New to the forum, new (to me) tuba

[Lastchair]

Hello all-

I somewhat impulsively bid on a Cerveny 601 Kaiser on eBay a couple of weeks ago and ended up winning it. It's showed up on a crate this week in good shape. Not sure if I can say the same for my playing, as it has been over 15 years. But I've been trying!

Anyhow, the information on this forum has already helped me learn a lot, both about this particular horn and about tuba playing in general. Funny how a person can play for 8 years in school and never understand all that much about the instrument he's playing. Too bad I wasn't aware of this site back then.

If anyone has any specific advice about this instrument, I'd be happy to hear it. Currently I am wondering whether another mouthpiece would be helpful. I have read some posts talking about how a shallower mouthpiece might make it easier to lip up to correct intonation issues. There are some notes I can't get to come out right so maybe this is worth a try.

Current mouthpiece is a Conn Helleberg that I've had since high school. I never paid much attention to it before but it certainly doesn't look shallow.

Thanks!

Dan Olson

Viroqua, WI

[the elephant]

Hey, Dan! Welcome to this community and welcome back to music!



I do not play the 601, but a number of guys here do. I am sure some of them will chime in with mouthpiece and "quirk" advice. I'm glad you pulled the trigger on your tuba. I am a huge advocate of adult amateur music-making. You need to get yourself in shape, because, eventually, the pandemic will pass and community bands will start to once again rehearse and perform. You should most definitely be in one, too, because nothing will challenge and motivate you like an impending performance and a folder full of music. Plus, you will make a bunch of new friends with a love for this stuff similar to yours.

Again: Welcome back!

Wade Rackley

[Three Valves]

You sure got back in, in a big way!!

[LeMark]

I have a 601, they have different quirks depends on the year. Can you post a Pic? I can give you more information if I can see how old it is

[Lastchair]

Here's a photo.

[LeMark]

That's interesting. It's a BBb, isn't it? Not as familiar with the quirks of that one, I have a CC

From the linkage it looks like early 70's, but the engraving tells me 80's. I don't think I've ever seen a cerveny with S style linkage before, so I'm not sure when they used that.

I can tell that if it either the 70's or the 80's that's when they produced what I think were their best horns. Quality started to fall dramatically in the 90's, which is why the reputation dropped so much. People who know the older ones are the best ones can get some great deals.

What size is the mouthpiece shank? Most (not all) have a shank that is touch larger than euro size, meaning even a euro shank will wobble a little

[the elephant]

I don't think I've ever seen a cerveny with S style linkage before, so I'm not sure when they used that.

My Piggy had them. I converted them to something that would sell better. I kept the linkages for use on something else. (This was probably the very good one you nearly bought at the Army Conference a few years back.)

This is a photo of the horn as I received it.



This is the horn as I sold it a year later.

[LeMark]

It's interesting that your horn has the bell engraving that I would expect to see on a cerveny with S linkages, but the 601 the OP just bought does not. It's a mystery

If it was the same horn, it was amazing, probably the best I've ever played

[jtm]

My Piggy had them. I converted them to something that would sell better. I kept the linkages for use on something else. ...

The linkages would probably fit my mystery Scherzer, which still has the old arms on the rotors, even though they have dobro (?) balls screwed in the tops of them.

Is it hard to find old linkages and keys for that style tuba?

[Furguson11]

Viroqua, WI

Viroqua, cool. I have a buddy from the Twin Cities that bought a farm down there. He lets me relive my youth by driving tractor and splitting wood for making Maple Syrup. He has just finished installing an observatory also. Hopefully I get a vaccine soon so I can get back down there. Viroqua is a fun town with the driftless area, a nice balance of organic and regular farmers, fly fishing and a couple of groups of Amish with a arts scene.

Where are you going to play, LaCrosse? I am trying to talk my wife into moving down there, but there needs to be a band : )

Brad

[Lastchair]

Mark, yes, it is a BBb. The ID at the entrance to the lead pipe is about 9/16", and my old mouthpieces that fit on whatever school horns I played over the years fit just fine on this Cerveny.

Brad, glad you have heard of Viroqua. It is indeed a nice little town with a unique mix of people. I actually just moved here, but I lived in La Crosse for about 10 years before that. We'll see what groups are around once the pandemic subsides. I have a brother in La Crosse who was an excellent euphonium player so I am trying to get him to buy a horn too.

Thanks for the replies so far!

Dan

[Dan Tuba]

I owned a 601 BBb for a while. Those are nice playing tubas, capable of producing an enormous sound. I tried several mouthpieces. I actually preferred the Conn Helleberg while using that tuba. Euro shank 24AW and 18 also worked fairly well. If you are going BIG...the RT/PT 88 really made that tuba produce an enormous sound, however clarity began to suffer a little for me.

Congratulations on the purchase and welcome back to playing the tuba! As others have said, you should definitely join a band! They will love the sound of your tuba on the bottom