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davewerden

  1. Cleaning Piston Valves

    When cleaning your horn or if you are having trouble with your valves, consider a good valve clearning. Obviously, you want to literally clean the valve carefully, including the passages the air travels through. You must also pay attention to the bottom of the valve and brush it out.

    The next step is to take a mild metal polish and polish the valve surface. Often this surface can get rough in places because of a buildup of various deposits. The polish will clean this and make the surface ...

    Updated 11-17-2016 at 06:29 AM by davewerden

    Categories
    Euphonium-Tuba Blog , General Tuba-Euphonium Blog
  2. Use of the 3rd Valve

    Most brass players learn to use the fingering 1-2, but in many cases the 3rd valve alone will work. Usually 3 is slightly lower in pitch. If you are sharp on a 1-2 note, try using 3 instead. It may take some getting used to because there is a little less resistance with 3 compared to 1-2. It may also be useful to handle awkward fingerings with 1-2. Experiment and see how it works. It should certainly be part of your "comfortable" technique collection.
  3. Music Minus One EUPHONIUM

    New page added to the site. Learn to play by practicing along with a professionally-played accompaniment. Many of the recordings listed here also come with tracks where a professional euphonium or trombone player has recorded the solo part, which can help you get the best sound in your head before you start. Most of the titles are listed for trombone, but would be just as useful for euphonium. Visit the Music Minus One Euphonium / Trombone page on this site to see several titles, or click here to ...
  4. Music Minus One TUBA

    Many players find it valuable to use so-called music minus one recordings and music to enhance their skills and musicianship. Some of these recordings are made with two versions of each song, one with just the accompaniment and one that also includes a professional playing the solo (to set an example). Look over the titles here: Music Minus One Tuba
  5. Future of Classical Music

    Yesterday an interesting article was published in the New York Times online:





    http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/21/arts/music/21waki.html?th&emc=th





    (You may need to register for a free account to view the online content.)
  6. Time to Start Thinking About Christmas Music

    We have added a new page for Christmas sheet music so you can get started preparing for the season (and any holiday gigs you might have coming up). You will find great buys on many popular collections plus a link to find selections specific to your instrument. Be sure to check out our Christmas Sheet Music page.
  7. Fuzzy Sound?

    If you have noticed your sound has gotten fuzzier recently, one possible cause is a mouthpiece that has become really dirty in the critical BORE area. Hold your mouthpiece up to the light so you are looking into the small end. The inside from the end nearest you to the bowl of the mouthpiece should be very smooth looking. If not, you need to clean it out. The easiest way is with a mouthpiece brush made for the purpose. It is long and tapered so it fits in nicely from the small end of the mouthpiece. ...
  8. Ann Arbor Symphony - Summer 2005

    Principal Tuba



    Solo: Vaughn Williams: Tuba Concerto - First Movement



    Orchestral excerpts:

    Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique - last movement, 84 - end

    Berlioz: Hungarian March from the Damnation of Faust

    Mahler: Symphony #1 - third movement, rehearsal number 1 - 4

    Prokofiev: Symphony #5 - first movement, rehearsal number 3 - 6

    Wagner: The Ride of the Valkyries

    Wagner: Overture to Die Meistersinger ...
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