Re: comparing F tubas


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Posted by Tony Clements on July 18, 2002 at 08:58:05:

In Reply to: comparing F tubas posted by MA on July 17, 2002 at 10:07:48:

The Yamaha 621 is the smallest commercially available F out there. The Mirafone 180 is very small also. The Dehmal I have has a 13" bell and is small like an ophecliede. Also, the Alexander F's are small like this, but their sound is fuller and warmer. This sized tuba is great for solo work and some orchestral solos, like Mahler 1 or Bydlo.

The Larger F's, like the Yamaha 822, MW 45 piston and the Gronitz PF-125 can be used as a quintet tuba, solo tuba and in some instances a real orchestral F tuba. I recently used the Gronitz at a music fastival and it worked fine for everything from Brahms Requieum to Selections from West Side Story.

The other F's, lets call them mid-sized (like the old B&S Symphonie model), and the Mirafone 181, Gronitz PF-126/7, are a good all around compromise type of F tubas that are large enough to be played in orchestral situations, yet are not so big and broad that they work well in a solo or quintet setting.


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