Handmade Tubas

[daveinem]

Thanks everyone, for this most interesting discussion!

[ScottM]

Perception = truth to the player but it may not for the listener
ScottM

[bigtubby]

I have a tuba that "feels" (physically) a bit like a brick, but I've been "messing" with it over the past couple of years, and believe it (though still *feeling* like nothing-much-at-all) finally *sounds* and aurally *responds* just as I've wished for it to.

In the past, I owned a *very* physically vibrant tuba (which I sold to a student who recently was hired into a somewhat high-profile job using that instrument). When I owned that instrument, I caught myself "enjoying" it (the physical vibrancy) too much and not paying enough attention to the aural (the only thing that matters). Obviously, my former student didn't get hung on that trap.

Everyone makes decisions based upon what is important to them. The feeling that an instrument responds and sounds "right" seem to be the ticket for you and so brings your playing to a higher level.

My guess is that your student has her chops together in terms of timbre and intonation so is able to allow the vibrance of that instrument to bouy her playing.

Are we over-anthropomorphizing large collections of brass tubing yet?