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Fourth valve as a P5 on a four valve Eb (or F) tuba?
Posted: Wed Jun 27, 2012 3:51 pm
by MartyNeilan
Not too long ago, there was a thread about the long fourth valve on some older tubas. A while back I suggested a tritone valve, and that was shot down for some logical reasons (mostly the note P5 below the fundamental). Now, consider a perfect 5th fourth valve on a four valved instrument. The first or third (my preference) slide is ridden for 13 and 123.
Keep in mind that with a P5 4th valve, the first three valves behave much "shorter" than they would with a P4 4th valve.
On an Eb, that might be:
Ab:4
G:14 (push 1 max in)
Gb: 124 or 34
F: 134 (push 1 max in) or 234 (lip down or pull 3)
E: 1234 (possibly pull 1?)
Eb: open pedal
Thoughts, comments, criticism?
Re: Fourth valve as a P5 on a four valve Eb (or F) tuba?
Posted: Wed Jun 27, 2012 5:31 pm
by Bob Kolada
I brought that up once (for contrabass tubas where you don't play "as low") and Tony thought I was joking.
Re: Fourth valve as a P5 on a four valve Eb (or F) tuba?
Posted: Thu Jun 28, 2012 11:55 am
by MartyNeilan
I might stick a .650 rotor beforehand some day, but I am trying to keep this project as simple and as cheap as possible.
Re: Fourth valve as a P5 on a four valve Eb (or F) tuba?
Posted: Thu Jun 28, 2012 1:08 pm
by eupher61
Tucker Jolly had (has?) a York Eb, originally a 3 valve, to which Monty Burch in Grand Rapids added a tritone 4th valve. It was pretty amazing. Yes, some pulling for 1/3 combinations, but so what? That is/was a very good playing instrument. And, the low pitch slides were long enough to put it into a good d tuning....Arnold! Sadly, no time to make the adjustments during the piece, so that was a no-go.
I like the idea of a tritone valve, myself.
Re: Fourth valve as a P5 on a four valve Eb (or F) tuba?
Posted: Thu Jun 28, 2012 11:27 pm
by GC
Doesn't Cerveny sell that as a "quint" valve?
Re: Fourth valve as a P5 on a four valve Eb (or F) tuba?
Posted: Thu Jun 28, 2012 11:57 pm
by Art Hovey
It calls for a value judgement. I prefer a conventional 4th valve (on a BBb tuba) because it gives me access to low F, E, Eb, D, and Db, with little or no slide-pulling.
The price I pay is not-so-good notes between that low Db and the pedal note.
(For an Eb tuba, those notes of course are Bb, A, Ab, G, and Gb)
If the two notes above the pedal were more important to me than my F and E (your Bb and A) then I would want a large-bore quint valve and do a lot of slide pulling for the latter two.
Wouldn't it be nice to have enough slide in the 4th-valve tubing so that it could be a conventional 4th, a tritone, OR a quint? It might have to be a double slide.