Mystery Tuba

A couple of you have asked about the tuba picture in my last post. Maybe I should start a mystery picture competition because this is a detail photo of the valves of Mrs T.

Maybe some of you were fooled by the sideways shot others may not be familiar with the great and wonderful Mrs T so here is another shot.

I like to think that Mrs T is a rather special Tuba, certainly I have not seen another like her, she is a Hawkes & Sons Excelsior Sonorous BBb Cavalry model, 3 valve non compensating, but with continental style tuning slides above each valve.

I have seen a couple Ebs but never another BBb, despite being made before the first world war she still blows well with a big fat sound and a full register with good intonation throughout. She was originally made in sharp pitch but has been converted to concert at some point, and has a medium bore mouthpiece receiver, so I can use my much loved Schilke 69.

Just to show that she is no a museum piece, more like the mad wife locked in the attic, here she is with Mike, Ron and me outside the beer hall we were playing in at Expo 92 in Seville.

I don't use her much now, as with all BBbs (British ones at least) I find she is a little "woofely" difficult to get a good attack without becoming overbearing. EEb are much more agile and accurate, and the CC gives me most of the best of both worlds. So now she only really comes out if I am playing with a Brass Band, which now I am conducting will be even more rarely.