There are three full-time "music" staff
- one who usually conducts/rehearses the choir
- one who makes most of the decisions (rep., and keeps everything running smoothly)...typically conducts one selection (plays violin, when they hire a full orchestra)
- one who is the organist/pianist (I've mentioned Dr. Leo Davis more than once in the past...This is his "retirement" job, and he's amazing.)
Guy #2 is very considerate, understands that I have a "c'llection" of tubas/quasi-tubas that - individually - do various things best, and sends me the parts in advance.
(They are always sight-readable, but still..."which tuba(s)?".
It's been a LONG time (two or three months?) since I've spent any serious time practicing the TUBA (mostly bass guitar, lately, as I'm striving to elevate my technique to-and-well-beyond where it was when I was gigging back in the 80's) and the only tuba playing I've done has been paid engagements.
Here is (abridged) what he send me for Sunday...so (
Since I played a two-hour E-flat tuba gig yesterday, that served as a pretty good (bass tuba) de facto "practice session".
...I'll certainly play through this stuff (as the F tuba is a bit different playing from the E-flat), and I'll be ready for 7:15 AM Sunday.
1. This is my same-ol' 4+2 (six-valve) F tuba that I've owned for 44 years (incl. several years as my ONLY tuba).y'all wrote:but bloke, those low G's are going to be sharp...
"Low G" is 1-2-5-6 (BOOM goes the dynamite!)
2. A large percentage of brass players (assuming true intonation) seem to PREFER playing with (particularly "traditional/so-called German" F tubas, as opposed to 6/4. EVEN WHEN a 6/4 contrabass is played well in-tune, they claim to be able to aurally interpret the pitch of an F tuba more easily (I'VE FOUND TO BE TRUE).
- F tuba (not one of those wide-belled ones) defines a brass quintet sonority as "FIVE VOICES" (vs. "FOUR VOICES AND A BASS INSTRUMENT").
(Based on the first email, this seems to be a brass quintet/percussion job.)
