Posted by Jay Bertolet on March 11, 1999 at 00:37:16:
In Reply to: new tubas posted by Brian White on March 10, 1999 at 16:29:53:
There have been some really good suggestions so far, but I wanted to suggest a different approach which might be alot cheaper. I would first determine if the current Kings are serviceable. What I mean by that is if the horns were in mint condition, would they be acceptable? Also, are the horns capable of being put in mint condition? My guess is that the Kings are going to be your best option for the money. But you need to make sure they are going to fit the bill. Are they 4 valve instruments? Most high school tubists I work with will object alot to playing a bell front tuba, especially if it only has 3 valves. So, if they have 4 valves, I would suggest spending your money to convert them to bell up instruments and going for complete overhauls to put them in mint condition. King may actually still make those bells, my old high school had a detachable upright bell King tuba. Those old Kings are very sturdy tubas and will hold up well (as they already have) if they are maintained properly. The King is also a very fine tuba and, in good working order, functions very effectively. I would prefer the King to any other instrument listed so far if the conditions of the tubas were equal.
I guess my main advice is that you shouldn't lose sight of what you're trying to do. Unless you're willing to spend alot of money on a really high quality tuba, you're not going to get anything better than what you already have. Of the tubas others have listed already, I think all will be easily dented. And none play any better than a properly functioning King. If the student is indeed very serious, he'll need to buy his own tuba which will fit him and maybe not others. Maybe you could take the money you save on tubas and make sure he gets first rate private instruction...