Tuba With Jazz Band

Tom Holtz · Post by **Tom Holtz** » Fri Sep 17, 2004 8:16 pm

I did a few charts with the U. S. Army Blues at this years' Armed Forces Tuba-Euphonium Conference. Here's some stuff to get you started:

http://www.leighpilzer.com/

Leigh Pilzer is a saxophonist here in the D.C. area, and has some super arranging chops. She did a chart on "Pennies From Heaven" for tuba soloist w/ big band, and a chart on "Cry Me A River" for bari sax soloist w/big band, which she graciously revamped for me to use. Great charts. "Pennies" needs trumpets with serious range, especially the lead part. Leigh knows how to write for the axes on the low side, since she's plays bari sax most often, and she can kick it.

gmartin2570@charter.net

Glenn Martin is a trombonist and arranger, currently on the faculty at Tennessee State University. He's done charts for R. Winston Morris and the Tenn. Tech tuba ensemble, and did a really nice chart for me on "I Wish You Love." Glenn also has a number of original compositions to his credit for big band, brass quintet, and other ensembles. He's a bone player, he knows how to treat us right.

http://www.army.mil/fieldband/pages/ros ... oster.html

SGM Gene Thorne is a saxophonist (bari sax--see a pattern here?) and the senior enlisted member of the Jazz Ambassadors, one of the many groups in the U. S. Army Field Band. He's arranged and composed quite a few charts, and has some published through Kendor Music. He did a super chart on "Stella By Starlight" that was scored as a trombone feature, and worked on tuba without edits--except for me taking stuff down an octave. Or two. Their bone players are a lot better than me.

I was in the same position last year as you are now, looking around for jazz band tuba features. Guess what? There aren't any. Don't spend a lot of time looking. I highly recommend looking instead for people who can write and arrange for the type of group you'll be working with, and getting a chart that fits you and the band. The results are worth it. Not only that, but you'll be adding to a very small repertoire of jazz tuba features, a repertoire that could really stand some serious expansion.

Biggs · Post by **Biggs** » Sat Sep 18, 2004 11:18 pm

In my experience stage band refers to a jazz (dance) band. Often this group (when in high school) does perform with the theater crowd.

Tom Holtz · Post by **Tom Holtz** » Tue Sep 21, 2004 12:20 am

I'm not sure the different names mean anything anymore, except maybe "stage band" might refer to a band with a smaller horn section than the usual 5/4/4 of a big band. Ah, if only one of those terms meant an ensemble that requires a tuba.

winston · Post by **winston** » Tue Sep 21, 2004 2:57 pm