Practicing and using false tones

[gocsick]

Just out of curiosity... Who here actually regularly practices or utilize false tones?

I use them all the time on Sousas (BBb and Eb).... but I never practice or use them on either my BBb or Eb "proper" tubas. I just tried on the MW 20 and they were weak and really difficult to find.

Do any of you "real" tuba players in the group have any advice? Is it worth putting in the time and effort to get better at them on 4 and 5 valve instruments, or are they really just a sometimes useful party trick for 3 valve piston tubas?

[MN_TimTuba]

Although my M83 Eb does have 4 valves I find that I mainly use 4th for E and F, and low Bb and A, and play the lowest pitches as pedals/false tones. They just speak easier for me. Of course, I'm still learning this thing.
Tim

[dsfinley]

My undergrad professor forced us to always use false tones in the low register. At the time I hated it. But now, I have come to realize the value of being able to play them well. I feel being able to center them with a good sound makes the regular fingerings far more stable and it gives me another tool to use.

[bloke]

If I have to burp out some low pitch really suddenly - in the middle of other things - I'll play a low pitch that way, but - if there's just a half-instant more time, I'll use the 2nd partial.

[OhTubaGuy]

@gocsick I never had much luck with false tones on that horn. The long and straight slides on 1 and 3 were very functional.
I heard a few times that it looked like I was playing a trombone when pulling the 3rd valve slide for a pedal C.

[gocsick]

@OhTubaGuy The low range is no problem on the 20. I do have to pull 1st for the Eb and a long pull on 3rd for the pedal C line you said but I've no complaints about it. Don't worry not going to be asking for my money back.


It was more of a general question. I'm trying to dedicate some practice time to improve my endurance and flexibility down low... Since tube behind the horn is precious I was just wondering how best to spend my practice minutes.

[bloke]

It's hard to deny that the more sousaphone like a tuba is, the better those mysteriously available low pitches work.

On the big Miraphone 98, they are pretty darn good, which is handy. I suspect they might work even better on Yorkaphones, because the bugle is big but the bore size - being only 3/4 of an inch - probably offers more resistance, and resistance helps play fake fingerings... even more like a sousaphone than my instrument.

[matt g]

The short action valve 6/4 Holton I owned had fantastic false tones, which was nice since it only had three valves. I think the 2165 had good false tones. I didn’t fiddle with them much. Nonetheless, I think most horns of that design are probably good at that.

[bloke]

With the 98, the the double low C is easier with third valve than with 5234. I'm sure it's related to the valve section bore being really large, instead of only 3/4 of an inch, but - as I posted recently about a different mouthpiece - the several valves version is suddenly significantly easier.

I think it's a balance of the resonance of a very large bugle and resistance of a moderate bore size that make those work out the best with certain instruments.

[Mary Ann]

I routinely use the false tone for Ab down to the pedal on the NStar, even though it has a fifth valve. It is just less stuffy than having all those valves down, and easier to play. One of these days I'll probably find the fifth valve frozen. I started using the false tone when I had the four-valve 183 and was doing October oom-pah that had a lot of low A flats -- they just came out easier, sounded fine, and I got used to doing that.

[Sousaswag]

I use them all the time on my 3v Holton because, well, it’s necessary as it’s the only way to play those pitches, real or not. But with any other tuba I own, I just smash the buttons.

To me, the more valves a tuba has seems to make it more challenging to get false tones out well. Huge BBb tubas and sousaphones? Not a problem. 4v or 5v tubas? More work, and those notes actually exist, so just push the buttons?

[iiipopes]

In the community band which I play, the repertoire simply does not ever go below F below open BBb. But I practice the privilege tones anyway. Occasionally a selection with a cadential Eb, D, or Db benefits from going down the octave to lock everything in. No, I don't do it every time. I don't do it on every piece of music. But once in a great while it works.

[2nd tenor]

In the community band which I play, the repertoire simply does not ever go below F below open BBb. But I practice the privilege tones anyway. Occasionally a selection with a cadential Eb, D, or Db benefits from going down the octave to lock everything in. No, I don't do it every time. I don't do it on every piece of music. But once in a great while it works.

To my mind that’s the way it should be too, well certainly for community music making which should need nothing much more than simple / relatively inexpensive instruments played by enthusiastic amateurs. The composer’s default position should be those constraints rather than overly pushing the boundaries, well that’s my opinion. Occasionally a piece really does benefit from one of the section going down the octave, that’s a nice to have if it can be skilfully done and played in a balanced way … well that’s what I’ve found and YMMV. As an aside a good player on an Eb Tuba can drop right down to fill in those low (fundamental pitch) Eb. D and Db notes … make use of your section mates.

Playing false tones is a bit of an art and easier on some instruments than others. In personal practise I sometimes try to play the same pitch with and without using the (compensating type) fourth valve, the sound is clearly imperfect but in terms of broadening skills it’s still a step on the path of improvement.

[Mary Ann]

The other day I forgot which tuba I was playing and went for the pedal Eb on the Hagen with "NStar" in my head -- and had it come out loud and clear. Then I realized I wasn't on the NStar, and wow does this thing have a nice false tone! So now the pedal octave notes D, Db, C are all single-valve notes, with the B being 2-3, and "played like pedal tones."
This is one hell of a nice tuba! It has been a very long time since I practiced anything just because it is FUN to listen to what comes out.

[Finetales]

I practice them often, even on instruments you don't need them on (e.g. a 2-valve bass trombone). I find that locking the false tones in helps me lock in the real notes as well, and use my air better.

Back when I only had a single-valve bass trombone, I used the low C and B trigger false tones on every gig.