The Alexander company buys their valves from an outsource - the same as their bells. The numbers stamped on the valve is a way to keep the valves organized, that's all. From 1975 on, the top plate of the second valve shows the serial number. When a tuba is ordered, the craftsman eventually takes a ...

R.O.I. - return on investment. At age 66 and having retired from my 45-year music career in May, I have much to say about this. Too much! As a symphony musician, primarily, I regarded myself as a "sound artist". My job was to make sound. I wasn't paid to lecture before the concerts about the ...

This thread has wandered a bit off the topic of the post. ALL of it is great! Harvey knew how to talk to people. That may sound like a simple statement, but Harvey could talk to anyone - with respect! Over the past 21 years of teaching public classes - where anyone and everyone can participate, I've ...

IF you haven't read Harvey's autobiography, Mr. Tuba, buy it! NOW! And when you get your copy, realize that it was originally twice as thick until the publisher, Indiana University Press, chopped it in half. My association with Harvey began in 1979, as an undergraduate student at I.U. Then, he asked ...

Gentlemen,
Thank you both for expressing your sentiments on my career. I miss you both and am so grateful to know you. I'm proud of my accomplishments, but I'm not finished with my life - so much more to do, but it won't involve music. A skinny kid from Phoenix who believed he could play tuba ...

Two Tubas for Sale:

Own a Legend : "Mike" - The Alexander 163 CC Tuba of Mike Thornton

This is more than just a tuba; it's a piece of orchestral history, a proven instrument that embodies the rich, resonant sound Alexander is famous for. For sale is "Mike," my beloved Alexander 163 CC tuba ...

My 1961 silver plated 155 will be for sale come May. I'm the third owner. Kevin Ladd who played his career in Syracuse owned it for 44 years. It comes with a bag, the original hard case, a mute, and I'll throw in a Shilke F tuba mouthpiece.
Ted

A couple of points. I'm 6'1" with long arms. Reaching over the top bow on a 164 to move the first valve slide is possible, but not practical. It's far better to leave the left hand resting comfortably on the kicker. Not only was first line G problematic - but also third line Db, which is typically ...

I'm sure all you stated is true. However, I received this tuba right as Covid hit, so taking it to Martin Wilk, for example, wasn't an option back then. My wife had a jeweler's saw, and the battlefield surgery was performed. One of my 163's had this same operation at some point. I wasn't involved in ...

And no one was more surprised than I was. Two offers to buy yesterday morning, almost back-to-back. During the 56 years I've been a musician, the only 164 I ever saw before the one I just sold was the one being built on the bench at Alexander in Mainz. IF someone "out there" owns one of these tubas ...

All, the 164 sold this morning - 3 days from the Wednesday posting.

Ah, yes! I live in Oklahoma City. Year 33 with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic.

A rare Alexander CC 164 5 valve tuba built for Tony Clements in 2004. I purchased this instrument nearly 5 years ago and have enjoyed owning it. Everyone seems to have an opinion about this model, but very few people have actually spent time learning how to play one. When this horn arrived, I played ...

We love to romanticize old Alexander's. A 65-year-old Alex is a survivor - for good reason. This particular Alex is very good - and as I said, it's underpriced for what it's capable of doing. If I had more career left and didn't already have a back-up 163, I'd most likely buy it as it made an ...

Wade, is this the Alex I was playing when the bomb went off at the Murrah building? If it is, that tuba was really nice and is under priced at 5K. I felt so comfortable with that horn I was going to play it on the children's concert that morning. The braces and valve caps often tell the age, and my ...

Wade, I love your post! There are a lot of tuba players in the world, but there are few great musicians who happen to express their artistry on the tuba. IF you consider yourself a "sound artist" - this Holton color is rare, and it just might be the sound you have in your soul. When I was 16 (1975 ...

The 164 Kaiser is a rare tuba to find - they don't come up for sale very often. Very few people have played this model and fewer have spent much time learning how to play them. Four years ago, I bought an Alexander 5 valve Kaiser CC that was built in 2004. What I've discovered during that time is if ...

Jim,
Forgive me for forgetting your early history at I.U. - and thank you for saying something kind about Dave. I think about all the great players in orchestras who didn't leave us a solo example of their virtuosity. Dave is certainly one of those artists. And you too were a fine example of the ...

Nine days ago, on October 21st, David Pack, died, having just turned 74. Dave was the tubist for the Phoenix Symphony from 1973 to 2021 - nearly 50 years! Dave was a student of William Bell at Indiana University from 1967 to 1971, when Bell retired. I studied with Dave weekly for four years, from ...

On Saturday, April 24th, at 8:00 p.m. Central time, I will be performing the Strauss First Horn Concerto with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic on one of our major performances. This performance will be streamed LIVE and also available for two weeks after the performance. Our web address for more ...