Why recording basses? An answer...

[Chuck(G)]

Most folks know that the bell-front tuba is referred to as a "recording bass" or "recording bell". Here's a great radio program that shows what happens to the sound of a tuba when the sound is recorded to wax cylinder. It's pretty obvious that one needed as much bass volume as possible:

http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/15373

[Chuck(G)]

I'm acutally surprised that someone as passionate about the early jazz as Rick Benjamin would show up at such a recording session with a bell-up tuba.

Hmmm.....

Robert I. Coulter

Yeah, that was my reaction too. I suspect that one of the problems may have been lack of space. But it's interesting to hear how a very prominent bass line in the "live" version almost completely disappears on the "wax" version.

Even more curious, on the playlist, he's identified as playing "recording bass", yet he never says such a thing on the program itself.