What makes a "Kaiser"?

[imperialbari]

http://www.gronitztuba.de/index.php?id=15

http://www.gronitztuba.de/index.php?id=17

Gronitz even name their largest piston tubas Kaisers.

Klaus

[bigtubby]

@ bigtubby:

Welcome to the Kaisertuba club
I'd definitely say your "Munster" tuba is a Kaiser. You gotta look at the overall horn, not just bore size. Even though the .760" bore is smaller than most Kaisers, everything else looks very 'Kaiser' to me - the large size, being rotary-valved (a requirement for Kaisers), height, being a contrabass, etc. Besides, you stated that your 3rd & 4th valves have bores well into the .800"s, so it seems your tuba is dual-bore or graduated bore.

As stated before, classic Kaisertubas are the Cerveny 601, Alex 164, M-W 197, Miraphone 190, and many old German/Czech tubas like yours. All are basically 5/4+, 6/4 size contrabass (BBb or CC) rotary-valved tubas. They are maybe not as fat-bodied as the American 5/4 & 6/4 BAT's, but they tend to be taller and with larger bores.

Thanks! Unfortunately I haven't had much time since I got this but it is great - like a pipe organ, a truly large sound. While I haven't had the time to get a handle on the Low, it feels as if it might play almost as easily as the Amati in the photo I posted but with that huge sound.

Btw, it's nice to see that old Shuster tuba being resurrected Several of us were yapping about it back when it was on eBay.

The Schuster has become my favorite tuba. it plays very well and with a great timbre, really that perfect 3/4 tuba I was looking for. Most of my playing is "unplugged" with acoustic guitars and unamplified vocals. The Schuster allows a lot of flexibility within the volume ranges that make sense in this context - from nice round bass notes to overblown "NOLA" sorts of things without overpowering the other voices in the ensemble.

Many thanks to Dan Schultz for suggestions on dealing with the very weak bell on the Schuster: this evening I got some free time and have fixed one of the most worrisome problems: creases around the periphery of the bell ... much stronger now, thanks again Dan!

[bigtubby]

My take on it is that a "Kaiser-tuba" is simply stated, a King-sized tuba. So, anything that is larger overall than a Mirafone 186 or it's Amati or B & S equivalent, could arguably be called a kaiser tuba, whether 5/4 or 6/4 . Bore size is not necessarily the common denominator, as I recently sold a Huettl kaiser tuba that, although it had a quite large and tall body, had a .747" bore.

Dan Schultz was looking for a cool horn to restore, and I sold the J. Loew, Muenster tuba to him. So, I have seen it in person and have played it, and would say that the body size, particularly bottom bow and bell throat, as well as a generous bore size, should quality this horn as a kaiser tuba. Also, the dark, Alexander-esque tone quality says that this is not just another 4/4 BBb.

I've owned a 1905 York Monster Eb for longer than I care to admit. This J. Low tuba seems to mirror the York in many ways. Principally they both become very large rapidly upon leaving the valve block. While the Low lacks the melodramatic bell flare of the York, it towers over other BBb tubas (sound-wise) the same way that the York does over other Eb's.

By the way, I'd like to commend Dan for doing some great work on the Muenster tuba, restoring it to it's former grandeur. I wish that there was more information available about the maker. The horn has a really nice sound, good intonation, a unique wrap, and valves that are reminiscent of the rotors in the old Sander, Kaiserslautern CC tuba I restored, which was one of Fred Geib's tubas.

It is a real beauty, I hope that I can find the time to get to know it better soon.