TubeNet

I've been lurking for a little while and keeping an eye out, but I can't recall seeing this addressed before. Plenty of the reverse, though.

Pretty simple - I'm a euph player looking to play some tuba. Wondering if I could get recommendations for mouthpieces, either good ones to start out on or mouthpieces that make an easier switch between instruments.

O TubeNet, I call upon your collective wisdom in this time of need. (That's the proper incantation, right?)

I believe that the OP was asking the reverse of the question bloke answered, but for my money the response would be the same. If you are a euph player wanting to double on tuba, and asking what tuba mp to use, stay with a middle of the road, widely accepted tuba mp. When I started doubling from bass trombone to tuba I tried a bunch of "reccommended" mouthpieces, at one time I had 13 here. I finally settled on a middle of the road Yamaha Jim Self (wide rim, 33mm cup width, medium cup depth). I really wouldn't try to stay too small to facilitate the doubling cause you will doom your facility on the tuba. I'm not a tuba player, just a doubler, FWIW.

conn-helleberg....YES! Seriously, I would give it a try. also what type of tuba are you playing? I find a Laskey 28C to be a great piece going bakc and forth between euph and Eb bass. just a suggestion.

A

tbn.al wrote:...When I started doubling from bass trombone to tuba...

What mouth piece do you use for b trbn?

Try the Back 30 or the 32, these are small tuba mouthpieces.

One might assume that euphers going to a larger instrument should start with medium tuba mouthpieces. I did so and didn’t get the sound I wanted. Not until I went for something really allowing me to put some air through the tubas. For years I played PT50, even with an opened up backbore, on Eb and on BBb basses. Coming back after illness I found the PT50 too hard for exact articulation when things went soft and high. According to my analysis the main problem with the PT50 isn’t the cup, throat, or even the larger backbore. The problem for me is with its round rim with next to no inner edge at all. I went through a period with 3 different tuba mouthpieces brandwise for teh various tuba sizes, which I did not like. For now I have settled on a modular system, where the rim is the same for 3 different permutations of cup, throat, and backbore. There even is a fourth permutation, which I may acquire also at some point of time.

Depending on the tuba chosen I would go for a fairly wide, but not very deep, cup and work up my tuba chops. If you at some point feel restricted soundwise, you may stay with the given rim an use a deeper cup.

Klaus

A friend of mine whose main instrument is trombone, and plays a souzy in a dixieland band, uses a Bach 22.