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It's my daughter's turn for "sharing" in her class of 2nd graders (age 7), and she wants her classmates to learn about tubas.

I think my time slot is short - like 15 minutes.

I'd like to pique some interest such that some of them who wouldn't otherwise have been interested, might, in a few years, consider joining the band program.

Failing that, I'd at least like to engage, entertain, and educate.

Here's my agenda:
- longer tube = lower notes (I'll bring a trombone for a one-gliss demo of the concept)
- tuba (BBb in this case) is an 18 foot long tube (I'm intending to bring an 18' rope to show how long the horn would be if it wasn't curled up)
- the valves change the length for different notes (I'm not broaching overtones, and I lack a concise answer if one of these bright little buttons asks why the notes seem to go higher with the valves pressed, so I'm hoping they don't go there).

I sketched this illustration that I'll cut-up and mount on a paperboard backing so I can slide the valve up and down to show the re-direction: Lastly, I asked my daughter for advice on recognizable tunes that her peers might enjoy. She recommended these two, which nicely meets Roger Bobo's "love songs and pirate songs" dichotomy: Before I play, I'll show them that I'm buzzing, and remind them to listen for the notes changing when I push the valves.

Here's the question:
My wife thinks it would be better if instead of a trombone, I bring an English-style baritone.
She thinks that since it more closely resembles a tuba, that it would illustrate the relationship of frequency to tubing length, while also impressing the children with the different sound from a similar instrument (both are silver, so they do look like Daddy and Baby horns).
I'm leaning toward the trombone to clearly illustrate the tubing-length thing, but I'm all about pandering to my audience. She's got me vacillating . . . which do you s'pose would be the better gambit for this audience?

Why not bring all 3? Variety is extremely important when dealing with young kids. As the parent of an 8-year-old boy (2nd grade) and 6-year-old girl (1st grade), I can absolutely confirm that their attention spans are very short. Use your time to do as much playing as possible (in short bits) versus a lot of talking...they will be more enthralled with the sounds of your instruments than your voice (no offense intended...they get a lot of talking in school every day, after all).

The valve illustration looks like a great idea, just be as organized and concise with the information as possible while still being thorough. You don't have to go very in-depth, just show them how the valve opens new sections of tubing to make the instrument longer and therefore lower.

A suggestion I have would be to also demonstrate the different kinds of sounds the low brass instruments can make...multiphonics would be neat, as well as flutter tongue/growl, trills, pedal register (my kids really like that), and so on. The trombone could, of course, be used to demonstrate the glissando.

This is a really nice thing you are doing, and the kids will enjoy it. You may find that the fifteen minutes goes on longer than you might expect when you're in front of a group of kids, so make sure and run through your presentation to make sure you can adequately "fill up the time" and not allow the students to get bored. Kudos to you!

A trombone is 16 feet long. A BBb tuba should be closer to 32, and upwards of 50 if you count 4 valves.

I once played for a group of elementary school kids. Their teacher asked me to demonstrate what a tuba could do, so I played some multiphonics, and then I played a pedal C, and they all laughed at me. I miss those days....

If you can, bring a shiny silver horn...low attention spans-more interested in shiny. That's why I brought my little C yesterday when I showed some 6th graders the tuba. I woudl have been a bit happier on something a bit bigger (that's where I've been leaning lately), but for younger people, shinier is better

BigDale wrote:Dude, 2nd graders, ease the content.

Boy is Dale right on the money. I do elem. school demos all the time. You want them to remember you forever, this is what you do.

- Have the tuba in a hard case....out of sight.
- Tell the kids that you play the best and coolest instrument EVER!
- Ask them to guess what instrument you play.
- Then, bring out the tuba.....in a HUGE....GRAND....way.
- Have one of them stand next to the tuba to show how big it really is compared to them.....great time to snap a picture and have the teacher email it home!
- Ask them if they think the tuba plays high or low sounds.....whatever they say, play the opposite. Show them that you can play high and low.
- Play fast and slow.
- Play loud and soft.....these are little kids....they won't remember tubing length or how a valve works.....but they will eat up comparing and contrast!
- Let them ask questions.....they'll want to know how heavy it is.....have that kid come up and hold it.....(Don't actually let it go!)
- Explain how it makes noise....I make the kids flap their lips like a horse. Find the best flapper and get them to make a sound of their own.
- Talk about the case....kids always want to know about the case! Let them climb on it....another GREAT picture! If you feel comfortable.....put a kid IN the case.....I only do this with a kid that I know a head of time.
- Play songs they know and can SING along with!

That should take up plenty of time and the kids will always know you as the tuba man! Works every time!

CWessel188 wrote:A trombone is 16 feet long. A BBb tuba should be closer to 32, and upwards of 50 if you count 4 valves.

..

A trumpet, no valves, is 4.5 feet. A trombone, in first position, is 9 feet. A BBb tuba, no valves, is 18 feet. A CC tuba, no valves, is 16 feet. A Eb tuba, no valves, is 13 feet.

With valves 1,2, and 3 pushed down multiply the initial distance by about 1.4185. Fourth valve, a two whole steps, multiply the initial distance by about 1.3336. That means that all 4 valves would the initial distance times about 2.7521. This is all part of the law of 6%. Saying that to lower the pitch of an instrument by one half step the distance of tubing, or string, must be lengthened by 6% from the previous distance. i.e. If an instrument is 100 inches long, with no valves, to play a note a half step lower the instrument would have to be 106 inches. Then to play another half step lower the instrument would have to be 112.36 inches, then 119.10 inches, and so on. This is why third valve is longer then the combination of first valve and second valve.

A trombone in 7th position would be almost 13 feet, with F attachment added to 7th position it would be almost 25 feet. A BBb tuba with valves one, two, and three depressed would be about 25.5 feet, and with fourth valve added on there it would actually be about 50 feet.

Too complex. Do more what king2ba and Big Dale said. Show and tell them what a tuba is, and that its main function is to play the low notes in band and help keep time. Demonstrate some oom-pah I-V and have them clap along keeping time. Then show them how you buzz your lips, bring the mouthpiece up to the lips, then bring the horn up to the mouthpiece. Tell them each valve helps you play different notes and show how the notes change when you press each valve. Then play "Frosty the Snowman" and watch them all giggle as you invite them to sing along, as they will associate a big horn with a big snowman and big, low, notes.

After they stop giggling, ask if they have any questions. Make sure you have brought along a spray bottle of min-t-mist and a cloth and ask if any of them want to try buzzing the mouthpiece.

After you answer a few questions and a few of the children have tried to buzz the mouthpiece, your time will be up.

Children this age learn more by doing (why I suggest you have them clap along with the oom-pah and have them try to buzz), and the experience is more memorable if there is interaction and tactile reinforcement (encouraging them to sing along and letting them try to buzz the mouthpiece), and you're more likely to make an impression with a short but hands-on presentation than a long drawn out "explanation." A picture with the tuba is a great idea. Take along an inexpensive digital camera, have the teacher take the pictures, and email them to the teacher for distribution.

Been there, done that with Cub Scouts and others, cleaned up with the t-shirt.

I saw this via Google today - but it might come up:

from a St. Petersberg (FL) Times article:

Springstead High School senior Jenny Qiao, 18, was surfing the Internet recently looking for community service ideas when she found one that really tickled her. March 2 was Dr. Seuss' birthday, she learned, and one of the days the National Education Association sponsors Read Across America...
(so she set up some readings at Kindergarten and elementary schools)...
Emily Campisi, 8, whose favorite story of the day was One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, explained why she enjoys the legendary author's stories. "I like the way it rhymes and I knew that Dr. Seuss invented the sousaphone."

http://www.tampabay.com/news/education/ ... icle982897 for full article

YMMV, but when I was in 2nd grade the school had a Tonette Orchestra and by 3rd grade we were playing regular brass, percussion and woodwind instruments in a real band. No Tuba, but I got to play a Baritone. (However,this was about 50 years ago :wink: )

tokuno wrote:It's my daughter's turn for "sharing" in her class of 2nd graders (age 7), and she wants her classmates to learn about tubas.

I think my time slot is short - like 15 minutes.

Simplify, simplify, simplify. 15 minutes is NOT a long time.

Spend as much of that 15 minutes as possible playing TUNES THEY KNOW.

Forget the diagram and any explanation about long & short tubes. If you really want to get into that, make two "hose-a-phones": one with a trumpet mouthpiece (and an appropriate length) and one with a tuba mouthpiece (and an appropriate length). Donate the two hose-a-phones to the classroom for the next week or so.

They WILL NOT be impressed by how high and fast you can play - concentrate on low and slow, soft to LOUD. But again - play what they know (if you have time, ask the teacher to find out what tunes they might know - or just ask your daughter). The two you showed are OK - but toss in "Happy Birthday" and the like. Open with "Jaws", or "Close Encounters" to get their attention - but hold onto it with tunes they can sing from memory. Surely your daughter knows 3 songs - ask her to sing them for you.

Taking individual pictures with the tuba is a great idea - if you have an hour. In 15 minutes...perhaps you can get in one group photo.

For a big laugh, pre-fill the tubing near a spit-valve with water - play something awful - and then empty it into a bucket. 2nd grade humor at its best.

Oh yeah...like everything else you've ever done with a tuba - practice, practice, practice - keeping your 15 minute limit in mind. 15 minutes will FLY BY. Plan on an opening 5 min, a closing 5 min, and two 5 min "filler" segments (I know - that's 20 minutes) so that the first and last segments are the most important ones and the others are compressable/expandable depending on interest. Then, get ON with your opening 5 min, fill as needed until you have 5 min left, and then GET OFF with your 5 min closer. Leave them (and you) wanting to do more. Promise to come back next year.

BigDale wrote:Dude, 2nd graders, ease the content.

Have the tuba there, but in the case and sort of out of the way. Bring the horn out, they will gasp when they see it. Make some funny sounds on the horn, demonstrate how the horn makes it's sound, play some tunes they will know (Barney Song, baby tunes, stuff they have learned in gen. music class), keep it light, fun and simple. Be sure to let one of them try to make a sound on the horn and let them come up and TOUCH it carefully. They will enjoy this the most.

Dale "taught general music in the public schools for 15 years" Riebesehl

"watch out for the terrible two's!"

I agree with Dale. Show them the horn and what it does, do not tell them about it.

What BigDale, king2ba, iiipopes, Sloan, and rocksanddirt said!

It's called "SHOW and tell," not "TELL and show."

SHOW 'em what it looks like, SHOW 'em what it sounds like, SHOW 'em what the valves do, SHOW 'em how to play it, and SHOW 'em they can do it.

A week from now, half of 'em won't remember what that big funny looking thing is called or anything else you tell them about it, but every last one of them will remember what it looks like, what it sounds like, and that you play it by making farting noises with your lips.

gfred wrote:. . . it will be especially funny if you continue as you're being kicked out (whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa...)!!! Whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa, whaa-whaa, whaa-wha-wha-whaaa.

gfred, that's a scream. I'm often the object of my children's eye-rolling "Daddy, you're just being silly". I recently introduced them to the "Pete and Repeat are sitting on a log. Pete falls off, who's left?" chestnut, so now just about every dinnertime conversation devolves into some sort of Pete and Repeat variant. Your whaa-wha-wha scenario is about my speed.

My simple "trombone or baritone" query grew into a great reference thread for future elementary school presenters. I'm thrilled at the interest by so many here to effectively share musical knowledge with children, and once again impressed, not only with the depth of experience and creativity of the posters, but also their willingness to give so much in freely sharing for everyone's benefit. Fantastic.

My show and tell was this morning, and this thread helped me improve my presentation. It was very well received (I closed out by having the teacher take a couple toots - the children loved it, and so did she).

Tangential shout-out to active elders: My daughter's sharing activity is a week long assignment, so she enlisted her grandparents (my Mom & Dad) to close out the week tomorrow, and they'll be demonstrating taiko - Japanese percussion. They're taiko teachers who also lead a group that plays numerous gigs. This year, Mom & Dad turn 83 & 88 yrs old, respectively. More evidence that music performance can be a lifetime enjoyment.

Try to remember when you first started out on the tuba, and what things amazed you then. For example, I'm sure all of us thought the first person we heard using multiphonics was a god! Most importantly, have fun with it! The only time these kids have seen a tuba is probably in a cartoon, where it was used as a goofy joke. Try to live up to that "standard" while maybe introducing the basic mechanics of brass playing.

I know if someone had come into my class when I was in 2nd grade and played tuba, I wouldn't have made the mistake of first choosing clarinet in middle school. I've seen the light since then, though. It's amazing how hard it is to explain the mechanics and technical details of playing music especially to little kids, but by simply playing music for people, you can convey so much more than just "details." If only you could play a song that explains everything...

7-year-olds need to SEE things, not be told about them.

If you want to demonstrate length, do the hose-a-phone thing.
SHOW them what the tuba looks like, play what it plays best.
And hit them with an opening and a closing.
If you want participation, PICK a "volunteer", and expect, maybe, some coaxing. Coaxing a whole class individually is WAY more time than you have.

Don't take the trombone, unless your objective is to introduce the trombone (and, by the way, the tuba). The kids will focus on that part of the demo and little else.