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What is this Miraphone? Tenor tuba? Euphonium? Little F?

http://cgi.ebay.com/SMALL-MIRAFONE-TUBA ... dZViewItem

What's the difference between this and a tenor tuba?

schlepporello wrote:Should I chase it up to Dan's maximum bid, then outbid him by 50 cents at the last minute?

I figured this horn was a Bb euph and decided that my max was to be $350 early on. I would have bought it only to resell and the key would have been whether the bell was repairable or not. It could well have ended up as a 'frankenhorn' of some sort... probably with a different bell. I don't have a clue what these things are worth but I wasn't about to put myself in a position where I had to spend $500 on a bell! ... just to end up with a $1,000 horn.

jacobg wrote:What's the difference between this and a tenor tuba?

The terminology depends on what part of the World you are in. Here in the US, it's usually called a euphonium. In some parts of Europe it could be called a bass horn, bariton, or tenor tuba. It's probably in the key of Bb, but it's really hard to tell from a picture. I could be a C euph. The only way I would know for sure is to buy it and blow it.

I had an opportunity to play a 5 valve version of this horn some years ago. To say that intonation was "interesting" would be an understatement.

Coincidentally, a retired band director friend of mine mentioned that during the late 60's a few Texas schools had these things and his reaction was the same as mine...