William H. Rose, rest in peace

[rodmathews]

William H. (Bill) Rose passed away earlier this morning. Anyone who ever had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Rose will certainly feel a sense of loss today - he was a great person and a fabulous musician.

I was fortunate to have a short visit with him about six weeks ago, and while he had just had a bad night and didn't feel very well he had his typical sense of humor and good spirit. He was a big influence on my life, and I owe him a lot. I'll really miss him.

[rodmathews]

When I got home tonight I pulled out a couple of things related to Mr. Rose.

The first is a wonderful tribute written by former student Richard Frazier in the Winter, 1990 edition of the TUBA Journal (Volume 18, Number 2).

The second is the "Studio Class Manual for Tuba and Euphonium" that Mr. Rose wrote and required all of his students to read. This Manual has a great biography of Mr. Rose, which I will reproduce here (with slight edits and updates) for the benefit of some of the younger folks who might not have known about him.

William (Bill) Rose has been playing the tuba most of his life. Born in Owensboro, Kentucky in 1926, he began playing the tuba while in Junior High, and has played it ever since, except for one year after high school when he studied Aeronautical Engineering at Parks Air College in East St. Louis. With America already deeply involved in W.W. II, in 1944, he entered the U.S. Navy, attended the U.S. Navy School of Music, and played in a forty-five-piece Navy Band at Mare Island, California for the duration of the war. After the war, Mr. Rose attended the Juilliard School of Music and began his studies with the late William J. Bell, who was the foremost tuba player and teacher in America. While studying at Juilliard, Mr. Rose free-lanced with various groups, and played regularly with the Goldman Band, the United Nations Symphony, the C.B.S. Symphony of the Air and other radio shows with C.B.S, and was a charter member of the New York Brass Ensemble.

He left New York City to join the Houston Symphony Orchestra in 1949, and played with this orchestra (including the Houston Grand Opera) until the summer of 1977. Musical Directors of the orchestra were Efrem Kurtz, Leopold Stokowsky, Sir John Barbirolli, Andre Previn, and Lawrence Foster. Seasonal conductors and guest conductors for whom he played included such greats as: Bruno Walter, Pierre Monteau, Charles Munch, Ernest Ansermet, Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt, Erich Leinsdorf, Sir Thomas Beecham, Sir Malcolm Sargent, Milton Katims, Walter Susskind, Arthur Fiedler, William Walton, Igor Stravinsky, Hector Villa-Lobos, and many, many others over the years.

During this same period, he also taught part time at different colleges in the Houston area: the University of Houston, Sam Houston State College, and the Houston Baptist College.

Between playing and teaching, he was well aware of the need for more efficient tuba and euphonium mouthpieces, so he designed and made to his own specifications two tuba mouthpieces and one euphonium mouthpiece. These were put into production by the Mirafone Corporation, and with world-wide distribution the "Rose Model Orchestra," "Rose Model Solo," and the "E56" for euphonium gained tremendous popularity.

It was in 1977 that Mr. Rose was offered a full-time position as Associate Professor of Music at the University of Houston, where he taught tuba, euphonium, and brass chamber music until retiring from full-time teaching in 1989. He continued to teach a few students part-time for a number of years after his retirement.

He was also a founding member of the University of Houston Faculty Symphonic Brass Quintet. His last public performance on the tuba was a recital with the Faculty Symphonic Brass Quintet in 1989.

As a teacher, his students have entered every field of the music profession, which includes band directors, symphony players, free-lance artists, members of service bands, and private teachers.

[Roger Lewis]

I am saddened to hear this news. Mr. Rose was a great man and one of the biggest innovators of his time. This is truly a loss to the community.

Roger

[bill]

I am so sorry to hear this sad news. Our condolences to his family and students.

My main teacher, George Black, told me what a really nice guy Bill Rose was. Rose came to New York looking for work. George was able to direct him to one of the Army bands where there was enough money, to get by and where several of Bill Bell's students played. In the 1970s, when I wrote a tuba profile about George, for Tuba Journal Bill Rose was kind enough to call me and talk about George and his relationship with him. From that time on I was made welcome to talk to Bill Rose when I had questions or needed back ground on something. He was always so kind and so giving. We have lost a wonderful man and a true friend.

[TubaRay]

Although I never had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Rose, I feel the loss for our community. I never heard anything but highly positive comments concerning the life he led. That, in itself, is quite a tribute to the man.

[Mikelynch]

I was fortunate enough to have started studying with Bill while in Jr. High, and continued until I went to college. Even as a young, know-nothing kid, I was aware that I was hearing something special on those rare occasions that he would borrow my horn during a lesson and play something on it, that then sounded nothing like what I had been getting out of the horn.

As we tubists of late have debated whether a 5th valve on a CC tuba is a matter of "life or death" or merely a virtual necessity,and as to how many horn sizes are necessary, I have always reflected on Bill. Bill played everything on a 4V CC tuba. While in NYC, Bill got his first CC tuba, a Sander, that had a M3 4th valve, and he played that horn through his first few years with the Houston Symphony. Having learned and played played the orchestral literature on the Sander, when he later switched to other horns (Mirafone 186's and a Holton), he had the 4th slide cut to the familiar M3 length. So not only did he never have a 5th valve, he shorted himself an additional half-step.

To me, the most striking quality of Bill's playing was that no matter how hard something was, the sound was always beautiful, and the playing always sounded effortless. Bill was as modest and unassuming as anyone can be, and was always generous with his time. He touched the lives of virtually every tuba player in Houston, and far beyond, for many years. He will be missed by us all.

Mike

[bdaniel]

Bill was the consummate gentleman. I did not have the pleasure of studying with him, but I got to know Bill quite well after I moved to the Houston area 13 years ago from DC. The stories he would tell of the days in NYC studying at Julliard with Mr. Bell were priceless. Bill was there in NYC with a young Harvey Phillips and a young Don Butterfield as well as others.

A couple of years ago he asked me to come by his house and try out a tuba one of his former students had dropped off. I played on the tuba and gave him my opinion and then he picked up the horn and sounded great!! Not bad for a 80 something year old. I was impressed to say the least.

I'm sad that he's gone, but I'm glad he is no longer in pain. He dealt with severe pain issues for several years, but rarely complained.

I consider my life richer for having known Bill Rose. He will be sorely missed.

[Rick Denney]

He touched the lives of virtually every tuba player in Houston

Even those of us unlucky enough to have never met him in person. But I do remember hearing him during the Houston Symphony school concerts.

Rick "rest in peace" Denney

[windshieldbug]

I play one of his mouthpices, too, but I never got the chance to meet him or tell him.

RIP

[skeath]

A great loss. In 1974, I was free-lancing in Dallas, and had a good friend in Houston, Richard Frazier, who had studied with Bill Rose. He told me that, while Mr. Rose did not take students "off the street" as it were, he could get me in with him. He did, and I drove 5 hours one Saturday for a 2 hour lesson in his home. In that lesson, he identified, and solved, an embouchure problem that I had, and revolutionized my playing. I will never forget that trip.

We talked a lot that day, and I got a very strong sense that he had regrets in one area of his professional life: he played in a good orchestra, and made good money, but was so busy with the orchestra that he did not have the time to do the recitals and master classes and festivals that made some of his classmates from Juilliard famous. Had it not been for his mouthpieces, his name would not have been as well known nationally as it now is. Regardless, he was a great player, and a fine gentleman, and those of us privileged to meet him or hear him play know that. The others can take that to the bank.

Thanks, Bill.

Sandy Keathley
DMA, Eastman School of Music, 1982

[tubamonster]

This is an unfortuneate loss. I was always curious about him, considering I live in Houston. I think he had occasionally done master classes in the past few years at the University of Houston.

tubamonster

[Dave Kirk]

A memorial service for Bill Rose will be held in the University of Houston's Moores Opera House at 2pm this Thursday July 23, 2009. All are invited.

http://www.uh.edu/maps/buildings/MSOM

[TUBAD83]

I had the privilege of studying under Mr. Rose--my first and finest tuba instructor. He taught me how to play the tuba with style, class, finesse, and, most important for me, CONFIDENCE. To say that I was not one of his better students would be an understatement, but he NEVER gave up on me---many a time he would give me free lessons--and he expected the best out of ALL his students and cared about them all as well (Mr. Rose was no pushover mind you--he had no problem telling you what you're NOT doing well). It is rare to find the combination of a world class artist and a world class teacher who loves sharing his/her knowledge with others--Bill Rose was such a person. A gentleman of the highest caliber--He will be sorely missed. I shall always be thankful for all he shared with me.

JJ

[Matt Good]