York (6/4), Besson (995), & Nirschl (5/4) F.S.

[Mike Forbes]

Hi all,

It's time to liquidate some of the horns that I have sitting around to create some needed cashflow (spousal request). All of the horns are CC tubas in very good condition (some minor dings and scratches). Below is a list of the tubas and their prices...photos may be obtained by emailing me either through this forum or at:

miforbe@ilstu.edu

1.) BESSON CC 995 (small 5/4):

Wonderful silver plated horn in excellent working order. There are 4 piston valves and 1 rotor valve on this instrument. Slides 1 & 4 have been slimmed down to move more quickly and valves 1, 3, and 4 have been vented. I have used this horn for almost 2 years exclusively with my tuba quartet, Sotto Voce, and have advanced at some of the latest auditions with this instrument.

Price: $6500 with hard case.

NOTE: New Bessons run around $7400-$7800 and are VERY hard to find at the moment as distribution is being moved to London instead of CA. When you do find one, it is many times hard to find one that plays as well as this one.

2.) NIRSCHL CC (small 5/4):

Also a wonderful silver plated horn in excellent working order. There are 4 piston valves and 1 rotor valve on this instrument. Has a very rich tone, slightly darker than the Besson, yet EXACTLY the same design as the 995 with the exception of the lead pipe. Response is amazing throughout the horn but is especially notable while playing very softly.

Price: $6500 with hard case.


3.) YORK CC (Rusk-Cut):

I am not at all happy about selling this instrument. It is simply FANTASTIC! But huge. There are 4 piston valves and 1 rotor valve on this sliver plated instrument. If you're looking particularly for a BAT this would be the best one out there. The response on this instrument is simply amazing (esp. for a big horn), and the intonation is to die for. The bulk of the instrument is made from an old (1920?) York BB-flat tuba, that Bob Rusk cut down to a CC and added a Meinl Weston valve section to. It's got some dings and scratches and the plate job that Bob and David Fedderly had done to it is not spectacular, but it plays like a dream. I simply don't do enough large ensemble playing to make this horn worth its investment. It does well in auditions as I have advanced using this horn....but the horn really steps into action for those folks already playing in a gig...everytime I do get to play this thing with an orchestra, I get more compliments (esp. from my trombone colleagues) than ever. I chose this York in 2001 from BBC (David Fedderly's shop) from a set of 3 Rusk-Cut Yorks that he had at the time.

Check out the last post in this thread in regard to my performance with this horn with Sotto Voce:

viewtopic.php?t=862&highlight=forbes

Price: $13,500 with Altieri Gig Bag

I'm located in central Illinois at Illinois State University in Bloomington/Normal, Illinois. I welcome all interested buyers to come down to my studio and give all these horns a try.

Best wishes,

Mike Forbes
Illinois State University
Sotto Voce Quartet

[Alex C]

I am interested in your Nirschl. My fiance and I are making a trip to WWBW when their shipment of Prestige euphoniums comes in (she's the euphoniumist) and we could work out something so that I could play your Nirschl. Will you be in Normal during August?

Alex

[Lew]

Sounds like some great horns. So what are you keeping/playing on once these are gone?

[Mike Forbes]

Lew,

Thanks for the question. I currently have another Besson CC 995 that I have had some slight modifications done to it for my personal preferences (pays to be a Besson Artist).

I also play the Yamaha 822 F and a Besson Prestige Euphonium.

...all the instruments I need at the moment...but boy will I miss that York.

Regards,
Mike[/list]

[Tubaman485]

Bump

[Mike Forbes]

I just sold the Nirschl tonight. The Besson and York are still available.

Thanks for all the inquiries,
Mike

[Mike Forbes]

I was reminded about a write-up I did on the OLD Tubenet regarding a bunch of Army Band colleagues trying out this York that I have for sale against some PT-6's, some 2165's and a Yorkbrunner. I especially think Rick Denney's comments are of note (posted later in the thread). The link to the write up is below. The horn is still for sale.

http://www.chisham.com/tips/bbs/jul2001 ... 62773.html

Thanks,
Mike

[Mike Forbes]

As folks are headed back to school (and probably getting that student loan check), I just wanted to remind people that I've still got the Besson and York for sale.

Or, rather...bump.

Mike

[Mike Forbes]

The Besson and Nirschl are now both SOLD!

The York is still available.

Thanks,
Mike