Posted by Nick Clark on July 09, 2001 at 23:42:40:
I was at a tuba lesson last week and my teacher said I should get recordings of renowned jazz artists. I told him that I already had CDs of David Sanborn, Weather Report, Jaco Pastorius(I also play bass guitar), etc. He replied that although these artists are very good, they were only one style of jazz, and I should diversify a bit. Now, that's good advice, but were there any tuba players, preferably in the bebop and swing eras, that gained recognition not only for their accompaniment ability, but also for soloing and melodies? I asked my teacher that, but as he is a trombone player, he wasn't quite sure about that. So, did the tuba ever appear on the radar of jazz before the 60's? Heck, even the 90's?
Also, I played a little 3/4 size tuba with three piston valves until a few months ago. Since it was a junior high-owned tuba, I had to return it as I was moving on to high school. I acquired a 4/4 size one from the school with four rotary valves shortly after. Although I was ecstatic at finally being able to play those B naturals and low E flats in tune, I noticed that the rotary valves were definitely slower. I figured it must have been because I was more used to a little bit of resistance over a longer distance, as opposed to more resistance over a shorter distance. Still, I've had the tuba for a few months now and it seems I was a LOT faster with my fingers on the piston valves. This is mildly alarming to me, as I had heard that rotary valves were faster than pistons. So, can anybody help me?
Oh, and listen to the song "Play That Country Tuba Cowboy" by the Vandals. Yep, it's a country tuba song...done by a punk band. It has a few interesting riffs in it though, but what do I know? I'm only a sophomore.
-Nick