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Now I know that everyone says that picking a grad school for tuba performance should be my decision and my decision only, BUT I need some help. Who are the top teachers right now? Please tell me from experience or even what you have heard. This is what I'm looking at right now.

USC (southern cal) w\ Tommy Johnson
Univ. of Ill w\ Mickey Moore
Rice University w\Dave Kirk
Cleveland Inst w\ Ron Bishop
New Eng Conserv w\ Mike Roylance

The only Prof that has emailed me back was Mr. Johnson. Should I take that as a sign as to how the techer could be?
I'm finishing up my BM in tuba performance with Dr.Skip Gray at Univ of KY. I would like to find a good teacher but also someone that has an orchestral background. Any and all info is welcome!

Thanks!
Jeff Keller

Currently I am at DePaul with Floyd Cooley and I can't say enough about him. Also, Chicago is a nice city and DePaul is cheap for grad school. I woud also highly recommend Tommy. He's a great guy(no surprise he's e-mailed you back so soon) and a great teacher. USC is very expensive and LA is an expensive city but so are all the other cities you're looking at(except cleveland which surprisingly pretty cheap). I would recommend checking out the guy whose sound you most want to sound like. Also, choose based on the teacher, not the school. Good luck.

Currently I am at DePaul with Floyd Cooley and I can't say enough about him. Also, Chicago is a nice city and DePaul is cheap for grad school. I woud also highly recommend Tommy. He's a great guy(no surprise he's e-mailed you back so soon) and a great teacher. USC is very expensive and LA is an expensive city but so are all the other cities you're looking at(except cleveland which surprisingly pretty cheap). I would recommend checking out the guy whose sound you most want to sound like. Also, choose based on the teacher, not the school. Good luck.

Dave Kirk seems like one hell of a teach. I only had one lesson, but it rocked. Rice may or may not have an opening (He only takes 2 people at a time {I think}) Email Dave and maybe some of his former students.
Bill Pritchard

Yes, USC is a total rip-off. Tommy Johnson also teaches at UCLA and they have much better facilities. It is also about 1/4 the price of the University of South Central (USC). That's what us Bruins call it. Along with the University of Spoiled Children. Of course this is all in good fun. Tommy went to S.C. and so did my mother.

Tommy is probably the closest teacher you can get to Arnold Jacobs in this day and age. He is also the greatest guy in the world.

-DK

Northwestern Business School or Harvard Business School. Think about it. You are close to two great tuba players and will get a degree that actually can get you a job. No one ever said you had to get a degree to play the tuba, just practice your *** off and have a good day. In the mean time, you are almost garuanteed a high 5 to low 6 figure job while you are practicing. Joe Robinson, Principal Oboe with the NYPO got his degrees in International Relations, and no one will ever accuse him of not knowing where to put his fingers because he didn't get a music degree.

This will not endear me to most of my peers, but plan ahead and look at the odds. My brother is the guy who crunches numbers for Met Life to figure out life insurance rates. After a couple of beers one night this summer, he did a quick figure on the odds that someone will get a full time orchestra gig. You have a better chance of making it to the NFL. Here was the formula, very unscientific, but close to how he begins to figure various population tendency rates:

Number of Tuba Players enrolled in college factored to the number of full time paying gigs combined with the projected turn-over rate of existing and other variables as economic indicators. Obviously, the total number of tuba players available to audition couldn't be factored.Trust me, he is one of the best in his field.

However, if you must go into this field, why not Dave Zerkel at UGA? He has major orchestra experience, military band experience, solos with the best of them and is an all-around great guy. My .02.

Chuck"who wonders how many expensive instruments are gathering dust because of a broken dream" Jackson

Chuck Jackson wrote:Northwestern Business School or Harvard Business School.

Also in New England, you could check out any one of the "Three B's". That would be Bentley, Babson, and Bryant.

You could take lessons with a number of folks, including Mr. Roylance, who are professional players in the area. There are enough ensembles to tool around in and enough possible paid opportunities to keep you going. I'm sure the same exists in Chicago and there are other business schools there to obtian an MBA (Because NW and Hah-vahd are wicked expensive). I'm getting an MBA myself from one of the three b's. I really don't play much anymore, but that is of my own decision. Also, most business classes are at night anymore, leaving you to do your practicing during the day and take your lessons. At Harvard you are even fairly close to NEC and Berklee.

I'm sure UCLA and USC have the same thing also. Another thing is that I guarantee that if you go into an MBA full time, you will be out in 2 years or less, which doesn't always happen at music schools.

I also like the fact that a few of the guys on your list know the business of music. They would be able to guide you through your career very well. Mr. Johnson has a ton of commercial work experience and practically created the niche he and his soundtrack recording associates are in. Mr. Roylance has done just about everything imaginable playing the tuba. Add to that the fact he won a huge job and you get a wealth of knowledge.

Good luck on your decision, it is very important, but remember you can always change after the fact if need be.

New England Conservatory Boston conservatory and Boston University all have mike roylance as a tuba prof. also at BU, the tuba students each have their OWN ROOM for practice, and whatever they want. their own locking studio. rock on. Dont count out Mcgill in montreal (montreal symphony), University of Iowa (john Manning), Juilliard, Indiana, Arizona (pilafian) Depaul... These are all great schools..

If I may add one more to the list, let me say that the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque is great. The tuba assistantship there, I believe, has to be one of the best, if not THE best, in the country (money, performance opportunities, travel). Karl Hinterbichler is a great teacher as well as a super human. The track record for MM tuba students would rival any other school with most grads now in premier military bands, teaching positions, as well as orchestras. The assistantship requires performance in the New Mexico Brass Quintet. This is a fantastic faculty group. I would not trade my time there for anything. Write Karl to see if the assistantship is open next year (I believe it is), and audition. If you win, enjoy the food at the Frontier right across from the school. BTW, Albuquerque is about 5000 feet straight up. Two years at that level alone will make you a much better player at sea level.

Cameron Gates

I know that UMass AMherst has a Grad Tuba INternship. waive tuition and whatnot, play in the brass quintet, and TA the studio. also i believe there is a stipend. im not sure. Look up Matt Gaunt. hes professor there, im sure he can give u a lot more info.

Getzeng50s wrote:I know that UMass AMherst has a Grad Tuba INternship. waive tuition and whatnot, play in the brass quintet, and TA the studio. also i believe there is a stipend. im not sure. Look up Matt Gaunt. hes professor there, im sure he can give u a lot more info.

Dave Sporny, the trombone teacher at UMass, is a great teacher. He has a lot going on in his studio. The school attracts excellent teachers, but loses them to higher-paying universities. (ex the last tuba teacher who is now at Iowa). UMass is a good school to study at.

I've only had two lessons with him, but Floyd at DePaul is pretty hard to beat. I've known many of his students and all are mother players (and good people!)

Hello!

Yes, we do have a grad assistantship in tuba, also playing in the grad brass quintet (which is a very strong group) and their is both tuition waiver and a stipend (good deal). Please feel free to contact me if you want more information. We also still could use someone for next semester, for those of you out there who may be looking...

Thanks,
Matthew Gaunt

If you are looking at becoming a professional symphonic payer, my choice would be to study with the teachers or players who have the placement records for winners. My 1st choice would be Alan Baer - winning 3 in a row says to me that he is doing something that section players and conductors want to hear. My next choice would be Floyd Cooley, who's students have done very well lately in auditions (Mike Roylance and Andy Miller most recently). Fritz Kaenzig and Dan Parentoni have had students in the semis in several of the recent auditions. Gene Pokorny and Ron Bishop would rank pretty high as well.

Having the right equipment also helps and the PT6 and the Gronitz have a strong recent track record.

Just my observations.

Look at the list of Tommy Johnson students. Norm Pearson, Alan Baer, Gene Pokorny, me. It goes on and on. If you want the best, come out to the coast! It's a no brainer.

Doesn't Norm Pearson teach somewhere in LA too? CalArts?

Doug Tornquist teaches at Cal Arts.

After I posted I checked CalArts website, says Norm Pearson is the tuba/euphonium faculty, so what happened? Did he stop teaching there or did he ever teach there?

Where is Alan Baer teaching now?


Jeff