TubeNet

May be this has been asked here before.

I give tubaworkshops from time to time. At the moment I'm updating the material I use in this worksohps.

Usually a lot of the participants are community band members who have not a good idea of how a tuba could/should sound or even what it is able to play.

So I'd like to have a list of recordings I can recommend.

I have some really fine recordings already in mind.

What are your top 5 tubarecordings?

(Doesn't have to be "educational". Doesn't matter if classical, jazz or what ever.
Please no Orchestral CD)

Not in any particular order, but the 5 I tend to listen to the most:

Jim Self, My America
David Zerkel, Tuba Helper
David Zerkel, American Music For Tuba: Something Old, Something New
Oystein Baadsvik, Danzas
MJT Project, Favorite Things

I don't own any "tuba" CDs except for the Matteson-Phillips TubaJazz Consort "Superhorns" CD which I consider more of a "jazz" CD then a "tuba" CD.

in no particular order,
Danzas, Oystein Baadsvick
Cascades, Carol Jantsch
Tuba Tuba, Dave Bajeron and Michel Goddard
Bravo Basssisimo, Steve Sykes
British tuba concertos James Gourlay

some for the sheer technical ability of the players, some that show just what the tuba is capable of doing and some for showing that music is one of the greatest joys of life, and is also great fun, I hope you manage to convey that in your workshops too.

Michael Lind - The Virtuoso Tuba

Michael Lind - Play Tuba

Øystein Baadsvik - 20th Century Tuba Concertos

John Fletcher tribute CD, whatever it was called, is a great CD.

Off bass brass (president's own tuba quartet)
Melton tuba sextet with warren deck et al.
Travelin light
Tuba tracks
Big Boy

I can offer one CD suggestion, which IMHO should be at the top of any "list." The CD is "Chester plays Opera" by Chester Schmitz. An absolutely stunning performance of some beautiful music. Chester's sound is warm and rich, and his musicianship is simply superb. This is the CD I would choose, if I could choose only one.

Will Traphagan

I'll second the suggestion of Modern Jazz Tuba Project's Favourite Things (great!), but I'm slightly surprised to see Øystein Baadsvik's Danzas mentioned twice as it's my least favourite CD of his. I'd go with Ferry Tales for great lyrical playing (I love the original music on it, and the version of Somewhere over the Rainbow is definitely one of the best I've heard), 21th Century Tuba Concertos (for the Sandström, mainly) or the 20th Century one. (Or Tuba Carnival, of course.)

How about some dance music?
Acid Brass by Williams Fairey Brass Band is good - I don't think there are tuba solos, but it's a good example of different music. (I don't know if your "please no Orchestral CDs" comment includes brass bands or not.)

Some New Orleans-style brass bands should also be mentioned in this thread. I can recommend Dirty Dozen's Buck Jump and Youngblood's Unlearn.

And finally some brass quintet:
The Brazz Brothers are always great, but if I'm to pick one of their CDs, thinking particularly about tuba, I'll go with Roll Tide Roll.

(Disclaimer: I'm 280 km from home, so can't check my CD collection. I'm mainly going by my faulty memory.)

I surprised we got this far before these were mentioned:

-Roger Bobo Plays Tuba (with Hindemith & Effie Suite on it)
-Floyd Cooley: The Romantic Tuba
-Portrait of an Artist: Arnold Jacobs

Not solo tuba, but I'd buy both of these before I'd buy a 4th or 5th solo tuba album:

-Philly, Cleveland, Chicago Brass playing Gabrielli - Torchinsky, Jacobs, Bishop, tubas, among other brass greats.

-German Brass Goes Bach (this is a brass ensemble DVD, but it's GREAT!)- Walter Hilgers, tuba

I've always liked those "Howard Johnson & Gravity" CDs. No accounting for taste though.

In no particular order:

Symphonia Fantastique - Symphonia
Tuba Tracks - Gene Pokorny
Knock Yourself Out - Off Bass Brass
The Best of Fletch - John Fletcher
Antiphonal Music of Gabrieli - Philadelphia, Cleveland, and Chicago Brass

All are phenomenal albums with varied styles throughout.

In no particular order

Tim Buzbee - Angles and Demons

Velvet Brown - Velvet

Benjamin Pierce - Pierce Plays Bach

Roland Szentpali - On My Way

Roland Szentpali - Parallels

+1 for the Fletcher CD...... It's called "Best of Fletch" & is available here......... http://www.johnfletcher-tuba.co.uk/thecd.html Stunning playing, both solo & with the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble. Actually I think the PJBE Greatest Hits album should be required listening for any tuba player who works in brass chamber music.

Les Neish "Salt of the Earth"....... Classic & contemporary works played by a player who should be more widely known....... Lyrical playing, technique, Gobsmacking range & control. Best of all, it's got some cracking tunes on it.

TGB (Tuba, Gitarre, Baterie) ..... A jazz trio featuring the incredible Sergio Carolina. Played live with no overdubs..... Glorious, joyful playing & worth it for Lily's Funk alone!

Tuba Tracks by Gene Pokorney is a joy to listen to. Just beautiful MUSIC played by a master.

+1 for Oystein Baadsvik "20th Century Tuba Concertos. It's got the RVW concerto, the John Williams Concerto on it but my favourite is the Arutiunian. I'd never heard of it until I got this album & absolutely love it.

Honourable mentions to............. Les Neish again for "Shine" (voted best tuba recording at ITEC this year). Steve Sykes for "Basso Bravissimo". Pat Sheridan for "Blazing Brass". Pretty much anything by Oystein Baadsvik, "Tuba Carnival" & "Danzas" being great starting points. John Fletcher "Le Tuba Enchantee" which I got on import from Japan. Walter Hilgers recording of the RVW concerto. Joseph Cook "Debut" (Tuba soloist from Black Dyke Band). Erik Gjerdevik "Erik the Viking", I got my copy from ebay & it's got some INCREDIBLE playing on it.

There are some great cds out there but those are my favourites. I acknowledge it's a bit "Eurocentric" but that's where I'm from!

Cheers

Russ

Floyd Cooley - A Schumann Fantasy

I'm always just stunned when this CD isn't mentioned on lists like this!

If you haven't heard/don't own this CD, you are REALLY missing out. Floyd's playing on the album sets the lofty standard to which I compare my and all other tuba playing.

Buy it!

Lars Andreas Haug- Vinterfjøs

Great album, especially the track Gjøvik. Simply beautiful playing. I'm sure it can be listened to online somewhere.

I am sure this will go over like a lead balloon, but I wouldn't put any tuba solo CD in my top 5 tuba CDs because I don't really think the tuba sounds that good as a solo instrument.

I much prefer tuba in the orchestral or band setting. My top recording (as of late) is

Mahler Symphony No 6, CSO by Haitink.

So there.

Release the dogs....

In no particular order:

Roger Bobo's Bobissimo!
Tim Buzbee's Buzzed
Bob Stewart's Then & Now
Michel Godard (and Pierre Favre) Deux
William Roper (with Francis Wong and Bobby Bradford) Purple Gums

Honorable mentions:

Jozsef Bazsinka's Waves
Eli Newberger (and Jimmy Mazzy) Shake It Down

luke_hollis wrote:Release the dogs....

No need for dogs. You are of course entitled to your opinion (taste is a funny thing - I'm generally not a fan of hard rock, myself), but your post does make me wonder about what tuba solos you have heard. While I like it myself, I can understand why people would dislike really low stuff (I don't have a tuba example in mind, but I have a CD with contra bassoon duets - it's awesome, but it gets a bit noisy and rough, as low instruments do). But it's harder for me to imagine someone disliking, say, Ferry Tales. Let me restate that I have no problem with you having your opinion. I'm just having trouble understanding it.

-

I'd also like to thank everybody for all the suggestions in this thread, several of which I haven't heard of either CD or even tuba player. I'm looking forward to getting to know some of them!

Trumgottist wrote:"...Let me restate that I have no problem with you having your opinion. I'm just having trouble understanding it.

Some tuba solo CDs are hard to get through to say the least. Take Big Boy from Gene Pokorny. Unbelievable player with remarkable sound and musicality in the orchestral setting, but I find the disc almost unlistenable. The music is obscure and it seems like a strain to play. Another example is the Floyd Cooley Schumann Variations. While more tonal and interesting, it to me highlights how much the tuba is not a solo instrument. Awesome player, very musical and a great performance. It just doesn't sound like the right timbre/register for solo instrument. The piano seems not to blend with the big tuba.

I do appreciate that people like Tuba solo CDs and the performers are stellar. I don't mean to take anything from them, it's just not for my ears.