Posted by bloke on December 21, 2003 at 22:52:24:
Two current threads inquire about the history of tuba players in high-profile American orchestras. Besides paving the way, these American players of old should be admired for their ability to "hustle" (teaching lessons, playing in summer bands, doing Vaudeville and other pit work, doubling on bass, a lot of non-tuba playing stuff, etc.), as very few American orchestras that I know of a half century ago paid anywhere close to a living wage.
_____________________________________
I'm curious about some other tuba players about whom I know absolutely nothing:
Who were these (obviously) mighty European players (c. 50-75 years earlier) who first performed Wagner, Mahler, Bruckner, Prokofiev, Hindemith, Stravinsky, Respighi, R. Strauss, et al?
What did they do for money when their orchestras weren't playing... don lederhosen in beer halls? military bands? etc...?