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In the Bydlo Movement, as many of you probably know, there is a difficult "tuba" solo. I'm going to cheat, however, and play it on a euphonium (to get those high G#'s since my range only brings me comfortably up to an Eb and I need to play the solo in less then a month for District Orchestra). The horn I have access to is a Meinl Weston 451 4 valve compensating euphonium with a large shank. It has a 4G mouthpiece in the case. Anyway, I need to know if this is the right mouthpiece to be playing on so that I can make it sound pretty good. I don't want to go much smaller because I don't want to mess with my tuba embouchure too much (bigger would be nice if possible). I'm going up to Dillon's Music on Monday and I'm going to rummage through the boxes of mouthpieces they have over there. Any suggestions on what size mouthpiece to look for?

That solo is many times given to one of the trombone players who doubles euphonium. You can play it yourself though if it sounds good.

i have a Miraphone 1291 and my high range is only up to an Eb comfortably and an F only on good days. Getting up to that high G# is way out of the question by Jan. 20th. So i need to play it on euphonium in order to hit that pitch, but i need a mouthpiece that will be comfortable for me to switch to.

why not tackle it with a tuba? I'm guessing it is really high. and i havnt heard it before.. but do you only have a contra bass tuba? and not a bass tuba?

Really high is an understatement. In addition, the part in question is really quiet and really exposed. To expect high schools and high school players to have/own/perform on a bass tuba is out of the question.

Getting the high note out is by no means what is hard about Bydlo. I can play comfortably more than an octave higher than the G# in Bydlo, and would still have very much difficulty playing it. There is no "right mouthpiece" or "right" horn to play it on. Just play it on whatever sounds good. Try to imitate a tuba if you play the euphonium. You may just give it to one of the trombone players, as the trombones tacet during this movement and it is better suited to their range. Just find out who can make more music with it.

p.s. - I don't see how you'd be able to play Bydlo, even on a euphonium, if you can't play higher than an F on tuba.

the mouthpiece is smaller, and for me anyways, smaller mouthpieces help me play higher. Unfortunately, not that much higher. And by the way, the director would rather have a tuba or euphonium play it. He is going to use the trombone player as a last resort. I'm still looking for an answer to my question though, should i use a bigger or smaller mouthpiece than a 4G, if so, what kind? Also the director said he wouldn't have a problem with me bringing it down an octave on tuba. What do you guys think about this option?

The best option is to keep it in the octave in which it's written. If you find that you are having trouble with the part, suggest that a trombone player play it (on a euphonium). There's no shame in doing this.

I can't believe someone programmed Ravel's Pictures for a high school orchestra, by the way. Make sure to listen for the piccolo trumpet solo in the Schmuyle section...

Hey Brett....

It's high.....period. If you do it on euphonium, it's still high. Period. You'll have to decide whether or not you can make the best music or if you should turn the euphonium over to one of the tacet trombone players. Just realize that you have to play this solo over the full orchestra on a foreign instrument, after playing your tuba, and then going BACK to tuba after the solo.

Tough choices, I know......but do what's best for the music. Especially on such an important solo.

I hope the rest of your auditions go well! Throw me an email sometime at avcarter@temple.edu

Take Care!!!

Brett,
if you are comfortable enough, play it on a 6 1/2 (the high stuff) and play the lower stuff on your tuba.
FWIW I still think that the Bowman BB1 is THE MPC for me on my euph
Just a suggestion,
good luck, I wish I could be worring about playing Bydlo and not bored out of my skull playing Bravura,
Bill Pritchard

All of those people are right!

I am not hot on euphonium, but the Schilke 51D works OK and is not very expensive. I would actually go towards a Schilke 58, 59, or 60 if you can get them with the right shank to fit your euphonium.

Just to add another thing to the opinion mix: I say go for it. Its HS and a place to learn and experiment. You will learn something by going thru this, and its not like there is a ton of pressure of being fired or anything. have fun.

t

Just got through playing this with the Ithaca College Orchestra. Way to go choosing euphonium. I definitely have the range on my F, but why stress out about it? That G# is a pretty horrible note on any horn, save an Eb tuba, so I'd definitely go with a euph. In fact, it's more stylistically appropriate too--the french tuba that ravel envisioned that solo to be played on was actually closer in size to a euph than a tuba. The euph was advice from a pretty respected tuba player out there today, and actually what the conductor wanted anyways. I used the biggest stork bass trombone mouthpiece thats out there, borrowed it from the guy sitting next to me who had it as an extra, and threw it on a besson euph. Sounded rich and full (to me at least) and got the job done. Still is a really hard solo but good luck and kick ***. Thats great you're able to play that in H.S., what an opportunity!

phoenix wrote:i have a Miraphone 1291 and my high range is only up to an Eb comfortably and an F only on good days. Getting up to that high G# is way out of the question by Jan. 20th. So i need to play it on euphonium in order to hit that pitch, but i need a mouthpiece that will be comfortable for me to switch to.

Don't feel guilty for a second about playing this on euphonium. There is probably not a single solo that causes more sweat amonst orchestral tuba players (except those who wrote in their contract that this would be played by a trombonist) than the Bydlo. I've heard several high-end orchestral players have difficulties with it on F tuba. These are guys who can laugh at the even higher Bb in Symphonie Fantastique, but that soft entry on the high G# is still treacherous for them.

Yes, there are those who have played it on big tubas flawlessly. So?

The preferred instrument by more orchestra pros is the Alexander 151 tenor tuba, which is really a rotary euphonium. The music was written for the small French tuba in C, which is really a six-valve euphonium pitched even higher than a standard modern euphonium.

Rick "for whom it is a moot point" Denney