Posted by Chuck on October 26, 2002 at 14:56:08:
I am an amateur orchestral tubist in Atlanta, and am lucky enough to play in proably one of the best all-volunteer groups. We are doing Benvenuto Cellini in the Spring, so I knew I'd be needing an F tuba soon, and just took delivery of a new 6-valve Miraphone 181 in Goldbrass. Plus, in a week I have to play the bass trombone part for Mozart's requiem due to an absence. Though I won't play it up an octave, I think the lighter, more projecting tone of the F will be much more in that style that would my PT-6.
I have tried other F tubas before, and though I don't know my way around it yet really well, they just never had a sound I liked much (e.g. the MW 45SLP - which was a great horn - just too thin and stuffy below D). I have to say - and this is from a VERY inexperienced F tuba player, tha the Miraphone is really awesome. The low D still sounds like it is barely a note - need to figure out the best alternate fingering. But, the middle and high registers truly sing, and it gets a very good, thick sound if you want it too, but still maintains that rather compct german F characteristic. The bore is rather larg-ish, so you need to have pretty "fast" airflow, but it comes prety naturally.
Does anyone offer any advice on learning how to cope with the new fingerings, and more importantly, accomodating the needs of an F tuba and getting the most out of it? The one trick I need to work on is the number of valves required as you get low - you really do have to work at that (not used to using 5th that often - and not that quickly). I thought the 6th valve would be a joke, but it really does make a difference.
One concern I have is intonation - I haven't even used a tuner yet - am just trying to get comfortable with the notes, fingerings, and sounds. So, hopefully that will come (I do suspect, however, that it will take some major work). Any advice on that - especailly going form CC to F, would be helpful.
Finally - I tried a few different mouthpieces. But, I have settled on the PT-88, which I know is huge for an F. I guess I like it because it makes the low register much fuller, and that is what I use almost exclusively on the CC. Is it a ridiculous thought to use a PT-88 for an F tuba application - especially on higher works and solo stuff? It does seem to make the horn a tad less "edgy" but makes a huge difference in the low register. Surprisingly, it does not seem to affect the upper register or range much. That is one thing I learned about the F - the high stuff does slot a little easier since the partials aren't quite as close - but you can either lip the note, or you can't. The main difference to me is the change in timbre and volume.
One final note. I know our european counterparts use the F sometime exclusively, and I have to admit - though I have great admiration for Roger Bobo, some of his recordings to me always sounded so "tinny" and transparent. After playing F more, and realizaing you really can go as low as you want, I am gaining a much greater appreciation of the sound difference. We focus on BAT's so much, and the huge sounds of the contrabass, I think the appreciation for the clearer resonance of the bass tuba gets lost on this side of the pond.
Any thoughts and advice? thanks...