Posted by Mike F. on March 09, 2001 at 08:23:37:
In Reply to: Please help out this mom! posted by Tuba mom on March 09, 2001 at 00:44:53:
Hi, congratulations on having a new tubist in the family! I will try to address your questions in the order posed so as not to miss anything...
1) Don't buy one of those cheap Chinese horns, it may not be much better than the one he's playing on right now, and you will never get anything out of it when it's time to sell. If you can go up to $1,800 th Weril 4 valve tuba is a fantastic instrument, a good size for a younger player, and will last him all the way to college.
2) Who gets annoyed, the band director or the High School kid giving the lessons? Forgive my bluntness, but a lot of things "don't sound right" at first year, and we should concentrate on the positive aspects and work from there. My whole first year I was happy just to push the buttons and make farting/belching noises
3) A year and a half isn't too long to wait for a decent tuba, by then he will have developed some good fundamentals and really appreciate the good horn when he gets it. But...
4) Keep watching eBay, look for either a King or Conn, or maybe an Olds. (Other posters will tell the the model numbers.) They can be bought fairly cheap, and will not lose their value in two years. Three valve horns are fine for a beginner, but he'll want four valves in a couple of years. Oh yeah, another great middle school horn is the Yamaha YBB 103, 104 or 105.
A really bad instrument can hold a person back, but you can't expect a virtuoso tubist the first time he picks up a horn, either. If the local shop says its playable, (but maybe not pretty) you'll have to trust them.
Best of luck to you and your young tubist!
Mike
Oh yeah, check out my web-site for some good beginning (and intermediate) tuba stuff: