What can you tell me about the tuba part for "Finlandia"?

[Dave Detwiler]

Hi all - as I continue to research John W. "Jack" Richardson, I have learned that the U. S. Marine Band paid tribute to him on their daily radio program while he was in the hospital in 1938.

The day of the broadcast was July 15, and the program was called "Patriotic Shut Ins Dream Hour," where each number on the program was presumably dedicated to a different "shut in." Richardson was in the Geisinger Memorial Hospital in Danville, PA, where he had been since May 5 that year (see the details below; he was eventually transferred to the Keystone Hospital in Harrisburg, where he passed on August 12, 1939).

The piece that was played in tribute of Richardson was Sibelius's "Finlandia" (confirmed by the program from that day in the archives at the U. S. Marine Band Library, although the news report below calls it "Finland").

What can you tell me about the tuba part of that tone poem?

I've never played it, but giving it a listen, it sounds like a solid, but fairly simple, tuba part. But if you've played it, let me know more about it, and perhaps I can include some of that insight in my article on Richardson.

Thanks so much!

1938-07-15 Danville Morning News.jpg (114 KiB) Viewed 747 times

[scottw]

chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://s9.imslp.org/files/imglnks/usim ... score).pdf

Here is the orchestral score.

[Mark]

I've played two different band arrangements of this orchestral work. One arranged by Lucien Cailliet and one arranged by N. Clifford Page. I don't remember a lot about either. They both have the "tuba solo" as does the orchestral version. The solo really isn't a solo, there are other instruments playing it, but as with Meistersinger, it has traditionally been referred to as a tuba solo.

[dp]

Hi all - as I continue to research John W. "Jack" Richardson, I have learned that the U. S. Marine Band paid tribute to him on their daily radio program while he was in the hospital in 1938. The day of the broadcast was July 15, and the program was called "Patriotic Shut Ins Dream Hour," where each number on the program was presumably dedicated to a different "shut in." Richardson was in the Geisinger Memorial Hospital in Danville, PA, where he had been since May 5 that year (see the details below; he was eventually transferred to the Keystone Hospital in Harrisburg, where he passed on August 12, 1939). The piece that was played in tribute of Richardson was Sibelius's "Finlandia" (confirmed by the program from that day in the archives at the U. S. Marine Band Library, although the news report below calls it "Finland").
What can you tell me about the tuba part of that tone poem?

My gosh,
Richardson was hospitalized with a broken leg in May '38
then transferred to a different hospital where he died 15 months later at...age 64? 65?



Oh, the Finlandia theme? Mindfully keep tempo on the front of the beat,

[bort2.0]

I forget what note it is, but on the ascending line at the end, people constantly play that Eb or Db or whatever and are super flat. Drives me nuts!!

[Dave Detwiler]

My gosh,
Richardson was hospitalized with a broken leg in May '38 with a broken leg,
then transferred to a different hospital where he died 15 months later at...age 64? 65?

Actually, according to reports, he broke his leg while IN the hospital in Danville, where he was bring treated for complications from arthritis (although he had experienced a bad fall a few years earlier, which might have led to the awareness of arthritis). He was at some point transferred to a hospital in Harrisburg, where he died, according to his death certificate, of "Carcinoma Spinal Cord." He was 64.

Side note: I'll be meeting with his great nephew this coming Tuesday to see what else I can learn about this once-famous but largely-forgotten tuba player!

[bloke]

I shouldn't post when I don't read the details, but if this was a really long time ago, someone was in the hospital for arthritis, and they broke their leg while they were in the hospital, I wonder if they actually had bone cancer which had not been diagnosed.

[jonesbrass]

I think it’s been decades since I played the band version, but performed the orchestral version of Finlandia within the last couple of weeks. Tuba is not the “star of the show” ( is it ever?), but it sits well within the tone/timber requirements for a nice contrabass tuba. Dramatic/intense opening, and very nice chorale writing for the brass as well as the every other instrument family. If performed well, definitely will have the audience going home with a nice earworm.

One of the highlights of any Sibelius work is the orchestration. He was a master orchestrator.

[bloke]

Finlandia lot of tuba horsepower for not much gratification, but if there's a gig I'll play it.
If all paying gigs disappeared, I probably still play.

[Dave Detwiler]

I shouldn't post when I don't read the details, but if this was a really long time ago, someone was in the hospital for arthritis, and they broke their leg while they were in the hospital, I wonder if they actually had bone cancer which had not been diagnosed.

You may be right, as his ultimate cause of death was "Carcinoma Spinal Cord," so he was dealing with cancer, for sure.