Paul M wrote:How about northeast Florida? I can't find a thing. I think the nearest store is the Tuba Exchange, and that's a LONG day's drive from here. It'd be about 8-9 hours, and with gas prices today...ouch.
Why, that one is simple! Try Lee Stofer outside of Atlanta--just call first.
I should've said in my earlier reply that you'd be more than welcome to try out what I've got - a Mirafone 190 and a rotary Willson 3050. I could also get ahold of a silver Gronitz PCM from my buddy if you'd like.
Not an ideal "try before you buy" situation, but it might help satisfy some curiosity...
I live in Colorado and I haven't seen anyone around here who carries more than one or two student model horns, anyone know of a place in Colorado or a surrounding state that does carry horns? If there isn't anything as close as that I figure I might as well fly somewhere that has them. I know I've asked this before but I'm hoping to catch someone that knows a shop.
bigboom wrote:I live in Colorado and I haven't seen anyone around here who carries more than one or two student model horns, anyone know of a place in Colorado or a surrounding state that does carry horns? If there isn't anything as close as that I figure I might as well fly somewhere that has them.
Ben
bigboom wrote:I live in Colorado and I haven't seen anyone around here who carries more than one or two student model horns, anyone know of a place in Colorado or a surrounding state that does carry horns? If there isn't anything as close as that I figure I might as well fly somewhere that has them. Ben
Dillon's is a short Rapid Rover ride from JFK and Baltimore Brass is even easier from Baltimore's airport. Enjoy the flight!
Fellow tuba players know about the bind that a tuba shopper is in. They know that the typical music store won't ever carry a tuba to buy, let along an assortment to try out. Make friends with other players, in community bands, in colleges, etc etc.
Spend enough time tooting on other people's instruments, and you'll start to notice trends to your preferences. When you're ready to spend your cash, you'll be a lot closer to what you want than you were before.
I "tried" maybe thirty tubas before finally making a new horn purchase, and that was over a span of probably seven years. Half of them were casual, "Can I try it?" instances for the first six years, and taken together, they told me a lot.
You would certainly be welcome to come to my studio and try my horns.
If you happen to know Tommy Johnson, that may be a good route to go as well. He always has a large number of horns lying around in his studio. It seems that every manufacturer sends him stuff from time to time. He also has a couple of hampers full of mouthpieces.
I have a Yorkbrunner and a Yamaha 621 F tuba. I also have a number of Giddings and Webster mouthpieces and some other standard blowers. I could also get you in contact with my cousin, Lester Dropkin, who lives in Claremont. He has an HB-20 and a great rotary B&S F tuba. Doug Tornquist has some nice horns as well. Actually, there are a bunch of nice dudes all over town that I'm sure would help you out if you approached them properly.
