Posted by Literature Lover on September 04, 2001 at 21:00:53:
In Reply to: Re: Seating Question posted by Chuck(G) on September 04, 2001 at 19:55:48:
Let it go. I wouldn't want to play those Cmaj arpeggios at the end on a Bb euph, anyway. If it comes off, you've heard a good performance with different instrumentation. Then you can speak intelligently about the pros and cons of that instrumentation for the rest of your life. If it doesn't work, commiserate over a cold one with your euph friend after the concert. Tell them that they didn't blow it; it's just bad karma for stepping on a tubist's toes. Better to let the chips fall where they may.
And who can forget the ditty penned by our colleague Cabbage over at the horn list?
The Ophicleide:
The Ophicleide, like mortal sin,
Was fostered by the serpent.
Its pitch was vague; its tone was din;
Its timbre, rude and burpant.
Composers, in a secret vote,
Declared its sound non grata;
And that's why Wagner never wrote
An Ophicleide Sonata.
Thus spurned, it soon became defunct,
To gross neglect succumbing;
A few were pawned, but most were junked
Or used for indoor plumbing.
And so this ill wind, badly blown,
Has now completely vanished:
I nominate the saxophone
To be the next one banished.
Farewell, offensive Ophicleide,
Your epitaph is chiseled:
"I died of ophicleidicide:
I tried, alas, but fizzled!"