Which tuba would you rescue?

[Alex C]

I would rescue the 1900 BBb Cerveny Kaiser that belonged to the late David Mayfield.

What was so special about that Cerveny Kaiser? Are there any photos of it?

It was unique in that the valves rotors operated in a plane 90 different from today's rotary valves. The rotors were placed directly under the valve levers so that it felt almost like piston valves.

What made the horn unique was the sound. As a Kaiser, it could balance a large orchestra. Lots of color to the sound but with a strong fundamental. Very efficient.

Because it was so lightweight (less than 16 lbs), it was very nimble and could be played in a small group. David performed the Armand Russell "Suite Concertante" and he was able to dance around the woodwinds through the whole piece.

I do not have a photo of it.

I do have a photo of my Eb Cerveny, which is the little brother to the BBb Kaiser in question.

[iiipopes]

A John Lennon song comes to mind:
"Just playin' those mind games...."

[Tubaryan12]

gee, most of the time I think my cat is an idiot. He could never do what you are describing. I feed him, give him a home, and clean up after him (cat box, etc) All he ever does is sleep, eat and occasionally puke. Come to think of it, who's the idiot?

Me too, times 3....and none of the cats are mine.

[greatk82]

Wade,
I shall be the voice of reason. I think you need to start here and teach the cats to save themselves. Maybe find an oboe player or two to sacrifice themselves for your tubas, but people actually like cats.


http://www.peta.org/

[oldbandnerd]

My old B&H Imperial because it's all I have and you can't get fine British craftsmanship like that anymore .

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[Billy M.]

I would rescue the 1900 BBb Cerveny Kaiser that belonged to the late David Mayfield. A beautiful instrument. Arnold Jacobs did everything but tackle David to keep him from leaving his lesson without selling it.

Of course, I'd rescue my own Nirschl but it's more fun to rescue a unique instrument like David's.

Mr. Mayfield's Cerveny is now in the hands of one of his students. Danny Walley (sp?). He attends Louisiana State University.

[Billy M.]

I would rescue the 1900 BBb Cerveny Kaiser that belonged to the late David Mayfield.

What was so special about that Cerveny Kaiser? Are there any photos of it?

It was unique in that the valves rotors operated in a plane 90 different from today's rotary valves. The rotors were placed directly under the valve levers so that it felt almost like piston valves.

What made the horn unique was the sound. As a Kaiser, it could balance a large orchestra. Lots of color to the sound but with a strong fundamental. Very efficient.

Because it was so lightweight (less than 16 lbs), it was very nimble and could be played in a small group. David performed the Armand Russell "Suite Concertante" and he was able to dance around the woodwinds through the whole piece.

I do not have a photo of it.

I do have a photo of my Eb Cerveny, which is the little brother to the BBb Kaiser in question.

I'll also chime in. Cerveny did indeed do something special with that horn. Thinking back on when I listened to him in the Pensacola Symphony I recollect probably one of the most present, resonant, and beautiful sounds played. It was very colorful but still had plenty of core and was very unique in character. I would even say, crazy enough, that I'd put it over most Alex tubas for sound, it was that kind of 'wow'.

[windshieldbug]

I'll have to change my choices. On attempting to train my wife, she not only threw down my tuba, but went out into the neighborhood looking for more tubas to throw IN.

(women: can't live with 'em, can't leave 'em by the curb when you're done... )

[Rick Denney]

gee, most of the time I think my cat is an idiot. He could never do what you are describing. I feed him, give him a home, and clean up after him (cat box, etc) All he ever does is sleep, eat and occasionally puke. Come to think of it, who's the idiot?

Cats don't have owners. They have staff.

Rick "wasting years of effort vainly attempt to get the psychological upper hand on an eight-pound tabby" Denney

[iiipopes]

I, for one, am allergic to cats. So this is a non-issue for me.

[keronarts]

On yet another circuitous thread, I have to agree with two resounding points by Rick Denney. First, re.: Cats ... I'm assuming that The Elephant's take on ganged-multi-cat tuba retrieval is some over-the-top bout of success in effectively re-directing Rick's "cats have staff" premise. Btw, hey iiipopes, too bad you're allergic -- you're DEFINITELY missing something GREAT! Second, replacability of any instrument within the realms of practicability seems to govern. An older instrument, unduplicated in the current marketplace, would be require MASSIVE undertaking to replace -- waiting for one to become available [that cold take HUGE amounts of time], road-testing it comparatively to the former one, time & expense to get to the instrument[S], etc ...., far beyond forking over the requisite purchase price from a dealer or manufacturer. Far and away, the right answer here.

[iiipopes]

As far as cats go, I miss nothing. If I want to risk my sinuses being down for the count for the rest of the day, I can go visit my brother-in-law or one of my best friends for more than just a few minutes.

I am not against cats. I understand why people like them and keep them as pets. Just not me.

Although there is that nagging issue of Toxoplasmosis:
http://www.cdc.gov/NCIDOD/dpd/parasites ... smosis.htm
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/toxoplasmosis.html

[Mark E. Chachich]

My Alexander 163.

I like this tuba. After
30+ years and a fair amount
of jobs I am very used to it.

Mark