Before Sousaphones were known as Sousaphones

[Dave Detwiler]

Hi all,

Now that the dust has settled a bit, I thought I'd share my latest finding as it relates to Sousaphone history.

It turns out the horns we know today as "Sousaphones" were not called that at first, and for quite a few years. You can read about that here if you're interested: http://tubapastor.blogspot.com/2020/08/ ... 08-to.html

1908 Music Trade Review (July 11 - vol. 47, no. 2) bass (2).jpg

They sure looked like what we call a Sousaphone, but that name was already taken by the original design, which many affectionately refer to as a "raincatcher" (and someday, I hope to track down the origin of that nickname!).

Enjoy!
Dave

[bisontuba]

Nice

[tbonesullivan]

They sure looked like what we call a Sousaphone, but that name was already taken by the original design, which many affectionately refer to as a "raincatcher" (and someday, I hope to track down the origin of that nickname!).

That's gonna be a tough one, as it definitely was given the nickname long before anyone written down. Maybe by the first players who ended up being caught in the rain with it, and having to dump it out later.