Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Anyone knows this tuba?


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Posted by Rick Denney on January 28, 2004 at 13:17:57:

In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Anyone knows this tuba? posted by Hermann on January 28, 2004 at 03:06:02:

If you like long and useless discussions, you have come to the right place, and you are talking to the right people, heh, heh.

As for valves, play the instrument you have. If you like it, then the valves it has are the right valves.

There is much argument about the differences between piston and rotary valves, but a lot of it doesn't consider the other design differences that are imposed by the selection of valve technology. Considering the tuba as a system, it only makes sense that those other design differences would have to affect the system as well as the valves themselves. Thus, it's quite difficult to assign those effects to specific causes.

Personally, I like the way piston valves feel under my hands, and I like the way my piston instruments play. But they differ in so many ways to comparable rotary instruments that I have no idea what causes my subjective response.

Klaus's argument presupposes that the term "euphonium" applies only to instruments suitable for use in a British brass band. That a rotary baritone might not serve that role effectively doesn't necessarily mean that the instrument must have a different name. Tubas vary by a much wider margin than do euphoniums as a class, yet they are all called tubas.

When I played in the TubaMeisters, our lead player used a Miraphone kaiser rotary euphonium with a straight bell, approximately similar to an Alexander 151. The second euphonium player used a British-style compensating euphonium. I had a small Yamaha F tuba, and the fourth player used a full-sized Miraphone rotary CC tuba. A common compliment we received is that when we passed melodies back and forth between us, the transitions were so smooth that nobody could tell who had the melody. How does that perception square with four very different instruments?

Rick "who occasionally tries to keep things in perspective" Denney


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