Posted by Gus Pratt on July 20, 2003 at 06:50:25:
In Reply to: I'd like to share this... posted by Jay on July 20, 2003 at 01:18:40:
There is a big difference between a persons solo sound and a persons ensemble sound. It doesn't matter what the sound you have in your head is. 99% of tuba playing is background playing, so you need to have a sound that supports others and blends with others. I think the main problem here isn't what you and your instructor see as a concept of sound, but what you and your instructor seeing you doing with your playing. A person can have more then one sound and it is important to be able create different sound for different occasions. If you're playing tuba in an orchestra your sound needs to be drastically different then if you're playing dixieland. You also have here a difference in the philosophies of jazz music and classical music. Jazz music teaches Individualism, so you often get to choose you own sound and style. You get to be more yourself. Classical music teaches teamwork. All the players work together to create a final product, and a universal sound and style is important.
You might want to discuss this problem with a sax player that you respect, or the sax instructor at your school, and ask how they deal with it. Sax players are always switching between the 2 styles of music.