What's the weirdest thing you have ever done with a tuba??

[MartyNeilan]

And let's try to keep this at least PG-13

[TubaRay]

Your topic title almost begs to go past a PG-13 rating. My answer would be that I never PLANNED to do anything weird with my tuba. Now, sometimes, without planning involved, I SOUND pretty weird. Does that count?

[WoodSheddin]

Cruised down the Jersey Turnpike in the passenger seat sticking a Helicon bell out the window and blasting Ride of the Valkyries to other cars during stop and go traffic.

[TubaRay]

Ride of the Valkyries. That's great!

[ken k]

at my old house I made my mail box post out of my old trombone. looked pretty cool. I have some pix I will try to post if anyone can tell me how.
ken k

[tubatooter1940]

My first horn,an old Holton sousie,owned by the school started to smell real bad so I spun it around a few times and a dead bat fell out.I complained to my band director and he reminded me how lucky I was to have a school horn to use for free and that the civic-minded thing to do is take the horn home and give it a bath.I was so proud to carry that thing the three blocks to my house.I knew everybody would think I was a real musician.Mom wasn't home when we got there so I filled the tub and got in with the tuba.I did a good job and the horn was shades lighter in color but what a ring we left in the tub.Mom said it took a long time to scrub off that green ring and dared me to bring it home again.
Tubatooter1940

[Dylan King]

I once blew smoke through my Yorkbrunner while a female backup singer in my band lit my fart with a zippo lighter. The lights on the smoke looked cool, but I burnt my jeans and had to get a new pair.

I hope that was PG-13.

[RyanSchultz]

. . .taking a dead mouse out of it.

[Doug@GT]

I was a Junior in High School during the 2000 presidential election. So for our homecoming parade, which was near the end of October, I mounted a "George W. Bush for President" sign on the bell of my sousaphone. It was a hit.


My senior year, we had a lousiy football team, so my original plan was to decorate my horn with the scores of every game our team lost that year. The band director (wisely) nixed that idea. We did American flags, instead.

[Dylan King]

. . .taking a dead mouse out of it.

Reminds me of a time in college when my apartment started to smell. After a few days it became impossible to stay there. I knew there was a dead mouse someplace, because I saw my cat bring the thing in and lose it a few days before the smell started. I looked all over for the thing, but coudn't find it anywhere. I thought it had died somewhere in the walls.

I stayed away for a few days knowing the bacteria would eventually finish off the mouse and the smell would go away. It did in about a week.

Skip ahead about 14 months.

I had a friend over and it was raining. Yes, raining in L.A. It was around the time that the Marlins won their first World Series. We decided to walk down to Westwood and get a burger in the rain, and I gave my friend an extra umbrella. He opened it inside the apartment to see if it worked, and low and behold, a little, hairy rat skeleton fell out of the umbrella and onto his head. It was a fantastic moment! The mystery of STINK MOUSE had been revealed. My friend is now going bald. Then again, so am I, and I never had a dead mouse on my head. I wonder what that means?

[Dan Schultz]

I have an old fiberglass sousa in front of my shop that has my repair business advertised on a sign mounted on the bell. And... I have a fountain in my fish pond fabricated out of an old Holton Eb tuba. Not too many years ago when I was scrounging for a few dollars to buy a horn did I ever think I would trash a horn this way!!

[ken k]

I rode a Honda 70 Mini-Trail home from a school football game with a sousaphone over my shoulder."

I love those old Honda 70s. I still keep an eye out for them. When I find a good, mint one, I'm gonna buy it...

I just resurrected an old Rider magazine from October 2003 and there is an article in it about a guy named Stephen Cleveland of Enumclaw, Washington who restores them. His shop is called Enumclaw Minitrail Factory. I tried to see if there was any contact info in the article but I didn't see any. Perhaps there is a website?

I had a Benelli 65 myself. My little two stroke whipped those wimpy fourstroke Hondas all over the trails! even the C70s!

ken k

[Chuck(G)]

I can't for the life of me imagine the same question coming up on an oboe or violin list...

[Doug@GT]

I can't for the life of me imagine the same question coming up on an oboe or violin list...

Reminds me of a story I heard once:

"We went to an OboeChristmas yesterday. Roasted some marshmallows."



Doug "too subtle?"

[drandomtubas]

In junior high I played on a truly hideous sousaphone... I would bring it home, and rather practice, let my ferrets play in the tubing. They loved it.


Yesterday one of my friends was playing tag, and she wanted to get away from school without getting caught, so I put her in my tuba case and wheeled her away.

This of course answered the question I get all the time:
Yes, you can fit a body in those things.

[ken k]

I can't for the life of me imagine the same question coming up on an oboe or violin list...

Reminds me of a story I heard once:

"We went to an OboeChristmas yesterday. Roasted some marshmallows."



Doug "too subtle?"

They should use bassoons......they burn longer.......

ken k