Posted by tubatheorist on March 20, 2001 at 00:37:26:
In Reply to: BBb to Eb posted by Jess Ryan on March 19, 2001 at 20:45:25:
The sooner the better is the key to learning the fingerings! I used the "crutch" method way too long, and when my teacher said, "play me an F scale," I would stare at the wall dumbly and say, "I can't because I don't know the fingerings!" Now that was mainly nerves and not stupidity on my part, (I couldn't think fast enough under pressure or process HOW I should have been thinking) but I was stupid in not cracking down on the fingerings sooner. (My transposition has improved, useless as it often seems.)
I play my e-flat in a British brass band, and that helps me in many ways. Although I am reading transposed treble, when I play in C bass, it helps reinforce my pitches and vice-versa. You will eventually get the e-flat "fundamental" sound in your ear, and from that point it is simply a matter of getting a feel for the horn. For me, my bass (e-flat) takes a lot more air than my contra (which is a CC), and I have only recently been able to start to get the sound I want on my e-flat. Don't be fooled into thinking smaller horn = less air. This was another beginner's mistake I made.
That's my best advice to you, sorry if I've rehashed. I hope you can learn something from my mistakes (: Have fun, and memorize those fingerings! They'll be automatic in no time.