A couple years ago I picked up a dog at the pound. I wanted an Australian Cattle Dog to play frisbee with. They had one, and the little 12-year old girl working at the shelter named him "Bobo." True story, and this was a year before I started playing tuba. Now Bobo is a mighty name among tuba players, but try yelling out "here big fella, c'mon Bobo!" in Mississippi. (I feel as if somebody could jump out of a passing pickup truck plastered in rebel flags and deliver a beatin' when they hear such sissy talk.)
A few months after getting Bobo, I noticed some very strange behavior . . .
Each time I would play the last few notes of a practice session, Bobo somehow knew that I was getting ready to put the horn in the case. He would come running unfailingly from any part of the house and wait for me to put the horn away.
It slowly dawned on me that I would habitually noodle around and end each sesson on a sustained E-natural. After the E came the click of my slide lock. Then Bobo would come running.
After a few times of rewarding him for his behavior, now he comes running every time I play a long E. He responds to several octaves on both tuba and bass trombone. I have amazed my friends with this trick on many occasions. If I'm doing some slow practice on Bach cello music, his ears @@@@@ up each time I hit a sustained E, but he will only come running if it is held for a few beats. (Wide vibrato gets him to run even faster, because then he knows for sure.)
Am I just weird, is my dog weird or are we both insane? (Don't answer)
