Bort's Rudy Meinl 5/4 BBb (it is here!)

[bort2.0]

That was supposed to say "day care", but you all get the point. And thanks for the kind words. I live a wonderfully imperfect life like anyone else, but I'm grateful to have a few hours of tuba here and there. It ain't like it used to be... And it may again be a bust time when I'm old. But we'll see. I used to wonder why there weren't many 30-40 year old guy's in the bands I played in... "Life..."

I'm headed to California, but will try to record something sometime. Concert is next week, maybe it'll be recorded? Or I'll stick something on my stand...

Although I am still building control (may need some mouthpiece trials to dial it in), I find the tuba to be more flexible than expected, and it can sound like a medium sized tuba when you want that. Or edgy, when you want that. Or like a wall of tuba when that's needed. Pedal BBb still takes more air than anything else.

And while we're on the bort2.0 blasphemy tour (BBb, huge, Alteiri), I'm actually thinking of a blokepiece again and adding "stainless steel" to the list. I was reminded by reading some old posts that the Symphony worked REALLY well on my old 188, especially with regards to "locking it in."

This isn't "everything I used to think was wrong," but more like "I'm open to try other things."

Just not Chinese tubas. Forget that.

[bort2.0]

One more thought, because I'm in an airport and bored...

I've now had all 3 normal sized Rudy tubas in my hands for a while over the past 10 years or so...

Rudy 3/4 CC -- a complete sweetheart of a tuba. Magical response and easy to play. Nice sound. Big enough for a lot of things, but I think the size definitely maxes out.

Rudy 4/4 CC -- I wouldn't say it was hard to play, but it sure wasn't like the 3/4. More sound, and a very nice sound. I thought it was going to be a little bigger than it was, and maybe I didn't give it a fair chance. But I did want bigger, so I sold it. I also felt like that tuba demanded -- and rewarded-- practicing more than any other I've owned.

Rudy 5/4 BBb -- the sound is incredible. It's pretty easy to play for such a big tuba, and is more flexible than expected. It's a very big tuba, and that's certainly a choice. But I think having the top-end available makes it worth working out the rest, which really isn't much work at all. It's not automatic, but a reasonably competent tuba player will have no trouble, and it only gets better from there. Kind of reminds me of a GMC Yukon I rented a few years ago during a work trip.. I needed to rent a car, and just wanted whatever was the cheapest. They said "we only have the Yukon, you can have it for the compact rate since it's all we have." I felt like king of the road with that thing, as enormous and unreasonable as it was for one person, it was still just car-on-road. Takes more gas, but also more power. With a little practice and learning the sight lines, I'm sure I'd parallel park it like anything else I've done in my life. Big Rudy needs a little awareness around the edges, a little more "go," etc..., but otherwise, you already know it's big and already know what you're doing when you're playing it. It's a tuba that seems to require a little accountability and responsibility, and I like that. I also think that showing up with this tuba is like "tuba is here" and there's no screwing around. You wanted tuba? Here it is.

All that to say, its fun to play and it makes me sound good. What's not to like.

[bloke]

To me, OF THE C INSTRUMENTS, the RM 5/4 offers the best intonation, with the 3/4 offering the 2nd best and the 4/4 offering the most challenging (I've owned all three).

A 5/4 B-flat spent a couple of months here (repair) years ago, and it was not difficult to play in tune...I just was not accustomed (as I later grew accustomed to the 5/4 C - being that I owned/used it) to the amount of effort required to operate it. (fwiw, the Miraphone 98 requires considerably less effort - as Rick Denney intimated). I'm thinking that - for a very short time - a south Texas company was offering RM 3/4 B-flats with their stencil name engraved on them, and they seemed to play pretty well.

Locally, when someone else ending up "scooping" me re: a 5-valve RM 4/4 C for only $2500, I wasn't particularly disappointed for not having found it and bought it first...I certainly wouldn't have kept it, and I find that selling instruments - of which I'm not particularly fond - to be somewhat difficult, internally-speaking. (I tend to ask prospective/interested customers - over-and-over - whether they noticed this/that/the-other, as the worst thing - worse than not getting something sold - is to have someone call or email asking to return something large and expensive.)

[bort2.0]

For a tuba made 60+ years after my Rudy, I sure hope it's better in many ways. I'm thrilled to hear you finally got one after all this time. And that @Sousaswag got his MRP too. And another person I know just got a huge tuba something that he doesn't want to share just yet.

Just a nice coincidence of large tuba landings at the same time. Do. It. While. You. Can.

[bloke]

"better" is an opinion...
It simply requires less of my energy to operate it.
I doctored up a 5/4 C RM - so that it would require less of my energy to make it "go".
Tony Kniffen - being accustomed to instruments which (in my view) ask for over-the-top effort, didn't care for (at least, not "back then") the alteration.

[bort2.0]

Having watched a few of Steve Rossé's YT videos, I think he sounds a whole lot better (or at least, more familiar) with his Nirschl-York CC than his Rudy 5/4 BBb.

As much as anything else... What do you know, and what do you know best?

For me, it'll be my only large tuba... So I'm gonna know it real good.

[jtm]

... And while we're on the bort2.0 blasphemy tour (BBb, huge, Alteiri), I'm actually thinking of a blokepiece again and adding "stainless steel" to the list. I was reminded by reading some old posts that the Symphony worked REALLY well on my old 188, especially with regards to "locking it in."

Off topic, but I am also happy with a Symphony on my 188; very responsive and easy to play, and doesn't go flat (tuning) at the high end.

[matt g]

Like others, I seized the opportunity to get the “big horn” I had always wanted when one came available for a low price along with some bonus features. It also works quite well with a Symphony cup from @bloke.

Running with the tangent above, if I had my druthers regarding getting any RM CC, I’d probably pick the 3/4. Having played a 5/4 for a concert series, it’s a great horn, but the 3/4 has a more unique voice among its peers, to my ear.

Adding:

The RM 3/4 BBb is a nice tuba also. Not as plug and play as a 186, but still respectable intonation tendencies and a great sound for its size and effort.

[York-aholic]

I'm headed to California

Give me call and feel free to stop by.

[bort2.0]

I'm headed to California

Give me call and feel free to stop by.

I'm in San Diego with no car. I think you're pretty far...?

[bloke]

If I had a chance to meet York-aholic, I would budget an extra day and a rental car. You know it’s going to be worth it.
What a nice guy…

[bort2.0]

If I had a chance to meet York-aholic, I would budget an extra day and a rental car. You know it’s going to be worth it.
What a nice guy…

Definitely a nice gut... recently sent me a set of Martin valve buttons for nothin... A favor I will surely pay forward.

This is my first work trip in 3 years... Feeling blessed to be able to travel at all, in terms of health, job, and time away from home. Doing the best I can to balance all of life. If I could, I'd like to visit all of you in person. I hate talking to people only by email for years and years... But that's kinda just how it goes in the Internet era.

[York-aholic]

If I had a chance to meet York-aholic, I would budget an extra day and a rental car. You know it’s going to be worth it.
What a nice guy…

Definitely a nice gut...

Well yes, I did gain a bit of weight during the Covid lockdown...



Thank you for the kind words you two.

[bort2.0]

GUY! nice GUY!!

Beyond embarrassed... Autocorrect...

[York-aholic]

Don’t give it a second thought. Autocorrect really has made life a lot more funner!

Now back to discussing a particular large German tuba…

[humBell]

Don’t give it a second thought. Autocorrect really has made life a lot more funner!

Now back to discussing a particular large German tuba…

And the large German tuba waveform, which might be one and the same?

[bort2.0]

I realized at rehearsal tonight...

...the "bigness" has worn off, and now it just feels normal.

I also tried using a more moderate sized mouthpiece (Rudy Meinl RM1) and chilling out a little more, let the tuba do the work.

I experienced:
* Easier response
* Much improved note accuracy
* A little less fun in the low range, but
* Step on the gas, and it's all there.
* All around, nice and easy. I was surprised how flexible and easy it was to play once I stopped forcing so much AT the horn.

I'm not sure the RM1 is the answer, but I'm lazy and I like when things are easy, and tonight was easy. I also don't like switching from the mouthpiece I've used and been used to for so many years, but this is something new to try.

I also realized tonight that 1) my sight reading skills stink and I play some mix of CC and BBb fingerings for the first 5-10 minutes, and 2) my sight reading skills stink and I have the hardest time counting 2/4 time. Not sure why, but that's always been true. And I was a math major! Again, 5-10 minutes and knowing what the tune is supposed to sound like, and it all fixes itself.

Pops concert. Some fun stuff, some classic stuff, some "meh." First time I'll get to play at the local bandshell (orchestra shell?) next to the lake. I can walk there from my house.

[Chris Mayer]

another Reisser Bb 4/4 in german ebay Kleinanzeigen…..

https://www.kleinanzeigen.de/s-anzeige/ ... 96-74-7443

I have played on a Reisser 3/4 Bb Tuba 1980-1984 (at age of 14 years after having played clarinette for 4 years and the band needed a tuba player. And well as my father played trombone the choise on me was very straight forward. BTW my father still plays trombone at age 85. Makes you think about the magic of music to keep you young) in our local band.

1976 the band was formed as the youth section of an already existing band. The band director asked the manager of the local Reisser store in Pirmasens Germany at this time to present all his Reisser Instruments, Trumpets, Flügelhorns, Tenorhorns and Baritones, Eb Alto horn is french horn style, Trombones and tubas. All labeled as Reisser - Ulm. I was 10 then and selected clarinette, because my friends did, but also tooted the tuba which I played 4 years later. My other friends selected trumpet, tenorhorn etc and we started as a 25-30 people youth orchestra. I do not know of any other origin than Reisser, but recall, that the tuba was very light, had a very good response, handmade from sheet, something you pay a premium these days.

1984 I got my B&S gold brass 6V F Tuba (17-21mm) non PT with the blue B&S logo at the tuning slide. There was another one in yellow brass at the store (St. Louis) in Saarbrücken. I was in the run for an Alex (too expensive), a Melton (but did not like the valve slides arangement, kids ) or a miraphone (my favorite). I liked the B&S very much but had no clue what value I had in my hands. I had to be convinced, that this German Democratic Republic Instrument is no way cheapish, like some of the worn out Weltklang instruments around . It costed 5500 Deutsch Mark and the band director bought it for me. My parents with some earnings from my side and a 2500 DM award for winning the federal state music competition on Tuba (Jugend musiziert with Strauss 1, Hindemith Sonata and Paudert Die Berühmte Arie, my teacher was trombonist from the local theater) bought it back over 2 years. I should have never sold the B&S (a statement maybe too familiar with many of you….).

Sorry for the long and finally slightly off topic post, but the Reisser tuba just brought all the sentiments….

Best

Chris

[bloke]

I think a long time ago I owned an rm0 and an rm1. I think they were stock mouthpieces with the five quarter C and the four quarter C for a while. No criticism to the mouthpieces themselves, but I just couldn't cope with either one.