I GOTTA have it.

J.c.

It is a difficult web search because of "Helicon Magazine" getting in the way (and "On the Banks of Helicon") (and a bunch of products from the TC-Helicon company) but I do recall seeing a reference someplace... still looking!

David Richoux wrote:

J.c. Sherman wrote:

tubashaman2 wrote:Was that Capuzzi piece for tuba or string bass???

What is this Helicon march? Who wrote it, when, and is it a solo work? I GOTTA have it.

J.c.

It is a difficult web search because of "Helicon Magazine" getting in the way (and "On the Banks of Helicon") (and a bunch of products from the TC-Helicon company) but I do recall seeing a reference someplace... still looking!

Try here:

http://www.icking-music-archive.org/ByC ... /Woods.php

Well, calling it "Helicon Schottische" makes a lot of difference to Google!

Thanks...

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I believe you are quite mistaken about Emmett's Lullaby having been composed by Paul Holmes (a very nice man, and my theory teacher many years ago). Now as to Lento--Paul Holmes composed that, as well as a later piece for 3 tubas and concert band.

But Emmett's Lullaby . . . I believe you must return to some much more careful research . . .

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Bob1062 wrote:I remember Cliff Bevan mentioning in "The Tuba Family" than "Oh Ruddier than the Cherry" was somewhat commonly played by hot-shhhhh ophicleidists in Britain. Was that written for ophicleide? Does it matter for the purpose of this thread?

Quite true, and good post! I did research for early solo works for tubas during my graduate studies and "O Ruddier than the Cherry" was mentioned several times but only pertaining to ophicleide, not tuba.

In case ophicleide solos do not qualify, we may have to ask Steve Shoop to chime in, he's already done a lot of research.

It will be hard to pre-date Geib. Most of the air & variation type solos for tuba were also available for all other brasses, it's impossible to know if tuba was the original instrument. Beelzebub may be in the running, though I doubt it's the first solo for tuba. Oh Steve...

"O Ruddier than the Cherry" is a Handel aria...

Ophicleidists play it out of some sense of obligation

J.c.S.

This is a pretty difficult question to answer, since ophicleide solo's have been published since the 1840's, and as ophicleide and tuba co-existed for some time, a number of pieces have "ophicleide or tuba" written above them. Ophicleide solo's, however, tend to be rather high for a tuba, more comparable to euphonium register.
And by the way: a lot of solo pieces have been written for the ophicleide, but only a handful of them are still in print.

Hi Mike!! I stand corrected in that Emmett's Lullaby was not written by Paul Holmes, Lento's composer, but by someone named G.E. Holmes. I just checked it out. I knew it wasn't Larry Holmes!!!

I located an edition of "Beelzebub" with Band accompaniment dated 1885 in the on-line library of Marshall's Civic Band (Topeka, KS). They also have a solo with band entitled "Old Helicon" by one Ellis Brooks dated 1883.

About Emmett's Lullaby and G.E. Holmes.

Published by Rubank, copyright date 1933 (MCMXXXIII) by Rubank Inc, Chicago Ill. Price $1.00 (rather expensive for the day).

The name G.E. Holmes (Guy Earl Holmes is his full name, I believe) is on the upper right corner of both the solo part and the piano part as if he was the composer, no arranger names and no indication he was not the composer at THAT location. HOWEVER, Below the Title is the word "transcription" in caps and in type about 1/4 the size of the title. No other indication of who may have written it, or what it was transcribed from.

Above the title is even smaller Italic type is the following: Featured by William Bell, Bass Soloist with Armco Band and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. (!!)

Range from FF to f. Theme and variations, sounds technical and difficult. Not as hard, technically as it sounds. Written for "BBb Bass (Sousaphone)". Indicated on the upper left corner of the solo part.