Posted by Wade on July 11, 2003 at 12:12:24:
In Reply to: Horn tuning/legato issues posted by SHS Tubamaster on July 10, 2003 at 23:08:49:
Hey! Since nobody seems to have answered your first question, this is what I will address.
Tuning an instrument to itself involves setting your slides in positions that require the least pulling, alternates, or lipping to bring "out" notes in line with the chromatic, equal-tempered scale. This is not a really big issue with many newer tubas, but can involve lots of pulling and/or alternates on older tubas with a less-than-good scale.
Famous examples would be the Miraphone 188 CC and the Alexander 163 CC.
The 188 has nearly flawless pitch on a very high percentage of the examples out there in tubaland. Once you set your slides, only a very few pulls and alternates are needed in order to produce well-tuned playing in any key using equal-tempered, melodic, or pythagorean tuning. Once set, it is so close to being "in tune" in the first system that the other two systems are easy adaptations.
However, the older Alexander 163s, while having a very special sound with tons of Germanic character, tend to have really quirky intonation flaws. Tuning an Alex to itself is next to impossible. Massive amounts of time get spent in learning what compromises must be made to make the beast sound notes that are in-tune and centered. By way of example, my Alex has a bottom line G that is 35 cents flat to the low C. The compromise that I make is to set my slides so that the G is in tune with the low C when fingered 1 & 3. That is a common fix for many tubas. But my compromise for the middle D means that I must use the same alternate fingering with 1 in a different position. Learning to play my horn in-tune with itself requires that I know exactly where those two slide pull must be before I attack the pitch. To get my Bs in tune (2nd valve) involves using a tuning device on the second slide. (Low B is a bit flat and middle B is quite sharp.) The Cs do not line up perfectly, either. Arggg . . .
So, again, tuning a tuba to itself involves getting to know a particular instrument well enough to set the slides in advantageous positions that allow the player to mess with the horn as little as possible while playing, as well as knowing how to adjust things on the fly accurately.
When one does this, playing with good intonation in a group will be much easier, as the instrument is already fairly well lined up with itself, the player knows how the instrument will misbehave, and can compensate for any funkiness accordingly.
Then all you have to do is listen carefully to match the prevailing pitch level of the ensemble and you should be good to go, since the tuba is already well in-tune with itself and the player knows how to anticipate its quirks. All in theory, of course.
I hope that I did not bore you too much with this, SHS!!
Wade "blah, blah, blah" Rackley