Attn college teachers and students

[iiipopes]

Yes, indeed. It is called both. I always thought it was ludicrous to call the low Eb a "contra-alto," and I don't, but that is its "proper" name. The BBb is properly called "contra bass." Although the same pitches for tubas are called bass and contra bass, and since the Bb bass clarinet is called what it is, the Eb should be called contra bass and the BBb sub contra bass. But what do I know. Here's more on the clarinet family:

http://www.contrabass.com/pages/cbcl.html

[MartyNeilan]

Lee University owns both a contrabassoon and a contrabass clarinet. When I was there, we would bring the contrabass clarinet on Symphonic Band tours, and we would always receive lots of questions on it - the wrap of our contrabass clarinet was very tall; it required the player to sit on a stool and would extend from the floor to several feet above her head.
The CB clarinet player would often just read Bass Clarinet parts (played down an octave) if that was all that was available.

[OldsRecording]

Yes, indeed. It is called both. I always thought it was ludicrous to call the low Eb a "contra-alto," and I don't, but that is its "proper" name. The BBb is properly called "contra bass." Although the same pitches for tubas are called bass and contra bass, and since the Bb bass clarinet is called what it is, the Eb should be called contra bass and the BBb sub contra bass. But what do I know. Here's more on the clarinet family:

http://www.contrabass.com/pages/cbcl.html

I've always thought the bass clarinet should be called a 'tenor clarinet'- that way it would be Eb alto, Bb tenor, Eb bass (instead of the silly 'contra alto'), and BBb contrabass.

[Chuck Jackson]

I wish my band had those it wold be a fun trick to play on a tenor player

That's a pretty big assumption.


Chuck

[OldsRecording]

C melody saxophones

I wish my band had those it wold be a fun trick to play on a tenor player

Almost as funny as handing one of your piccolo players a Db picc...

[Chuck Jackson]

going by our tenor player probably has not even heard of a melody c something mildly amusing is almost certain to happen One would think

Thus my remark, a pretty big assumption.

[LoyalTubist]

I heard some kids at a high school arguing about tubas before I left California last October...

"No real tuba player in history has ever played a sousaphone!"

I chuckled to myself.