striking the bell

[kingrob76]

If you hand me a stick and a part and tell me to hit my horn with it, it's 50/50 if my response would be "is that before or after I shove it up your ***?" or "No" followed by me seeing how far I can throw the stick and then saying "now go fetch". The most polite response you'd get would be something akin to the last one with a throw not for distance but just for emphasis. Expletives would be in almost every response I could imagine. How about we go get the hood or trunk lid off your car and use it instead ? I'd go all Mahler on that thing.

There are good ideas, there are bad ideas, then there is this idea.

[bloke]

I spend a whole bunch of time striking y'all's bells, and a bunch of y'all pay me to do it. I don't see what the big deal is here...(??)

[kingrob76]

I spend a whole bunch of time striking y'all's bells, and a bunch of y'all pay me to do it. I don't see what the big deal is here...(??)

context is king.

[arpthark]

Conn text is "20J"

King text is "2341"

[bloke]

Conn text is "20J"

King text is "2341"

I'm withholding further comment, because I'm on strike.

[Mary Ann]

I feel a little sorry for the OP who had no idea what he was getting into by asking that question of the TFFJ!

[C J]

I feel a little sorry for the OP who had no idea what he was getting into by asking that question of the TFFJ!

that's for sure, and he is probably thinking that all tuba players are w%&kers so he is not only including hitting it with a drumstick, but also letting the percussion player hit the bell with a hammer.

As a tubaplayer (who once got in an argument with the director because the music dictated that the tuba players made a toast by clinking our mouthpieces together) I apologize to the OP for all the negative comments

Greetings from The netherlands

[Mary Ann]

The only mouthpiece trick I've seen that I liked was making chuffing sounds (like a train) by blowing into it backwards.

[the elephant]

Artistically bankrupt fertilizer…

Play ten notes from inside the provided "pitch box", fart, smoke a ciggy, look at your watch, play five more notes from the box…

Artistically bankrupt fertilizer…

Artistically bankrupt fertilizer…

Artistically bankrupt fertilizer…

Artistically bankrupt fertilizer…

[bloke]

[Mark]

I vaguely remember seeing a piece of music that had the instruction "strike the tuba bell with your mouthpiece". I want to say it was from the 1970's.

[Tubeast]

Many years ago I went to this tuba recital where a mixture of "normal" and "avantgarde" literature for unaccompanied tuba was presented, including improvised passages.

At one instance, the tubist (!) took an empty round cookie box such as this one https://www.walmart.com/ip/Royal-Dansk- ... z/10403419, opened and scratched its edge along the inside of his bell in circular motions.

The horn was a perfecly fine, but not brand new B&S F-Tuba.
It DID appear he might have practised that piece including the described action a few times.

I was neither educated nor naturally receptive enough to appreciate the intricacies of that composition. Admired his level of dedication, though, and suffered a serious case of buyer´s remorse about the ticket I had spent money on.

To the OP: yeah, go for it. It´s not a sign of originality, though.
What exactly do you want to convey by having a tuba bell struck rather than, say, a ride cymbal, which is purposely designed to facilitate exactly THAT mode of operation, at any level of rigor, and is an object common enough to get access to, even for a brass choir?
I guess none of the posters above would decline doing something of that sort, would they?

Other than that: Congrats to being effective at triggering an interesting array of response. This is what keeps this forum alive and vibrant

[bloke]

Even writing really fast mute changes for a tuba player is inconsiderate of the likely scuffs and scratches that can occur. When I encounter ridiculous mute changes every so often, I just ignore them.