So, you want to be a professional tuba player?

LoyalTubist · Post by **LoyalTubist** » Sat Mar 25, 2006 11:50 am

An education is not required to be a professional tuba player. If you can play well and win an audition, it isn't about where you went to school (or even IF you went to school!) In fact, theoretically, you don't even have to be a high school graduate! It's how well you play and how well you blend with the players you work with.

Oh, and about the military, I was in the Army band program for seven years. It was a different time back then. Each instrument had its own MOS (military occupation specialty) number--tuba player was 02F. Now there is one for regular bands (42R) and one for special bands (42S). There was not a war going on at that time but we did a lot of combat field training. We took our instruments with us, so, we saw our instruments more than we saw anything else we used during those times. There are many good players in military bands. I think the bitter comments are uncalled for in this area.

THE TUBA · Post by **THE TUBA** » Sat Mar 25, 2006 1:01 pm

What I ment was, for those of you that are freelancers not playing in a "steady" ensemble, how often are you asked to play music that registers to you as "hard?" How difficult is the music that tuba players encounter in the "real world?"

ken k · Post by **ken k** » Sat Mar 25, 2006 8:21 pm

THE TUBA wrote:What I ment was, for those of you that are freelancers not playing in a "steady" ensemble, how often are you asked to play music that registers to you as "hard?" How difficult is the music that tuba players encounter in the "real world?"

most of the time the music I play in pits and stage shows and pops orchestras and bands is not very tough, but then when you least expect it POW some kller part comes at you. Our pops Orch played at a jazz fest in town last week with David Benoit. Mostly goose eggs and rests all over the page.
then all of a sudden out of nowhere come a part on a tune call Re-Bach in unison with the bass bone, celli and bassi, starting on hi D and lots of 16th notes and ending on a low A, so go figure. when it rains it pours....

ken k