TubaForum.net

(email just received...)
...oh yeah:
There's actually a pretty big tuba solo (+ brass quartet acct.) Sunday - for all services, so you might want to glance at it.
- - - -
me: yeah..."Throughout this no-gigs year, I've really been pract'cin' real diligent-like, so it will be really great."



after the first service:
> "What is that thing...a French horn...??"
> "My son plays the tuba, and he's in the honor band."
> "I heard that mistake..."
...me: "Which ones?"
> "I was the state sousaphone champion in 1951, but was sent to Korea anyway."


bloke "key of B-flat...F tuba...At least, there aren't many buttons which will need to be mashed."

If you need that played an octave down, I’m your guy!!

Three Valves wrote: ↑Tue Mar 30, 2021 6:26 pm If you need that played an octave down, I’m your guy!!

These things make me chuckle:
> A choirmaster decided to devote five minutes of each of the services on the most important liturgical day of the year to [1] a tuba solo version of [2] a very famous bass-baritone vocal solo, when [3] there are several bass-baritones in their own choir.
> They did this, seemingly, [4] with no particular tuba player in mind.
> (Not that this isn’t very playable/readable, but) I was [5] emailed a scan of the part on Tuesday night before Easter Sunday.

bloke “I’ve listened to several good singers on YouTube, and marked where syllables cross notes. Otherwise, musical interpretation practices mostly seem to follow along with Tabuteau’s rules. This should be fun, if not amusing.”

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 8:27 am These things make me chuckle:
> A choirmaster decided to devote five minutes of each of the services on the most important liturgical day of the year to [1] a tuba solo version of [2] a very famous bass-baritone vocal solo, when [3] there are several bass-baritones in their own choir.
> They did this, seemingly, [4] with no particular tuba player in mind.
> (Not that this isn’t very playable/readable, but) I was [5] emailed a scan of the part on Tuesday night before Easter Sunday.

bloke “I’ve listened to several good singers on YouTube, and marked where syllables cross notes. Otherwise, musical interpretation practices mostly seem to follow along with Tabuteau’s rules. This should be fun, if not amusing.”

EDIT/UPDATE
I just called a friend/client/customer about one of his tubas, told them about this (which prompted them to look at their OWN stack o' Easter stuff), at which time they discovered the SAME SOLO.

bloke wrote: ↑Tue Mar 30, 2021 6:36 pm

Three Valves wrote: ↑Tue Mar 30, 2021 6:26 pm If you need that played an octave down, I’m your guy!!

The audience won't know...

Three Valves wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 10:43 am The audience won't know...

I believe they refer to them as their "congregation", "parish", or "parishioners".

bloke "wondering if this thing may overlap with the time during the service/mass that they'll be passing the hat, and concerned that it might lean out contributions"

Looks like F or Eb county to me.

barry grrr-ero wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 2:44 pm Looks like F or Eb county to me.

yeah...I'm taking this, there:
(Though perhaps not long enough, I've had forty years with it to learn which buttons to mash and when.)


Also attached to the email was that goofy D-flat major brass quintet version of the Hallelujah Chorus...and (even though my spot-on valve combinations for the lower D-flat and the G-flat are (respectively - and possibly arcane to some) 6-1-2 and 6-1-3, I'm going to use it for that as well (along with whatever else is found on the stand upon arrival).
D-flat major is not particularly "great" with many tubas (in any of the four common lengths), and (at least) with this F tuba, I DO have "sparkling in-tune" available combinations for the pitches which typically tend to be issues...and I'm NOT dragging along an E-flat tuba JUST to play the Handel.

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 3:59 pm I'm NOT dragging along an E-flat tuba JUST to play the Handel.

COME ON, MAN!

Doc wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 6:58 pm

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 3:59 pm I'm NOT dragging along an E-flat tuba JUST to play the Handel.

COME ON, MAN!

Well...(though bidin' my time) PERHAPS I will...(??)

After all: The ONLY way to perform AUTHENTIC and PROPER renditions of the Handel Messiah is with an older compensating E-flat tuba...(They were made in London, you know...)

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 7:07 pm

Doc wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 6:58 pm

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 3:59 pm I'm NOT dragging along an E-flat tuba JUST to play the Handel.

COME ON, MAN!

Well...(though bidin' my time) PERHAPS I will...(??)

After all: The ONLY way to perform AUTHENTIC and PROPER renditions of the Handel Messiah is with an older compensating E-flat tuba...(They were made in London, you know...)

Yeah, man... you go to London and... and do... and do the thing.

Doc wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 7:56 pm

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 7:07 pm

Doc wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 6:58 pm

COME ON, MAN!

Well...(though bidin' my time) PERHAPS I will...(??)

After all: The ONLY way to perform AUTHENTIC and PROPER renditions of the Handel Messiah is with an older compensating E-flat tuba...(They were made in London, you know...)

Yeah, man... you go to London and... and do... and do the thing.

Are you a junkie?!?!

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 8:44 pm Are you a junkie?!?!

No, but I did fall down on the airplane steps once...

Doc wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 8:52 pm

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 8:44 pm Are you a junkie?!?!

No, but I did fall down on the airplane steps once...

Was it a commercial airliner, or was it an Air Force one?

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 9:07 pm

Doc wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 8:52 pm

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 8:44 pm Are you a junkie?!?!

No, but I did fall down on the airplane steps once...

Was it a commercial airliner, or was it an Air Force one?

It was commercial, but it was a force of one. About 300lbs of force to be exact.

This part will sound great on euphonium.

Doc wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 8:52 pm

bloke wrote: ↑Wed Mar 31, 2021 8:44 pm Are you a junkie?!?!

No, but I did fall down on the airplane steps once...

Trains are better.

sweaty wrote: ↑Thu Apr 01, 2021 4:44 am This part will sound great on euphonium.

someday…If-and-when someone performs it on a euphonium.
Truth be told, I did play through it - one time each - on my compensating euphonium and on my tenor tuba… ‘ too much button mashing is involved with those. F tuba is much easier/less technical/easier slurs...little-to-no pinky finger wiggling involved, and very little third finger, either. With the tuba, I’m already ready to perform it - after playing through it a couple of times, and – due to the lower partials – I’m pretty sure I would need to go through it several more times (were I to play it with a euphonium) to smooth it out as well as It already is with the tuba.

Obviously, it sounds best when sung by a competent bass-baritone (with libretto, etc.), but I suspect the reason this is in my stack of stuff is because (maybe...??) there is no choir.

I was talking to a friend of mine (studio teacher/professor at a big university, and lives about an hour and a half away). They are a trombone/euphonium/tuba player as well, and began laughing - because after I mentioned this piece, they looked in their own stack of Easter stuff for Sunday and found the same tuba solo programmed. They are also choosing to play it on (E-flat) tuba, so nearly as easy a button-mashing key for them as well.