TUBA

Question: How to sustain longer breathing on a Tuba? I started playing the Tuba in October, and recently I've been hit with some challenging music that requires long note holds, and few places to breath. How could I improve how long I can sustain a note? P.S.: I can only play the tuba at school, can't practice at home.

Answer: learn how to cercular breath. It's really hard but it would work.. if you dont know what that is well its... when you blow air out of your mouth when your playing but your are still breathing in through your nose.. its like super hard. ive been playing trumpet for about five years and i still can do it, but start practicing and im sure you will get it. and about the whole thing that you can practice at home just take your mouthpeice home and buzz and while you do that you can try to breath in through your nose.

Question: I wanna switch to tuba from trumpet: are the fingerings for the notes the same? I wanna switch to tuba from trumpet: are the fingerings for the notes the same?

Answer: nope! it's also very different playing a tuba mouth piece because it is much bigger. the tuba takes more air to play as well.

Question: What would you like to hear in a tuba and flute duet? I'm arranging a duet for tuba and flute and I've already got "Prince Ali" in it but I need some more suggestions. Things that sound fun to play and priceless on a tuba and flute.

Answer: The tuba side sounds kinda odd really because of the limited abilities of a tuba. Maybe I'm dissing a tuba without good reason. The key thing is your trying something new and writing. Even if you have to work twice as hard to overcome limitations of an instrument it'll make you a better composer. So the question is not whether folks want to hear those two instruments but rather would you like to listen to something I composed? Forget what instruments you choose to work in and concentrate on making it sound good. In the end that is all that counts. Does it sound good or not?

Question: How many people actually play tuba? I am a tuba player and want to find out what people also do.

Answer: One of the best musicians I know plays the tuba...he's amazing. Don't play it myself, I'm a trumpet guy...

Question: What should i play on the tuba for some young musicians? this weekend i am doing a tuba demonstration for about 20 kids between the ages 7 and 10. i have some of my literature picked out, but i need some ideas for some fun, recognizable songs to play for them. any ideas? and better yet, any websites that will have the sheet music for those songs? thanks.

Answer: Truthfully, they will love anything you play for them. Whenever I go play for kids, they are just thrilled that I came to perform for them. Disney tunes seem to be very popular and anything from the Star Wars movies. If you can take some requests, that is what they like best. They will ask for kid's songs: Mary had a little lamb, Hot Cross Buns, etc. Even if they ask for something that you don't have music for, but have to play by ear, the kids are happy, even if you can't play the whole song. If you can play something spooky, the love that. Also, just demonstrating going from sound to a subito forte will thrill them. Can you make your tuba "talk?" That's another good one. Don't pick any long pieces - leave out unnecessary repeats. The attention spans of the youngest kids are only so long. For free sheet music: www.8notes.com They have a number of free songs, but for just $20 a year, you can download anything they have and you can also make suggestions as to music you'd like to see on there. They let you know when there's an arrangement available. I have found it to be very worthwhile.

Question: What are some good tricks to hitting low notes on the tuba? I just started playing the tuba. I have been playing the flute for four years and decided I would like to learn the tuba. I need some helpful hints or tricks for low notes because I can't really get them. Luckily I can hit the high notes pretty good! Any one have some tips??

Answer: You being a flute player is a great advantage. Just drop your jaw and use more of the inside of your lip (the red part). It will sound like a dying animal at first, but it will get better over time.

Question: What do you call someone who plays the tuba? I know a person who plays piano = pianist, violin=violinist, fute= floutist. WHAT is TUBA?

Answer: Here's another for tubist.

Question: What is the main difference between the Roman tuba and the modern tuba? The Roman tuba is very different from the modern tuba. What is the main difference between the two?

Answer: The modern tubas owe their existence to the invention of valves or pistons (Ger. Ventile) by two Prussians, Stolzel and Bliimel, in 1815. The tubas are often confounded with the baritone and bass of the saxhorns, being like them the outcome of the application of valves to the bugle family. There is, however, a radical difference in construction between the two types: given the same length of tubing, the fundamental octave of the tubas is an octave lower than that of the saxhorns, the quality of tone being besides immeasurably superior. This difference is entirely due to the proportions of the truncated cone of the bore and consequently of the column of air within. By increasing the calibre of the bore in proportion to the length of the tube it was found that the fundamental note or first sound of the harmonic series was easily xxv11.12 obtained in a full rich quality, and by means of the valves, with this one note as a basis, a valuable pedal octave is obtained, absent in the saxhorns. Prussia has not adopted these modifications; the bass tubas with large calibre, which have long been introduced into the military bands of other countries and retained in that country, are founded on the original model invented in BBB Bombardon or Contrabass Tuba (Besson). During the middle ages the tuba was as great a favourite as the busine (see Buccina and Trumpet), from which it may readily be distinguished by its marked conical bore and absence of bell. It is recorded that King Frederick Barbarossa gave an order on the 14th of January 1240 in Arezzo for four tubas of silver and for slaves to be taught to play upon them

Question: How should I go about buying a tuba? I am a high school sophomore. I have been playing tuba for four years, but I've only had the school tuba to use. I am now looking to buy on of my own. How should I find the right brand for me, and where can I get it cheap? I live in Phoenix, Arizona.

Answer: Tubas aren't THAT expensive... You could get a student one for about 2K. You may only want to use one of these at home to practice (your school might have a better one). Unless you have good music stores near you (you might, you live in a big city) you might want to check online. I'd recommend Woodwind & Brasswind (wwbw.com, search "tuba" and order by price to find cheapest). Unlike Ebay, they buy instruments in bulk and sell them to give you the lowest price (the instruments aren't damaged or anything). There are other online stores, but some of them are kind of shady so be careful where you buy from and check if they have warranties etc. The advantage of going to a music store is that you can try out multiple tubas before you buy one. Also, the store will usually have a warranty included with the purchase, so they will usually repair it if it breaks. If you order from WWBW you usually will get a warranty through the company, but I'd call to make sure. You can also call to see if you can talk to a low brass expert through WWBW and they might be able to help you make the best choice. Hope this helped and good luck finding a tuba.

Question: Tuba Help!! - How best to learn the fingerings? I have been playing sousaphone for the past two years in marching band at my high school and trumpet in classroom band however i will be playing tuba in classroom band also this year. I never really learned the fingerings and i go to band camp in about two weeks. What is the best / easiest / fastest way to learn the fingerings / note names? Thanks

Answer: time to get real huh? the best cure is to sight read at whatever level you can,....no marking fingerings anymore/force yourself to remember them, (even if that means getting a beginner book to read from). you can also learn which notes have common fingerings by doing lip slurs (read them while playing)

Question: How would I take my tuba on the airplane? Just a question. Im thinking about taking a mini tuba (a bit bigger than a euphonium) on the airplane from Texas To Pensylvania. Is this possible to take on board?

Answer: Very carefully….da dum dum

Question: Can someone give me tips to improve my tone quality on the tuba? I already play the flute, and I've figured out how to get good tone quality with that, but I'm just learning the tuba for marching band and I always seem to sound sharp. Does anyone have any advice?

Answer: It's a mix between the other answers. It's very important to have good airflow. That will keep your sound from being weak. It is equally important to open your throught, and lower your jaw. This will darken your tone. If you do both of these together, you should attain better tuning too. Running it over would just make it more sharp! Good Luck!!

Question: Does playing a french horn or tuba help a trumpet player to develop a stronger and fuller embouchure? I play the trumpet (in college) and i've let a french horn player try my trumpet and she was able to hit very high notes, although they were very airy and not full. I was thinking that maybe i can make my embouchure stronger and more versatile by alternating playing the french horn and a larger mouthpieced instrument such as the tuba. Any ideas or experience with any of this kind of experimentation?

Answer: the french horn and trumpet embouchures are similiar but the trumpets has to be somewhat firmer and tighter to hit those high notes and NOT sound airy or pitchy. if you play a tuba, the mouthpiece is bigger and therefore the embouchure is a lot more relaxed so that would not be a smart idea. my advice to you would be just to practice different "practices" on your trumpet and do different runs ... the longer you practice a day the better your embouchure will be ... hope this helps = )

Question: Where can i get good tuba lessons for cheap in Anaheim/Orange County? I am just beggining and it is so close to next years marching season and so far i am the only one who is so far surely playing tuba for next year. I have never played tuba before.

Answer: call a community college with a band. Ask a tuba player how cheaply he or she will teach private lessons. College students are usually poor enough to offer lessons maybe as cheap as $20 for 30 minutes every other week. Start carrying around a sousaphone ASAP. Do some stretching exercises to strengthen your lower back, or you may be in for some back pain.

Question: Looking for good free baritone or tuba sheet music? I need help finding good baritone or tuba sheet music ( and no, to people that think they are the same, THE BARITONE AND THE TUBA ARE NOT THE SAME!) Old music is good but somewhat new music would be better. Music from actual radio songs would be amazing. Just put the link of the site in your re.

Answer: http://popsheets4u.blogspot.com/ http://ffpianomelody.com http://thechopincollection.blogspot.com Might not be the specific ones you are looking for but... You can find plenty of sheet music for download at these websites. They have over 1000+ of them. Good luck!

Question: Where is the best place to sell my used tuba? Everything works on it, and I just had it cleaned at the local music shop. It's a St. Petersburg 202N BBb concert tuba, and a gig bag, hard case, and a couple mouthpieces would be included in the price. Should I try to sell it online? If so what are the best sites for it? I live in a small town, and nearly nobody but the band would want it. I've called the band director and they don't need it. Any suggestions? Please help!

Answer: Try getting ahold of someone at the Musician's Union (see link). You might be able to place an ad in one of their publications and a serious musician might take you up on the offer.

Question: How to get a tuba mouthpiece out of the bell? URGENT HELP NEEDED! My 4-year old put the mouthpiece of my daughter's tuba into the bell and now we can't get it out. Wondering if there's anything we can do to get it out ourselves. This is a school-owned instrument.

Answer: Something that you could try is to take a piece of 1/2" dowel... about 3" long, and drill a hole into the center of it. Thread a piece of nylon clothesline rope into the hole in the dowel and tie it off. Drop the dowel into the bell and rotate the tuba, trying to get the dowel past the mouthpiece, assuming that it has become lodged in there perpendicularly, and not in line with the tubing. Then, try to gently urge the mouthpiece out of the place where it has become lodged. This is probably about the same thing that a repair shop would do. I hope that it will work for you! If at first you don't succeed, it's probably best to call an instrument repair shop, and have them remove it for you. Good luck!

Question: Is the hatch on the Toyota Prius big enough to comfortably hold a tuba? My wife is tuba major and we're having a baby. We need a bigger car to hold both. The tuba is roughly 4.5 feet long, 2 feet tall and wide.

Answer: The Prius back seats can fold down to give you a flatbed cargo space 5 feet long. You can accomodate both a baby seat and that 4.5'x2'x2' tuba trunk in the Prius easily. Put the baby seat on the driver's-side rear passenger seat, and fold down just the right-side rear passenger seats to create the flatbed space for the tuba trunk.

Question: How much would a pawn shop give me for a tuba? Im going to college and Im not doing band anymore (I did it all my high school year) I want some new stuff for my new apartment and I wanna sell my tuba its kind of beat up but it plays perfectly fine. I want at least 200 dollars but Im just not sure how much I would get. Could someone tell me thanks.

Answer: I seriously doubt you would get that much for it as pawn shops have the idea of "buy low, sell high." In all reality, you might have better luck if you post it for sale on Craigslist.

Question: Where can I find the sheet music recommended for the tuba for the Youtube symphony orchestra? I am looking for the recommended pieces for tuba for the second video audition for the Youtube Symphony Orchestra. These pieces include (author: title): Berlioz: Requiem, Op. 5 Mahler: Symphony No. 2 in C Minor "Resurrection" Wagner: Siegfried I have tried to look for them in music databases but never got any luck so if you find them can you give me the URL. Thanks!

Answer: Instrument parts for Public Domain (PD) orchestra works are sold by the publisher Kalmus: Berlioz: Requiem, Op. 5 A2565 $7.00 each Mahler: Symphony No. 2 in C Minor "Resurrection" A1686 $11.00 each Wagner: Siegfried [complete opera part? ] A5167 $55.00 All Kalmus publications can be ordered from your music dealer or directly from Kalmus: Edwin F. Kalmus & Co., Inc. Music Publishers P.O. Box 5011 Boca Raton, FL 33431 e-mail: [email protected] web: http://www.kalmus-music.com How to order: http://www.kalmus-music.com/hto.html [Note, by the way, that www. kalmus. com, is not affiliated with and is NOT the e-mail address for Edwin F. Kalmus & Co., Inc]