Kill the Wabbit

I am just back from the Capitol Tuba Conference and the Texas Music Educators Convention. Some thoughts on testing instruments.

“Kill The Wabbit” is a good test of a tuba.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yxiv3CBMS4M

I hear it frequently, played well and sometimes not.
May I suggest?
First know the excerpt. Know the fingerings on the tuba at hand. Know the rhythm.
Second don’t test. Or as Mr. Jacobs said, “Make a statement. Don’t ask a question.” Mr. Jacobs said that even when you are warming up on stage before a concert, the conductor can often hear you. Don’t ask a question. Make a statement. Jake was ‘warming up’ before a master class he was giving. He played a few technical things and an operatic aria. Then he said, “You might wonder what I’m doing here. I’m showing off. There is always someone listening. You don’t need to warm up if you are playing five hours every day. You may need a maintenance routine but you don’t need to warm up. When you go on stage to test the acoustics, show off.”
So first, know the excerpt and then make a statement. Better to play something simple that you play well than to attempt something you don’t know.

Now a few suggestions about how to ‘kill the wabbit’. I took a few lessons with Ed Anderson, the bass trombonist in the Cleveland Orchestra at the time. I have the greatest respect for Ron Bishop as a person and a musician. I was fortunate to have had a few lessons with him. But I thought a few lesson with the person who sits next to the tubist would also be valuable. In fact, who is more likely to be behind the audition screen than a trombonist? Ed asked me to play the sixteenth notes louder than the dotted eighths. He then explained that George Szell asked for louder and louder sixteenths when they recorded the Ride of the Valkyries. Ed said it felt strange until he heard the recording and realized Szell’s wisdom. Szell said “Little notes are like little children. They demand more attention.”

So, how do you make the sixteenths louder than the dotted eights? Do NOT play the dotted eighths as loud as you can. It’s just that simple. I’ve done a little singing. Doo-Wop etc. I was once asked to sing the bass part in the country song Elvira. Most days I have a low C. Like every other bass I know, low C is not as loud as second space C. It is very tempting when the giddy-up part comes to belt it out. Big mistake. Sing it softer. That way you can sing a solid low C.

Here’s Barth’s Axiom #1. ‘Don’t play any loud passage louder than your weakest note.’ There is, of course, a corollary. ‘Don’t play any soft passage any softer than you are able to make every note speak.’
Axiom #2 is similar: ‘Crescendo means Start Softer’. Worth repeating: ‘Crescendo means Start Softer.’ Even if you are playing a loud passage, the best way to make an effective crescendo is to drop the volume down a little when you see ‘crescendo’.

Production Pipe Angle

Yes the J-870 is in production. The mouthpipe angle is just like the sample I had in DC and SanAntonio. Milano Music has 2 and three more on order.

TMEA and Capital Tuba Conference 2011

I am just back from TMEA 2011 (Texas Music Educator Convention, the biggest MEA in the country. Everything is bigger in Texas.) Before that was the Capital Tuba conference at Ft. Meyer in D.C., an annual event. Unfortunately I do not get to hear the performances because the exhibit room is busy constantly.
I had on display the J-870 CC tuba in what seems to be the unanimous preferred mouthpipe angle. The only minor complaints I heard were from very tall players who expect the mouthpipe to be low for them anyway. I took pictures of almost everyone who tried it. You can see for yourself in the links.
Comments ranged from “This is the best horn here.” to “This is the best value on the market.” to Is the J-870 CC tuba in production? Is the mouthpipe angle changed? Can I order one? Yes, yes and yes. The J-700 BBb tuba is also in production. We haven’t had as many come through as we would like but they are coming through. The instrument I have been showing at Capitol Tuba Conference and TMEA IS a production model but it is one that had the ‘over-correction’ mouthpipe and was then modified with the final version mouthpipe. I have referred to it as a ‘proto-type’ because it was modified and the solder marks show. I am experimenting with the fifth valve mechanism on this instrument and therefore continue to refer to it as a proto-type. (Sorry if that confused anyone.) You can order one just like it. If you have trouble locating a store send me an email. (rbarth@gemeinhardt.com).
Thanks to everyone who came to those exhibits to try them. Either you were being kind or they were the best tubas on display at those exhibits. I don’t recall anyone who didn’t like them. Pictures are posted under ‘Capitol Tuba Conference…’ and ‘TMEA 2011’.

So here’s the skinny: Orders placed before **(I previously said 2/8)will arrive approximately 9 weeks later. We continue to work on fit and finish and are resolved to travel to Brazil to inspect every instrument.
Weather and Travel have pushed this back. **February 24 is a more likely date.

The J-700 BBb tuba is also in production. I have yet to meet the tuba player who would not recommend this to any school. In fact band director/tuba players often complain that they just bought 6 #$%^&*&^%$#$%^ tubas and would have specified the J-700 had they known about it. Don’t let them make the mistake. Spread the word. And thanks.

Midwest Convention 2010

I've posted some pictures on the link "Midwest 2010". Our trombones atracted considerable attention. Serveral top players were impressed by the versatility of the patented Dual-Use mouthpipes. Three top players who met for the first time at the booth did an impromptu mini concert to the delight of all in ear-shot. One insisted on taking a trombone home with him. I hope to post a video of the jam on youtube soon. The tubas attracted lots of attention. I think we finally have the right angle on the J-870 CC tuba. There were no negatives and players commented that the J-700 and J-870 were the best tubas at the show. Many college students expressed interest in stepping up to the D-880 or D-780 French horns. I hated to tell them that the cost was actually less than the big brand name they were looking to sell so they could make the move.
Next show is NAMM in Anaheim mid January followed by the Capitol Tuba Conference at Ft. Meyers in DC.

International Trombone Festival Winners

International Trombone Festival 2010
Austin, Texas
Dr. Jeff Cottrell delights in showing Bryon English the W. Nirschl Dual-Use Trombone.
Winner of the Gagliardi Trombone Competition receives a P.Weingrill TB1 trombone.
Winner of the George Roberts Trombone Competition receives a W. Nirschl Dual-Use Trombone.
See these and more pictures on the link to the right.

Art from Arnold Jacobs' House.
See more on link on right.
See sample at ITEC 2010.

ITEC and Tuba update

Thanks to everyone at ITEC that tried out the newest W.Nirschl tubas. Though some really liked the mouthpipe angle on the J-870, it was not unanamous. Both J-870's sold and there are two more due soon the same way. Thanks to several players that posed for pictures, it appears that the next change should be a 20 degree move to the players right and 10 degrees up.
Betwixt the J-880 and J-870, players were divided nearly 50/50, and adamant, as to which played better. I was surprised by the intensity of opinion and it was divided among top notch players. As to the J-880, it remains unchanged from Walter’s design and is popular with those who play Walter’s 6/4 tuba. It likes to be on a pad.
As to the J-870, it is a little more focused but less broad. Both will have a new thumb ring. (Thanks, Don, for the input.)

J-700 continues to be declared the unanimous best BBb on the market. Thanks for your support. Tell your local band director so your high school students will show up with good equipment.

TU2
Everyone that picks up the P.Weingrill TU2 ends up playing Prokofiev 5 or Romeo & Juliette. It should be sub-titled ‘Prokofiev’. It roars on the low notes and has an even scale all the way up. Perfect for schools that want a rotor tuba and pros that want to excel on those excerpts. Again, spread the word so your high school students will show up with good equipment. (Maybe you can even borrow one when you have a Prokofiev concert.)

See the ITEC pictures at the link on the right and thanks for your enthusiastic support.