Posted by Frederick J. Young on August 25, 2001 at 22:05:16:
In Reply to: CC/G double tuba - possible/desirable? posted by king of esoteria on August 24, 2001 at 01:37:07:
I believe Dietrich Kleine-Horst meant he prefers to make BBb/FFF double tubas. He does not want to make the low horn 7 semitones lower than the high horn. However, he was able to make one for me that was 6 semitones lower rather than 5 semitones. This would give you a CC/FFF# double tuba or a tritonus double tuba. There are many advantages to having it be CC/FFF# rather than CC//GGG as far as intonation and ease of use once one learns how to use it. Two or three variants of it could be made. The simplest would have 3 double valves with six sets of independant slides (two sets for each valve). Unlike compensating tubas for a given double valve air would go through only one set of slides.
One would descend the chromatique scale using fingerings given by 0, 2, 1, 12, 23, 13, S, S2, S1, S12, S23, S13. This completes and 11 tone descent going between the second open tone and the fundamental. This sequence also can be started on any open tone. By tuning the open tone about 3 cents sharp and tuning the six valve slides optimaly flat (as described in my T. U. B. A. intonation paper of about 15 years ago) one could just barely get by with good intonation. The addition of a fourth double valve lowering 4 or 5 semitones would greatly improve the intonation. Although I am not sure which would be best
I think most players would prefer the 4th valve to lower by 5 semitones. Perhaps an ambitious reader would like to make the calculations to find out which would be best. My tuba has 5 double valves and needs no valve combinations, that is it uses only single valves alone of with the swith valve. In that case all of the semitones of the scale have valves that are about the right length for good intonation. You may cringe at the thought of the lower part of the tuba being in FFF# but believe me, when you got used to it you could play with no effort in keys like Db, G, Cb and Fb. These keys are somewhat troublesome on CC and BBb tubas and for most of the usual brass instruments. Those of you who are slide pullers and pushers would love the aforementioned three valved double tuba if it is equipped with a spring loaded tuning slide to make fine adjustments. It would not have to be adjusted nearly as much as would a standard 5 valve tuba tuning slide.
In addition, you should remember that a York-Brunner, Nirschel, Willson or any other tuba you like could be equipped as described above by Dietrich K. Whilst learning to play such a tuba you can fall back on the ordinary 4 valve fingering if the going gets tough and concentrate on the proper use of the double tuba in slow passages. My experience indicates that although it takes only a few months to become fluent on the double tuba you may still be discovering more useful tricks and properties for many years to come.