Any F tuba secrets?

[gregsundt]

Repetition. There really is no analogy for transposing, like there is for Eb. When I bought my F, I just played it a lot. It was frustrating. Within a semester, we were pretty comfortable with each other, though.

Never should have sold that horn....

[Rick Denney]

Learn it like a new instrument, not like a transposed instrument.

Rick "who had to write in fingerings just like beginner band for a while" Denney

[swillafew]

I went over from BBb, and an F was my only horn for 15 years. I remember thinking early on: half the scale was like BBb, and the other half was like reading trumpet music. In other words, I already knew the fingerings, all I had to do was remember one "shift" and pretty soon it was a learned habit. Now I keep both BBb and F fingerings under my fingers and confuse the treble clef people by insisting that I don't transpose. (Which is true, I am a poor transposer).

I did sit in on the BBb part in a brass band once, using the F. That will blow the dust off your brain.

[MikeMason]

I'm still debating what to do with this yam 321. The lazy part of me( the majority) has gotten a student to agree to 3$ a page to transpose all potential bass tuba tunes up a whole step and put in a binder. Prolly 50-75 pages of orchestra parts and solos. Haven't pulled the trigger. Still debating. The thing just plays and sounds so good.