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Thread: Alternate instruments for Tuba Euphonium Quartet

  1. #1

    Alternate instruments for Tuba Euphonium Quartet

    Hello,

    How many of you have substituted trombones for Euphoniums in a Tuba Euphonium Quartet? I had a quartet going for awhile but people weren't committing to practice and rehearsal and it kind of came apart. I was thinking of rebooting but only have 2 tuba players that I can count on. (I'm one of them). There are a lot of bone players in the area and have been considering using them. I know the tone is different but curious if anyone has substituted a trombone or bass trombone for Euphonium before? I have thought also about playing Euphonium myself and then using a Bass Trombone for the upper tuba part. Would appreciate any thoughts or shared experiences that you may have.
    John 3:16


    Conn Victor 5H Trombone
    Yamaha 354 Trombone
    Conn 15I Euphonium

  2. Have substituted English baritone for euphonium 1. You "might" get by with tenor trombone playing euph 1 and bass trombone playing euph 2.
    Adams E3 0.60 Sterling bell - Prototype top sprung valves
    Concord Band
    Winchendon Winds
    Townsend Military Band

  3. Yeah, but trombones sound like trombones, and who wants to listen to that?

  4. #4
    It depends on what kinds of pieces you choose to play. A lot of the rep written specifically for tuba quartet is very technical and would be very difficult/near impossible on trombone.

    I personally would try to either use only tubas/trombones or only tubas/euphoniums. Mixing trombone and euphonium in an ensemble like this could create some blending and balance issues.
    University of Miami - BM Euphonium Performance '21
    Indiana University - MM Bass Trombone and Euphonium Performance '24



    Besson Prestige 2052S
    Courtois 551BHRA
    Conn 88HCLSGX
    Various Greg Black mouthpieces

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2014
    Location
    Summerfield, Florida Sturgis, SD (summers)
    Posts
    1,863
    I have done a fair amount of tuba/euphonium quartet playing and performing. Sticking a trombone in will change the sound of the group, and in my opinion, not for the better. I would not do it, and I have nothing against trombones, I play trombone a lot in several groups. It is just not the sound one is looking for in a tuba/euphonium quartet (kind of why it is called a tuba/euphonium quartet). It is like putting a trombone in the TUBACHRISTMAS group of tubas and euphoniums/baritones (a huge pet peeve of mine, but as of this year, I am the coordinator for Rapid City TUBACHRISTMAS, and there will be no trombones, I will be happy to lend an errant trombone player one of my other euphoniums to use). The trombone sticks out like a sore thumb. Perhaps try encouraging some trombone players to learn euphonium as a second instrument. You can get a Wessex for a little over a grand, and that opens up a lot of other opportunities for trombone players.
    John Morgan
    The U.S. Army Band (Pershing's Own) 1971-1976
    Adams E3 Custom Series Euphonium, 1956 B&H Imperial Euphonium,
    1973 F. E. Olds & Son Studio Model T-31 Baritone
    Adams TB1 Tenor Trombone, Yamaha YBL-822G Bass Trombone
    Year Round Except Summer:
    Kingdom of the Sun (KOS) Concert Band, Ocala, FL (Euphonium)
    KOS Brass Quintet (Trombone, Euphonium)
    Summer Only:
    Rapid City Municipal Band, Rapid City, SD (Euphonium)
    Rapid City New Horizons Band (Euphonium)

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Central North Carolina
    Posts
    2,362
    I've done a Tuba Christmas kind of thing with mixed trombones and tubas (trombones playing the euph parts). It sounded, ... well ... "acceptable" but a little odd. And it's not just the sound. It's the articulation as well. I'd consider it for an "informal" setting, but it would otherwise be better to have euphs play the euph parts. This isn't to say that trombone and tuba don't sound good together. I think that a bass trombone and tuba combination can sound very good and interesting in some circumstances -- e.g., some of the Walter Sear Advanced Duets for Tuba. But in cases where that's true, it's also often true that the range is quite challenging for the trombone.
    Gary Merrill
    Wessex EEb Bass tuba (DW 3XL or 2XL)
    Mack Brass Compensating Euph (DE N106, Euph J, J9 euph)
    Amati Oval Euph (DE 104, Euph J, J6 euph)
    1924 Buescher 3-valve Eb tuba (with std US receiver), Kelly 25
    Schiller American Heritage 7B clone bass trombone (DE LB K/K10/112/14 Lexan, Brass Ark MV50R)
    1947 Olds "Standard" trombone (Olds #3)

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by daniel76309 View Post
    Yeah, but trombones sound like trombones, and who wants to listen to that?
    I do when the choice is to play with trombone or not have a group.
    John 3:16


    Conn Victor 5H Trombone
    Yamaha 354 Trombone
    Conn 15I Euphonium

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by JasonDonnelly View Post
    It depends on what kinds of pieces you choose to play. A lot of the rep written specifically for tuba quartet is very technical and would be very difficult/near impossible on trombone.

    I personally would try to either use only tubas/trombones or only tubas/euphoniums. Mixing trombone and euphonium in an ensemble like this could create some blending and balance issues.
    Agree that it would be difficult and agree about trying to get either tuba/bone or tuba/euph. Busy schedules make it difficult to get people to commit for the long term.
    John 3:16


    Conn Victor 5H Trombone
    Yamaha 354 Trombone
    Conn 15I Euphonium

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by John Morgan View Post
    I have done a fair amount of tuba/euphonium quartet playing and performing. Sticking a trombone in will change the sound of the group, and in my opinion, not for the better. I would not do it, and I have nothing against trombones, I play trombone a lot in several groups. It is just not the sound one is looking for in a tuba/euphonium quartet (kind of why it is called a tuba/euphonium quartet). It is like putting a trombone in the TUBACHRISTMAS group of tubas and euphoniums/baritones (a huge pet peeve of mine, but as of this year, I am the coordinator for Rapid City TUBACHRISTMAS, and there will be no trombones, I will be happy to lend an errant trombone player one of my other euphoniums to use). The trombone sticks out like a sore thumb. Perhaps try encouraging some trombone players to learn euphonium as a second instrument. You can get a Wessex for a little over a grand, and that opens up a lot of other opportunities for trombone players.
    Now that's a thought! I have a couple of horns that I could loan. Hadn't really considered that but it makes sense. Might be fun for the bones players to venture out on Euphonium. Thanks for the thought!
    John 3:16


    Conn Victor 5H Trombone
    Yamaha 354 Trombone
    Conn 15I Euphonium

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by ghmerrill View Post
    I've done a Tuba Christmas kind of thing with mixed trombones and tubas (trombones playing the euph parts). It sounded, ... well ... "acceptable" but a little odd. And it's not just the sound. It's the articulation as well. I'd consider it for an "informal" setting, but it would otherwise be better to have euphs play the euph parts. This isn't to say that trombone and tuba don't sound good together. I think that a bass trombone and tuba combination can sound very good and interesting in some circumstances -- e.g., some of the Walter Sear Advanced Duets for Tuba. But in cases where that's true, it's also often true that the range is quite challenging for the trombone.
    Thanks Gary. Makes sense. Agree that it isn't ideal. When I was in the Army I did quite a bit of playing with trombone players in small group settings and there is a big difference between Euphonium and trombone sounds. No argument there. This comes down to just have a group or not. For me its simply an enjoyable playing opportunity. Thanks for the input.
    John 3:16


    Conn Victor 5H Trombone
    Yamaha 354 Trombone
    Conn 15I Euphonium

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