Posted by Steve Marcus on May 26, 2000 at 07:48:03:
On page 94 of the May 2000 issue of "The Music Trades" magazine, an excellent color photo appears with this caption:
"Carl Fischer CEO Sandy Feldstein with the world's largest tuba, a reminder of the company's pioneering role as the publisher of John Philip Sousa's band works."
Is this claim to fame accurate? Is this not the twin of Harvard's big Besson BBBb tuba? How about the tuba at the Amati factory, or the elusive Hoffnung beast?
If Feldstein has truly downsized Carl Fischer (closing the venerable retail stores, etc.), why hasn't the company offered to sell the big horn to a museum or qualified brass repair shop so that the monster tuba could be made playable and accessible to us tubists? Certainly, the financial gain for the Carl Fischer company would outweigh the value of "a reminder of the company's pioneering role."