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It's being reported on Facebook Richard Watson has passed

Very sad. I chatted with him a few times over the years and he always seemed like a most excellent dude.

He was my teacher.

An amazing person and pedagogue, he will be missed by a lot of people.

I started bursting into tears when I saw this on my anniversary trip. I feel like one of the pillars of my career and life fell.

Rich was a mentor, colleague, and most importantly, a good friend. He was beyond supportive and helpful to me and I owe a considerable amount of success to him for where I am in my career.

He was all about singing on tuba and was one of the best actual musicians I have ever heard. He overcame focal dystonia in the past decade or so that I have been close friends with him.

Here is the post regarding his services:

July 12th, Viewing will be from 2-4 Central time, with a service at 4 at Haverstock Funeral Home in Laporte for Richard Watson.

Wear your Hawaiian shirts, wear comfy clothes/band tees, and polish off the bikes! If you dress in bike attire, dress for the slide, not the ride. Richard always appreciated proper safety equipment. Wear a helmet.

Obituary is currently being worked on, but the date and times are confirmed.

Richard's obituary is linked below.

At the ceremony of life, it was a packed house with barely any open seats, with a mix between musicians and motorcyclists. Though he didn't speak, it should say a lot that his good friend and colleague Gene Pokorny was in attendance, among several former students and the local pro scene.

You never know who you will meet that will have such an impact on you as a person and musician. My best advice after all this is to enjoy every moment you can with the musicians around you that you respect, and try to learn as much as you can from them while playing or talking with them.

https://obituaries.thecourier.com/us/ob ... d=58847074

It was a wonderful ceremony; I've only back for a few years and only talked to Rob and Jeff. I saw a young lady recording it, does anyone know if she posted it somewhere?

Please post here about any memorium concerts, I'm not on Facebook and I feel that most of that will be posted there.

Bob Kolada wrote: Sat Jul 19, 2025 11:00 pm It was a wonderful ceremony; I've only back for a few years and only talked to Rob and Jeff. I saw a young lady recording it, does anyone know if she posted it somewhere?

Please post here about any memorium concerts, I'm not on Facebook and I feel that most of that will be posted there.

The memorial concerts will coincide with the Valpo Tuba Christmas Event. Dakota Maze will be heading it up. If you want me to keep you in the loop as it gets closer, you can email me at russiantuba at gmail dot com or message me on here. The goal is to have everyone attend and participate.

Anything new on this? I think I'll miss the New Carlisle TC but I'm going to the Valpo TC if I have to ruck my cimbasso from wherever I am.

A small remembrance:

http://forums.chisham.com/viewtopic.php?t=95506

For anyone who's spent time in the Elephant Room at a tuba conference, I'm sure we can all relate to Magnum's reaction to hearing yet another rendition of The Ride.

RIP, Richard.