Your Favorite BAT

[bisontuba]

Hi-
If we are talking 6/4 piston BAT's, has anyone tried Matt Walter's/Dillon 6/4 CC that he makes from new parts? Because if it is anything like the Lyon & Healy 6/4 CC that Matt created--owned by Mike Lynch and played and used by Don Harry--that might be the best BAT out there--Matt does some amazing things with horns...
mark

PS If we are talking BART's, I'll take a modified old Cerveny 601 CC 5v--it's like an old vintage CC 163 Alex on super steroids...

[Bandmaster]

... if it is anything like the Lyon & Healy 6/4 CC that Matt created--owned by Mike Lynch and played and used by Don Harry--that might be the best BAT out there--Matt does some amazing things with horns...

Is this the Lyon & Healy BBb 6/4 tuba Mike bought from me (the community band I play with) in May 2006? I never heard what he did with it, did he cut it to CC? I thought it had real potential, are there any photos of it available? I have the "before" photos. I'd love to see how it turned out!


Before photo - Lyon & Healy BBb 6/4

[bisontuba]

HI-
Not sure re. the L&H Mike bought--maybe he can chime in on it--all I know is that the bell on the horn Don uses says L&H, is about 20" in diam., the horn is a CC 6/4 with pistons and 1 rotor, and it is another amazing Matt Walter's creation!
That is the reason why I mentioned the Dillon/Matt 6/4 piston CC tuba--which sells for $12K. I have not played it, but seeing, hearing, and playing some of Matt's other creations makes me believe that this horn will be wonderful--plus a new (new parts) CC BAT that is made by Matt, for $12K, is pretty good these days! My 2 cents...

mark

[Carson McTeer]

I spent 2 minutes about 3 years ago playing that Lyon & Healy that Don Harry plays and it still haunts me to this day. By FAR the best large tuba I've ever played.

[bisontuba]

Carson-
You should have seen Chester's face when he played it at a Master Class at eastman a few years back--he just stopped playing it, looked at the horn and was completely amazed--truly the best BAT out there. Matt is a genius. If an instrument company was planning to make a new 6/4 CC BAT tuba, I would be hiring Matt as my designer/consultant!
mark

[Bandmaster]

You should have seen Chester's face when he played it at a Master Class at eastman a few years back--

How long ago was this tuba created by Matt Walters? I want to know if it was created from the tuba I sold Mike Lynch. Curiousity is getting the better of me now....

[Brown Mule]

answer to original question-----------Conn 25j----------Producer of pitches of celestial bliss .

[Brown Mule]

answer to original question-----------Conn 25j----------Producer of pitches of celestial bliss .

[bisontuba]

HI-


How long ago was this tuba created by Matt Walters? I want to know if it was created from the tuba I sold Mike Lynch. Curiousity is getting the better of me now.... [/quote]


Not sure-Don's been using it for quite a while--again, Mike Lynch is the guy to ask.
Thanks-
mark

[Mitch]

It was a horn I still kick myself for not buying when I had the chance...
(although a lot of that was more about the money I didn't have and would've needed in order to buy it...)

(although I still think there were probably all sorts of menial things I would've done for the money...)

Anyway...

It was a Nirschl conversion York. Supposedly, it was really the 1st or 2nd Nirschl York, with an authentic, HUGE, York bell and bottom bow. The owner's friend had found the thing in the basement of a school in central Illinois as a 3-valve upright. It had a 22" bell. I had to take it out of the gig bag to put it away in the locker at school, which was already a locker intended for the larger horns. It was a frickin' thing of beauty to behold, and projected like nothing else I've ever played. It was like it had surround sound built in. I had it with me back at grad school for a 2-week trial. I had it in the recital hall, testing it side-by-side with my prof's HB-50. I felt like the NirschlYork had such a fuller sound, with a fuller range of overtones, that seemed to just fill the room. Eventually, my prof was able to get to the recital hall and took over on the stage. THe HB-50 was a great example of the model, but, by comparison, seemed like you could close your eyes and say, "The sound is coming from right THERE." Apples and oranges in a way, depending on your preferences. But when he played the NirschlYork. Damn. My friend and I just looked at each other like, "HOLY CRAP. HOLY FREAKIN' CRAP ON A CRACKER."

To answer Steve's question, the first time I brought it to rehearsal (this was a major university's symphony band, the conductor of which was someone whose name a lot of you would know), the conductor did a double-take. Then he turned straight toward me and leaned one way, then the other, then back and stared a bit. The band had 4 tubas at the time, and all we had to do that whole rehearsal was inhale and we'd get the hand. In fact, there were several times I only held the horn in front of my face and we still got the hand.

But the horn was damned-near magical. It put out sound with such little effort. And with all the York original engraving on the bell, it got more than one, "Holy *&#* is that a Chicago York?!?! How did you get that!?!?!?" The owner was someone who'd played in the CSO on more than one occasion, and had the opportunity to put it side by side with the CSO horns. His report was that it was remarkably similar, quirks and all. I remember it had one really big flaw: you couldn't play the f# above the staff on it. I remember working on the Rite of Spring excerpts on it, IIRC, and the note just wouldn't really come out. There was no slot for it. You just had to kind of lip it in. That was the only note. F was fine, G was fine. It was just that F#. But I didn't care...I still loved her, warts and all.

Ahh, sweet love, lost to time but to remain a dream...

[bigbob]

I've only played a couple of BAT's a rusk cut York 5 banger a wonderful holton 345 and the MW Baer model I think its a 6450 the Baer was full and responsive but I started to sweat when mr. Fedderly told me the price....more than my studio<S> I played Bob's holton with the kanstel bell for over an hour just loved it!! but the fullest sound for me was the York!! although I only played it for ten minutes at the end of my lesson... I guess I'm going to have to wait for the next DC conference to try more........................BB

[armytuba]

This is my Conn 22J (1960's model?) with original front facing bell and Schultz-bell made from a 24" Conn Eb sousaphone bell flare.

[Scott]

So much tuba lust...
...but, to paraphrase those immortal bards, Crosby, Stills Nash, and Young,
If you can't be with the tuba you love,
Love the tuba you're with...
Apologies to C,S,N, and Y...

[tclements]

Right Now, the new Willson 3050 Rotary.

[tubeast]

Someone asked about positive reactions by conductors in favor of BATs.
The conductor of the Sinfonisches Blasorchester Vorarlberg actually urged me to switch from 4/4 CC to 5.5/4 BBb
(PT20 vs. Willson 6400, which I now play most of the time).
Yes, we DO get the hand occasionally. Frequently it´s his index finger pointing down, so down an octave we go.
At other times (less frequently ) he´ll wave us to turn it up. Of course we always enjoy doing as we´re being told...

This Gentleman has this funny idea of a pyramidian sound concept.

[Michael Bush]

I've got my first performance with the big Conn tonight. The last rehearsal (first time in the performance space) gave me my first experience of how much a big tuba can fill up an acoustically live space. I was astonished how much noise I could make in that room! It will be fun to see how things go tonight.

[Tabor]

my favorite, so far

http://s1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc4 ... rent=3.jpg

[bort]

my favorite, so far

http://s1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc4 ... rent=3.jpg

Was ist das?

[Tabor]

The name of the album is throwing you off. This horn has a 22 inch bell and is not made by Miraphone. Notice its size relative to the adult-sized teacher's school desk.

[Tabor]

ding ding..Bloke knows!

It is an old Conn orchestra grand, but the F is ok (or perhaps my lip/ear/tuner makes it so).