Posted by Brent Herhold on November 18, 2003 at 20:40:16:
Kudos to Jeff Anderson (San Francisco Symphony Tubist) who had his “Hell Week” playing “Bydlo” five times during the Nov. 12-16 period. I would imagine that he has now gone through initiation and is on his way to becoming a “Brother” in the S.F. Symphony (although MTT wasn’t present, I’m sure word will get back to him!)
I was at the Saturday evening performance armed, as promised, with my Bushnells so as to be able to give a most detailed report. Jeff appeared on the stage of Davies Hall before the start of the concert armed with some type of F tuba; I don’t play F, but it looked like a larger F with five rotary valves---probably not an Alexander, maybe a Meinl-Weston. He didn’t actually play “the lick,” but got in a few g#s for good measure.
The concert opened with Maderna’s AURA which does not have a tuba part, so Jeff got to sit back stage and think about “it” for twenty minutes. The Shostakovich Violin Concerto No. 1 followed and while this piece calls for tuba, there are no trombone parts, so Jeff got to sit in the back row all alone for forty minutes and think about “it.” He brought out, what I believe was a silver-plated rotary-valved PT6 for the Shostakovich; I’m sure it was a B&S (remember I had my glasses!) and I can even tell you that he has a little ding on the lower bow. Then a twenty minute intermission followed; more time to think about “it.”
At last it was time for “Pictures.” Jeff had both horns positioned in front, and a little to the left of him. He used the PT6 for everything but “Bydlo.” He played the solo beautifully and completely in control; he also displayed his great relief when all was said-and-done, but who can blame him? The reviewer for the San Francisco Chronicle singled Jeff out in his review saying, “He provided an astoundingly large-scale tuba solo in Bydlo.” That is a good description of the performance; his sound was big and full throughout.
It was also nice to note that following the concert, as the orchestra was leaving the stage, the guys (and girl) of the trombone section made a point of congratulating Jeff with, much-deserved, hardy hand shakes. And just think, in his first year with the orchestra “it” is behind him. The thing probably won’t be programmed for, at least, another ten years (S.F. last did it in ’92.)
Again, congratulations to Jeff Anderson.
Brent Herhold