Newswise — Clay Garrett wanted to win the international tuba competition, but he wasn’t holding his breath.
He couldn’t afford to. The massive tuba — if its coils were to be unwound — would stretch 16 to 18 feet. That’s a lot of wind.
Garrett’s mighty breathing, vibrating lips and digital dexterity blew away much of the competition at the recent 24th annual Leonard Falcone International Euphonium-Tuba Competition in Twin Lake, Mich. The graduate student at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, netted a third-place win.
Several other United States competitors shone at the mid-August event, the top amateur contest for the tuba and its smaller cousin, the euphonium. Winners and semifinalists included musicians from Texas, New York, Michigan, Louisiana and Arizona.
Nearly 200 people from 10 countries submitted CDs, vying for a chance to compete live.
Lately, the tuba is beginning to get long-overdue respect, says Dr. David Graves, a lecturer in music at Baylor University.
While most orchestral instruments have been around for centuries, the tuba is a youngster, patented in 1835 in Germany. (The sousaphone, also a tuba, is played in marching bands.)
In 1954, when the first concerto for bass tuba was written, one reviewer deemed the instrument as “clumsy and ridiculous, like a tipsy hippopotamus dancing.”
But by 2003, another reviewer proclaimed the tuba had been emancipated from its “Cinderella role.”
“There’s still the stereotype of oompah and Tubby the Tuba, the image of the pudgy boy with rosy cheeks, but that’s not the case,” Graves added. “The repertoire at this level of competition would blow you away, and they make it sound easy.”
Pulmonary prowess is crucial.
“Probably the most unique aspect is the sheer amount of air required to fill the instrument,” Graves said. “There are a lot of bends, and you just have to be a good breather.”
Besides, when people get nervous, they tend to take shallow breaths. Before competitions, tubists do metered deep breathing exercises, similar to those that are helpful to a woman in labor, he said.
Tubists are tickled that the tuba is moving from a supporting role in orchestras to a serious solo instrument.
“Everybody who has played the tuba understands we’ve probably got the goofiest-looking instrument,” said Kevin Butler, a Baylor senior and semifinalist. “We have no illusions. All you can do is play it well and keep good humor, good spirit.” Added Garrett: “Because of events like this, composers are catching wind of what the tuba is capable of doing.”
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