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Hello, I'm a music student at UCF. Currently I have a friend offering to sell me a Yamaha Eb. Should I take it or hold out and save up for an F. also do you have any mouthpiece sugguestions. currently i use a PT-50+ on my Kalison DS.
Thank you

I'm sure you'll get LOTS of opinions, but I would liken it to a trumpet player's choice between Bb and C trumpets.

The F may be a little brighter, the choice of "orchestral musicians", but not that of band players. Either way, you should learn the horn well enough that so reading and playing does not enter into it.

Before I got a decent F, I used a small, non-compensating Distin Eb in the orchestra when it was appropriate, and nobody ever noticed besides the bass trombonist (who could see... ).

For brass band music, I would pick an Eb hands down, but in an American orchestra I don't think that a compensating Eb is the right sound for non-English music. I suggest that you try both, and trust your ear and your comfort level.

hey? are you the guy I met the other day at the Disney audition? if so I'm going to guess you're talking about the Yamaha 321 Eb that Gail has. It's a good horn. Before she accuired it, it was the horn Bob Carpenter used in The Sovereign Brass before he got his Nirschl.

yep that would be me. are you the guy with the big alexander BBb? thanks for the advice. I do believe that I'll buy Gail's tuba, that is if Willie(i think) doesn't want to buy it, unfortunately he's ahead of me in line. I was curious?

Do you or anyone have mouthpiece sugguestions, or at least a general size to try out?

thanks

windshieldbug wrote:I'm sure you'll get LOTS of opinions, but I would liken it to a trumpet player's choice between Bb and C trumpets.

All the trumpet players I have known choose the instrument by how the part is transposed. We tuba players usually get untransposed music, so we have a lot more choice. I am quadrilingual myself, being fluent in the keys of BBb, CC, Eb, and F.

I decided to buy the Eb tuba. thanks for all the advice, now the only question is what size and type mouthpiece should i use.

I play a Yamaha Eb 321 and have a myriad of mouthpieces. I like the Laskey 30 F, Schilke Helleberg II or a Dennis Wick 2L for most situations. If you would like something for the high notes try a small Dennis Wick like a 3SL. The mouthpiece that came with my horn was a Yamaha 66D4. That seems to work fairly well in the high register with only comprimising the low register slightly. I have also tried the Pat Sheridan mouthpieces but did not think they were for me. Best advice, try a lot of mouthpieces with a tuner and some music that you are familiar with. Good luck.

Henry Gertcher