Your Favorite BAT

[Rick Denney]

My question is how much air does it take to play one of these 6/4 tubas - especially the pedal bass notes? My guess is more than I can effectively produce.

My Holton does like it when I move lots of air, but the truth is that I don't really move lots of air compared to good players. But it doesn't really need more air than a good 4/4, and it works well with less than a lot of stuffy (by which I mean unresonant) tubas. Remember that resonance is a feedback phenomenon. The better the instrument sends back pulse reflections that reinforce outgoing pulses in the buzz, the easier it is to play.

Rick "who can make a prettier sound on a resonant big tuba than on a stuffy small tuba" Denney

[AFtuba]

Here are my beasts:

[JHardisk]

I thought this was funny:

Melton Fafner BBflat
Meinl-Weston Baer CC

Alessandro Fossi
B&S artist

Though, I couldn't agree more... I love my MW 6450/2, and my B&S JBL Classics F!

[bort]

It's all one and the same now...

Another link to Alessandro:

http://www.melton.de/index.php?id=108&n ... rtists_pi1" target="_blank[iid]=25&cHash=eee2d4ee03

[AFtuba]

To KiltieTuba :
I'm 175 cm that, if I'm not wrong should be 68,89 inches

Meinl-Weston is the name the company used since the beginning for U.S.A. Market, but all Meinl-Weston/Melton instruments are made in the same factory in Geretsried, and the B&S is part of the same group....in other words:
Herr Gerhard Meinl is the owner of both B&S and Meinl-Weston/Melton brand

[Wyvern]

Here are my beasts:

Alessandro, Out of interest, what is your criteria for deciding if to use the Fafner, or the Baer? Like would you use the Fafner for Prokofiev and the Baer for Bruckner?

[AFtuba]

I have used the Fafner for many things like Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet, Bruckner and also for Turandot (sounds terrific in the low range) Mahler 2nd, Rite of the springs II tuba part.

Most of all depends what the other brass are playing, and what the conductors ask for, if they are using german instruments that's (Fafner) the right tuba (EX. Wagner Ring)

The sound of a rotary BBflat is different from a piston CC, so depends also on the taste of each tuba player.

[mammoth2ba]

[quote="TubaTinker"]


Conn Jumbo Sousaphone Grand(s) 46K and 48K.........

"I've heard people say that
Too much of anything is not good for you, baby
But I don't know about that....."

~Barry White

"Too much of anything is wonderful!"

~Mae West

[Rick Denney]

I thought this was funny:

Melton Fafner BBflat
Meinl-Weston Baer CC

Alessandro Fossi
B&S artist

Herr Meinl and his investors are getting the profits in all cases.

Rick "just one big happy family" Denney

[sloan]

I thought this was funny:

Melton Fafner BBflat
Meinl-Weston Baer CC

Alessandro Fossi
B&S artist

Herr Meinl and his investors are getting the profits in all cases.

Rick "just one big happy family" Denney

Does he drive a VW, an Audi, or a Porsche?

[AFtuba]

Porsche!!

[Steve Marcus]

My favorite BAT...will please my favorite conductor no end.

Has anyone experienced positive reactions from the conductor, the trombone section, or any other members of the orchestra when you bring your 6/4 cannon--even before you play a note?

Has the mere appearance of a 6/4 tuba commanded respect?

OTOH, there is an anecdote about Ormandy(?) that he screamed at a rehearsal, "Trombones are too loud!"

"But they haven't played yet, Maestro," the principal trombone replied.

"Still too loud!" was the conductor's response.

One of the posters in this thread mentioned that he received "the hand" from the conductor when he brought his 6/4 horn. Has anyone experienced disdain from the conductor, the trombone section, or any other members of the orchestra when you bring your 6/4 contrabass tuba?

At the opposite extreme, there's at least one TubeNet reader and occasional poster who takes pride that (s)he can use his/her F tuba for just about anything in the orchestra repertoire. (S)he has such fine command of the low range on his/her F horn that neither (s)he nor his/her colleagues miss his/her contrabass tuba. Comments?

We all know that the primary element in the tuba sound is the player. But it would be interesting to know if, pertaining to which tuba you bring, "size matters" is ever the prevailing attitude among your orchestral colleagues.

[sloan]

Well, since you brought up:

My favorite BAT is the 36J currently in surgery at Memphis. A snip here...a snip there...with luck, it will soon "play nice with others" (and itself!). This will please my favorite conductor no end.

it's back in Memphis for more surgery (or, perhaps by now parts of it are elsewhere being re-grooved - I know that the thumbring
is in a UPS package on the way to Memphis).

But...since the post above, it returned in time for the 4 July gig - and "my favorite conductor" loved it.

As for "reactions before you play a note" - the reason she's my favorite conductor is because she cares how it actually *sounds* - and not what it looks like. The sound before surgery was "inadequately controlled by the inadequate operator". After surgery, it
does indeed "play nice with others", with a much improved scale and "accessible intonation" (to borrow a phrase from the surgeon). When it returns from the current (last, I hope) round of surgery, perhaps it will be even better, and more fun to play and maintain.

Pictures are promised...realSoonNow...(after my return from Antarctica).

[Michael Bush]

It generated some interest and a few jokes on its first appearance a little over a week ago. I don't know about respect, especially, except from the other tubist.

One of the clarinets (a band director herself) joked in an appreciative way about my "tuba-and-a-half."

It fit in with the ensemble nicely, so I don't think there was any disdain. At least none expressed.

The director is a trombonist with a minor orchestra gig, so he had seen big tubas before and seemed to be pleased with it. No hand.

[GC]

The trombonist conductor of one of the community bands I'm in almost never complains about tuba volume. When the clarinetist guest conductor steps in, she never seems to want us above an mf. Then again, she pulls the percussion back to about 1/3 of their usual level, so maybe the trade-off is worth it.

[jstrother123]

It all depends on the conductor. Last night I was playing my 24J in a 9 piece group and was taking it easy so not to overpower the group when the conductor asked if there was any way I could play louder. The rest of the evening was a lot more fun.

[sloan]

It all depends on the conductor. Last night I was playing my 24J in a 9 piece group and was taking it easy so not to overpower the group when the conductor asked if there was any way I could play louder. The rest of the evening was a lot more fun.

Heh!

[darth2ba]

2 BATs!

2 Yorks.jpg

[Wyvern]

Has anyone experienced positive reactions from the conductor, the trombone section, or any other members of the orchestra when you bring your 6/4 cannon--even before you play a note?

Yes there has been many occasions - one that comes to mind is a conductor who is a trumpet player came over and admired my Neptune and asked about it even before we played. He was in the audience at a more recent concert and came up to me afterwards and said how good the tuba sounded and added to the orchestral tone providing such a good foundation.

Trombones rarely seem to even notice what tuba I'm playing, but this weekend I was sitting with the horns for Bruckner 7 and they very much liked the Neptune - said how nice it was to have the tuba over 'their side'! I must say I preferred sitting with the horns too - tuba and horns seem to go together better!

In the 5 year I have been playing a 6/4 Neptune only one conductor has commented "could you please use a smaller tuba" - and even he went onto say "its sounds wonderful, but is overpowering the horns" (in Rachmaninov 2) - although personally I think that was because the horns were 'under-powered'

[SousaSaver]

(If I hadn't said it before...)

HOLTON 345!!!!

(does that count???)