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A week ago somebody had a post about CC tubas using the 5th valve to make a BBb. I think an Eb, D tuba would be pretty darn useful. Malcom Arnold quintet?
mike

Uhhhh. I got one......

If I had enough money for 10 tubas, I could see a D Tuba maybe being the 10th.

Stupid Question time.
Would it a bass or contra bass tuba?

Yes, why not.

Contra, because it's really a DD/CC

THE TUBA wrote:If I had enough money for 10 tubas, I could see a D Tuba maybe being the 10th.

If you mainly play CC, I would consider the one in D the second.

Klaus

The question sort of makes my head spin.

I understand owning a CC and an F. A DD horn wouldn't do anything that a CC or BBb could not, so why?

There would be no real benefit to owning a DD horn other than it being a museum oddity. You don't find any weird old orchestra parts that have the Tuba part transposing like a horn part do you? (that's right isn't it?)

I don't know. It's late here and my 2 year old daughter was cranky today...

When I knew Ivan Hammond, he had one. He played a lot, stayed busy, and I never saw that horn once, even in a photo.

Sure, if I had a need to belt out lots of pedal DD's...

"Serious" trumpeters seem to love their C trumpets as much or more as "serious" tuba players love their C trumpets.
I've never really heard much of a difference between C trumpets and Bb. The seem a bit brighter BUT why would trumpet players want brighter horns if trombones and tubas are going darker? It's too much of a spread.

Bb trumpets are versatile enough and called-for-enough that I don't see a need for C trumpets as anything other than a specialty or just-for-the-hell-of-it horn unless you're reading a lot concert pitch treble parts while playing a lot of Bb parts in different groups. Then again, they are also cheap, easily portable instruments. I have to get a pickup truck to bring 4 horns to a gig (tuba, bass and contra bone, euph) while they have those stupid little suitcases.

Were I a serious minded trumpet player, I'd likely rock out a nice Bb or 2, a higher pitched horn (Eb, F, or G; perhaps an Eb and G) and a Bb piccolo as well as flugelhorn, alto trombone,... Maybe 1 C, they ARE cheap and small after all!

As for C tubas I prefer Bb's for large contrabasses though a C might be a better generic fit for small contrabass stuff; I really don't care what other people play as long they don't throw that "only play this thing" stuff at my face.
If I were to play serious tuba in a variety of ensembles and were to bow to the contrabass mindset of most American tuba players, I'd likely rock a big Bb (1291), moderate to large F (1281), a big euph (up for grabs, I like front action horns but that's not the direction manufacturers have taken), and a slightly smaller F cimbasso- one that could work for opera stuff but still fake a bit of big band. And an F helicon, screw putting a 40 pound Bb on my bad shoulders any more than I have to.

The guy that can play average horns beats out the guy that is ok but has fancy horns. One example- one of my buddy's students, some punk rock kid with a 2341, beat out a guy with a Kalison DS (was looking into a PT6 after his horn got smashed up, ouch), PT F, and a Greenhoe bass trombone who was taking lessons from well known college professors and doing a lot of high school orchestra stuff for all state orchestra. Hell yeah!! I used to be like that punk kid, now I just suck...

When I studied with Bobo I played a few times on his DD tuba. At the time he said I was his only student who was able to complete a whole etude on it before giving up. I liked the horn as it was basicaly the same as a Mirafone 184 CC that was cut into DD. Everytime I played it, I knew that my fingers were protesting while I was pressing 2-3 for Bb but I managed to do it.



I now build horns myself and have made a few D tubas but only as a speciality and don't see why anyone (other than myself) would want one. I like the idea of it, but for most people, it's much easier to just learn the D scale and be done with it.

the elephant wrote:

BRSousa wrote:The question sort of makes my head spin.

I understand owning a CC and an F. A DD horn wouldn't do anything that a CC or BBb could not, so why?

There would be no real benefit to owning a DD horn other than it being a museum oddity. You don't find any weird old orchestra parts that have the Tuba part transposing like a horn part do you? (that's right isn't it?)

I don't know. It's late here and my 2 year old daughter was cranky today...

Then why own a CC at all? What purpose does it serve? Why not play everything on BBb? Just asking. (And I am seriously looking for an answer to this from everyone who might be reading my post. What purpose does a CC tuba have over a BBb in today's educational system with today's players? Why do we keep buying these things if they are so out of tune and cost so much? What is the drive? Your answers should reflect how you think about trumpeters using G trumpets, A piccolos [over a Bb picc] and Bb versus C trumpet. Oh, and then you have Eb/D trumpet. Cannot forget that set...)

Elephant, I agree with you 100% but I just didn't have the spine to say so myself. I try hard not to start fires.

I own a BBb. I don't own a CC and I don't plan on buying one anytime soon. No other reason than I just like my little BBb horn and I don't need anything else. If you have a really terrific BBb horn and you are a good player, who cares? When I put on my headphones and listen to Tuba music on my mp3 player, I don't care what key the player's horn is in, I just care that the music is good.