Re: Re: Re: Re: BB industry!


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Posted by Fred Youg on March 01, 2001 at 09:35:25:

In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: BB industry! posted by anon on February 28, 2001 at 23:26:40:

I did so many years ago! Arnold Jacobs had a Holton BBb tuba he sometimes played when his York CC tuba didn't produce enough sound. Of particular importance was the lowest F# on the piano keyboard (4 lines below the staff). There was not much else in the music. When ever he played that note it sounded bad and he said the instrument had a wolf tone. The real trouble with the note was in the great flatness build into the instrument when the 23 combination was used. In those times the compromises shown in my spreadsheets were used to minimize the mean square of the intonation error. That caused all of the valve slide lengths to be too long. Arnold Jacobs could not stand playing the note flat and his efforts to play it in tune caused a terrible sound. I played it in his place letting the horn dictate the intonation. No one knew the difference. If fact pianos tuners tune all of the best pianos so they are about 20 cents flat at the bottom, in tune around the middle and 20 cents sharp at the top. Many tubists have had trouble with pianos in the RVW
Concerto first movement when the piano plays C two lines below the staff just before the tuba enters on the same note in the cadenza. When Phil Catelinet and I played it we had the piano retuned to remove the "stretch" in the lower half of the instrument.

I also played full time with the Pittsburgh Symphony in 1954 and was the second tubist from 1949 to 1973 when I moved away. I also played tuba in the Directors Band at the Gunnison Music Camp in the 1960's. The other tubists were BIll Bell and Arnold Jacobs.

In addition I played with the Philadelphia Ballet Orchestra in the 70's.




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