Re: Sousaphone Tips


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Posted by Rick Denney on August 25, 2003 at 11:59:05:

In Reply to: Sousaphone Tips posted by Lauren on August 22, 2003 at 13:59:33:

If you left arm is strong enough, try holding the tuba at the shoulder point with your left hand. This was the only way I could deal with during the many years that I played sousaphone.

This approach will tire out your arm and shoulder muscles, but at least it won't damage your ligaments or your rotator cuff. And, no, you can't adjust slides with your left hand while doing this, but then whatever you'd with your left hand would be overwhelmed by the effects of pain. Deal with the pain first.

Some of us just don't have appropriately shaped shoulders. I'm six feet and even in the 8th grade weighed over 200 pounds, but even so my shoulders don't have a resting spot that works for sousphone. Pads didn't help.

Had I to do it over again, I might devise a harness that would carry the weight on both shoulders, and attach at the bottom bow so the weight would hang on the harness. If you can visualize this and are handy with strap material, you might try to rig something up.

The sousaphone is an ergonomic nightmare. When a sousaphone player 5'-10" and 200 pounds describes himself as "not that big" as we saw below, you know that the sousaphone was designed for a large and muscular musician. In fact, it was. The designers definitely did not have high-school-aged ladies in mind.

Rick "who thinks ergonomics are bad enough with regular tubas" Denney


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