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I did my first rehearsal with an orchestra tonight in many years. It was a blast but omg, five sharps?

Try playing musical theater. I’ve seen 7.

When I played in professional bands (1970s and 1980s) the vocalist would often have arrangements in five, six or seven sharps and most of the rest of the music would be in flat keys. Also, on the bandstand there was room for only one tuba (not much room). You just play what is on the page correctly or they would find someone that can. This is just how it is and not an admonishment.

As someone pointed out below, practice your scales in all keys (major and minor). I will add practice your arpeggios in all keys major and minor. I have practiced my scales and arpeggios almost every day for the last 46 years. Also, get used to playing in all keys by practicing things in less often seen keys and find things to sightread in many sharps and flats.

best,
Mark

Just saying, I think this is when CC tubas are helpful.

Sharps out the wazoo are not at all uncommon in pit orchestras (OMG, the utter hell of Legally Blonde the Musical, with a considerable part of it in F#, C#, and B at breakneck speeds; at least I played it on bass and not tuba), and British brass band music.

And that's not counting that Eb instrument slide the key up three jumps in the sharp direction when in treble clef BritBrBand transpositions. We just get used to it and play it.

I agree with bort. Key signatures with several sharps in them are easier to navigate on a CC tuba.

nworbekim wrote:After a bit you don't think it about it... 'cept for that *%#@¶ B#!

I "C" what you mean...

Reading one note at a time in those keys can definitely be a challenge. Try playing piano in some of those keys!!! Grab a handful and pray!!!!!!

Don't get me started on double sharps and flats at high speeds, or abrupt clef changes!!!!

My piano prof in college played anything, and everything..... correctly....... at sight..... every time!!! I hated that guy!!!! He could make a his students feel unbelievably inferior, merely by practicing something as you were walking in for your lesson!!

I found myself in that frame of mind every time I went in for my lesson!

I'm just getting back into playing tuba and trombone. Our local Reno Philharmonic had a "play along with the pros" concert. I was already to jump in until I saw the arrangements were in all in D, A or E. Even in my hayday of playing as a young lad, those keys killed me playing a Bb tuba!

I've run into 8 flats in the key signature playing with a German band. Double Bb.

There's an example in the orchestral literature in the bassoon part, but I don't recall which piece.

bloke wrote:well...

The strings HOME KEYS are:
C - ♮
G - ♯
D - ♯♯
A - ♯♯♯
E - ♯♯♯♯

They (who sit in the front) play stuff like this - ALL the time:

RLv.png

...and we and our buddies - in the back - WHEN we have something to play, play stuff like this:

RLbt.png

Maybe...?? it's "fair" to let them (up in the front) play closer to their home keys, and we can worry with a D♯ or even an A♯ half note now and then.

Ha. That violin part is not even very hard; even in my dotage I can whip through that. Maybe that's why I find tuba parts relatively easy? On tuba you don't have to keep glancing ahead of where you are to decide which notes you're going to play on which string in which position while sight reading. If it were in five flats it would be harder, much more so than mashing more valves on a tuba.

bort wrote:Just saying, I think this is when CC tubas are helpful.

True, but it’s not gonna happen.

And Bloke, what piece did you quote? I can hum it all the way but can’t come up with a title!

Looks like Glinka's Russlan and Ludmilla.

bloke wrote:...and (re: "making it easier for the strings, because they carry 95% of the load of a symphony orchestra") I'm pretty sure most who have transcribed it for wind bands pushed it up to E-flat major.

There's one (that I know about, I'm sure there are others) in E flat by E.F. Goldman, and a much older one by a guy named Frank Winterbottom, in C (IIRC, it was on the Marine Band sight-reading list for many years).

Over the years I've played several of his transcriptions (Don Juan, the Flying Dutchman, etc.) and they are very good.

MaryAnn wrote: On tuba you don't have to keep glancing ahead of where you are to decide which notes you're going to play on which string in which position while sight reading.

On tuba, you have to glance ahead to find your breathing points.

On ANY instrument, you better be looking ahead. Every gig has its landmines.

aqualung said:
On ANY instrument, you better be looking ahead. Every gig has its landmines.

very true.
Mark

Reading this thread makes me want to again thank my parents for all those years of piano way back when (and making me practice which it seems we did a bit more willingly back in the day). I just think of the key signature and play air piano scales with my mind and fingers, and all the sharps, and or flats, are accounted for. Sort of like learning to ski when you were a kid. Seems the younger you are, the more readily muscle memory is ingrained. It is is also making it easier transitioning to Eb, where sharp key signatures are more the norm.

When I play my Eb tuba, I read bass clef as if it were treble with 3 sharps added.

Right now I'm working on Kopprasch #28 in B. That puts me in the key of G# — 8 sharps, including F##.

There are also a lot of accidental sharps in this etude; some are just sharps, but some become double sharps because they were already sharp in the original key of B. Plus, just to keep things lively, Kopprasch has included a bunch of double sharps.

More than once I have considered abandoning this system and just learning the bass clef fingerings.

Hup

bloke wrote:I'm no "professional"...It's just that I only show up to play if someone offers to pay me.
..."remote" keys/scales/arpeggios/tunes/etc...??
I find myself (often, without knowing that I'm doing it) "ghost-fingering" tunes (when "stuck in my head"...and often - somewhat complex tunes...with strains, verses/choruses/bridges-in-other-keys/etc.) in so-called remote/"black-note" keys. It's a (nervous?) habit that I formed in my late-teens/early-20's when I was both trying to learn a whole bunch of "standards" tunes AND really pushing myself (formerly: a guitarist) to become a hire-worthy all-around tuba-blowist.

Mrs. bloke (when we are falling asleep at night...and my hand might be draped on her arm) "Are you playing the tuba, again?"

Now that's funny . . . I thought I was the only one that did that! Learned all the "mechanical" patterns for the scales and arpeggios that way, too!

And my spouse has asked that EXACT question . . .