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Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 12:49 pm
by TheHatTuba
What are some of the horns Mr. Johnson owned? I know of:
Mirafone 180/184/185/190
Rudy six valve F
Rudy F cimbasso
Miraphone/Stewart CC cimbasso (made from a 184 set)
Rotary Neptune (I think...)
Yamaha 822 F (multiple)
Yamaha/Stewart double tuba (two)

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 1:34 pm
by tclements
When I was studying with him, his main studio horn was the 185. He used the 180 when there was a high part (like Jaws). He had an Alexander 151 for tenor tuba, the double belled 184, and a Conn 62H with a valve section that I THINK Burt Herrick made for him (maybe Minick). He used a 186 (then a 188) for live stuff. I never saw a contra trombone, but I am reasonably certain he had one.

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 1:41 pm
by tclements
I was studying with him when Jaws hit. He DID show up late (probably the ONLY time in his career), played the take they used without warming up, but played it on the 180.

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:18 pm
by TheHatTuba
I forgot about the Alex 151. His contra was a Mirafone BBb.

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:31 pm
by Ace
tclements wrote:When I was studying with him, his main studio horn was the 185. He used the 180 when there was a high part (like Jaws). He had an Alexander 151 for tenor tuba, the double belled 184, and a Conn 62H with a valve section that I THINK Burt Herrick made for him (maybe Minick). He used a 186 (then a 188) for live stuff. I never saw a contra trombone, but I am reasonably certain he had one.
Here's a photo of the group which recorded the "Planet of the Apes" tracks. Tommy Johnson is lower right. He was a funny guy-----note the ape mask on his contrabass trombone. -Ace

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 4:03 pm
by Dylan King
He had a Neptune 6/4 CC for a while, which may be the same one John Van Houten plays now.

He was quite fond of a B&S F tuba with a Miraphone 185 bell that he used a lot before he got his first Yamaha 822. He played that F at his 1992 UCLA faculty recital. He said that the Miraphone bell helped the low register.

He also had another F/CC double tuba that was old before he ever had the Robb Stewart horns. I can't remember who the maker was, but he used to loan it out to his students, which was something he did a lot.

I think I remember seeing a sousaphone bell or two popping out of the rafters in his garage.

He had an amazing collection of tuba mouthpieces. One time when I was at his house he pulled out a book-box full of them and gave me a few.

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 11:55 pm
by Braydenmshannon
I don’t know if any of you still care 10 years later 😂 but I am currently studying with John Van Houten and he has Tommy Johnson’s 188 so he also had that in his arsenal. So yeah just an update if any of you still want to know.

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Tue Apr 13, 2021 1:11 am
by barry grrr-ero
That Neptune was just recently up for sale.

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Thu May 06, 2021 1:15 pm
by Fritztuba
Mr Johnson played a 188 for many years. Around 1987 he sold his first 188 to buy a silver plated 188 which were quite rare in those days. I tried to buy his first 188 but couldn´t get the cash together. He also played a Yamaha 621 for several years before he got an 822. Tony Clements, I understood that he played Jaws on CC tuba (which made it even more amazing) though you were around in those days so I could be wrong. Roger Bobo sold a handmade 822 to Rod Mathews which in turn he sold to Mr J. That is the tuba that Rob Stewart turned into his double tuba. His old double tuba was an Alex. I think he used it when he premiered the Broughton Sonata in 1978. Great thread folks. Thanks

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Wed May 12, 2021 3:46 pm
by cjk
https://www.robbstewart.com/double-tuba says that Tommy Johnson's first double tuba was a Carl Lehmann double tuba from the 1930s. There are pictures of it at that site as well.

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon May 17, 2021 7:43 pm
by rodmathews
Eric is right about the Yamaha 822 that got turned into a double tuba. That was the best 822 I've ever played - wish I had kept it!

I have the silver 188 that Mr. Johnson used in the studios for a big chunk of his career. It plays great, but the sentimental value of it also means a lot to me. I remember him playing that tuba back when I was studying with him, and it makes me happy when I play it. :-)

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Mon May 17, 2021 7:56 pm
by groth
rodmathews wrote: Mon May 17, 2021 7:43 pm Eric is right about the Yamaha 822 that got turned into a double tuba. That was the best 822 I've ever played - wish I had kept it!

I have the silver 188 that Mr. Johnson used in the studios for a big chunk of his career. It plays great, but the sentimental value of it also means a lot to me. I remember him playing that tuba back when I was studying with him, and it makes me happy when I play it. :-)
So anything sound track wise from 1987 on to the end of his career was that Silver one? It's one of the most iconic tuba sounds in history.

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Tue May 18, 2021 6:01 pm
by Fritztuba
rodmathews wrote: Mon May 17, 2021 7:43 pm Eric is right about the Yamaha 822 that got turned into a double tuba. That was the best 822 I've ever played - wish I had kept it!

I have the silver 188 that Mr. Johnson used in the studios for a big chunk of his career. It plays great, but the sentimental value of it also means a lot to me. I remember him playing that tuba back when I was studying with him, and it makes me happy when I play it. :-)
That's awesome Rod!

Re: Tommy Johnson's tubas?

Posted: Thu May 20, 2021 8:03 pm
by rodmathews
[/quote]

So anything sound track wise from 1987 on to the end of his career was that Silver one? It's one of the most iconic tuba sounds in history.
[/quote]

That's roughly the right time frame. He used it on a lot of things, but not anywhere close to everything. He played on a Yamaha 822 F tuba quite a bit, and also used a Mel Culbertson 6/4 from time to time in addition to a 190 on occasion. The 188 had a pretty distinctive sound when he played it!