Posted by JF on August 20, 2003 at 00:56:52:
In Reply to: Re: PT 15 posted by Pre-PT BS F tubas.. on August 18, 2003 at 21:14:34:
Joe,
I'm perfectly willing to be proven wrong at some point in the future on this issue. One of these days I'll make it out to your shop to compare horns myself and buy you a beer.
It is entirely likely that your horn does indeed play easier out of the box and may even be a better all around horn. However, as you have acknowledged, with any tuba there is a learning curve that has to be overcome. I think too much is made of the 'problem' notes on these horns as something unusual. How many junior high and high school students out there struggle with problem notes on their horns but no one would readily let them blame their horns. I agree that there does have to be a balance to the resistance of an instrument but it doesn't really matter so much where that resistance is. It could be in the bugle, the valve section, the leadpipe, the backbore or at the lip. I think these horns work best when you allow the resistance to be at the lip by developing an efficient embouchure. Actually all horns work best in this regard it's just that these super open horns make it all the more obvious when your chops are not efficient. The horns with a more 'balanced resistance' tend to be dead, lack tonal variation and let you get away with a lot of sloppy playing.. that's why so many love them.. it's easy to sound pretty darn good on them without much work. I've heard enough great performances on the PT-15 and similar horns that I'm convinced that there can't be all that much terribly wrong with them. Mr Tucci, Mr. Perantoni, and Mr. Meinl aren't dumb people.. perhaps part of it is marketing but more likely they were looking for a very specialized sound, projection and response that is just far enough out of our normal experience that it's hard to appreciate until you've lived with them a bit. As a side note.. even though the new MW Fs are rediculously big I think out of the box the low C is a touch more forgiving than the PT-15. I think the MW F is a little too forgiving of sloppiness and a bit dead up high where it counts. Nice horns just not great.
Feel free not to like them it just makes them cheaper for those of us that do. I would just rather that we not make lame excuses for not learning how to play the damn horn and make music.
My two cents,
joseph