Editing Tuba (section)

==Types and construction==
[[File:BrassBandTubas.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Tuba section (known as "bass section") in a [[Brass band (British style)|British style brass band]], consisting of two E{{music|flat}} and two BB{{music|flat}} tubas]]

Tubas are found in various pitches, most commonly in F, E{{music|flat}}, C, or B{{music|flat}}. The key of a tuba depends on the fundamental pitch of the instrument, or fundamental note in the series of [[overtone]]s (also called ''partials'') available without any [[Piston valve|valves]] being pressed. Tubas in different keys use different lengths of tubing. The main tube of a B{{music|flat}} tuba is approximately {{convert|18|ft|m}} long, while that of a C tuba is {{convert|16|ft|m}}, of an E{{music|flat}} tuba {{convert|13|ft|m}}, and of an F tuba {{convert|12|ft|m}}. The instrument has a [[Bore (wind instruments)|conical bore]], meaning the bore diameter increases as a function of the tubing length from the mouthpiece to the bell. The conical bore causes the instrument to produce a preponderance of even-order [[harmonic]]s.

A tuba with its tubing wrapped for placing the instrument on the player's lap is usually called a ''concert tuba'' or simply a ''tuba''. Tubas with the [[Bell (wind instrument)|bell]] pointing forward (''pavillon tournant'') instead of upward are often called ''recording tubas'' because of their popularity in the early days of recorded music, as their sound could more easily be directed at the recording microphone. When wrapped to surround the body for cavalry bands on horseback or marching, it is traditionally known as a [[Helicon (instrument)|helicon]]. The modern [[sousaphone]], named after American bandmaster [[John Philip Sousa]], resembles a helicon with the bell pointed up (in the original models as the J. W. Pepper prototype and Sousa's concert instruments) and then curved to point forward (as developed by Conn and others). Some ancestors of the tuba, such as the military ''bombardon'', had unusual valve and bore arrangements compared to modern tubas.

During the American Civil War, most brass bands used a branch of the brass family known as ''[[Saxhorn|saxhorns]]'', which, by today's standards, have a narrower bore taper than tuba—the same as true [[Cornet|cornets]] and [[Baritone horn|baritones]] but distinct from [[Trumpet|trumpets]], [[Euphonium|euphoniums]], and others with different tapers or no taper. Around the start of the Civil War, saxhorns manufactured for military use in the USA were commonly wrapped with the bell pointing backwards over the player's shoulder, and these were known as ''over-the-shoulder saxhorns'', and came in sizes from cornets down to E{{music|flat}} basses. However, the E{{music|flat}} bass, even though it shared the same tube length as a modern E{{music|flat}} tuba, has a narrower bore and as such cannot be called by the name ''tuba'' except as a convenience when comparing it to other sizes of the saxhorn.

Most music for the tuba is written in bass clef in concert pitch, so tuba players must know the correct fingerings for their specific instruments. Traditional [[Brass band (British style)|British-style brass band]] parts for the tuba are usually written in treble clef, with the B{{music|flat}} tuba sounding two octaves and one step below and the E{{music|flat}} tuba sounding one octave and a major sixth below the written pitch. This allows musicians to change instruments without learning new fingerings for the same written music. Consequently, when its music is written in treble clef, the tuba is a [[transposing instrument]] but not when the music is in bass clef.

The lowest pitched tubas are the '''contrabass tubas''', pitched in C or B{{music|flat}}, referred to as CC and BB{{music|flat}} tubas respectively, based on a traditional distortion of a now-obsolete octave naming convention. The fundamental pitch of a CC tuba is 32&nbsp;Hz, and for a BB{{music|flat}} tuba, 29&nbsp;Hz. The CC tuba is used as an orchestral and concert band instrument in the U.S., but BB{{music|flat}} tubas are the contrabass tuba of choice in German, Austrian, and Russian orchestras. In the United States, the BB{{music|flat}} tuba is the most common in schools (largely due to the use of BB{{music|flat}} sousaphones in [[High school (North America)|high school]] marching bands) and for adult amateurs. Many professionals in the U.S. play CC tubas, with BB{{music|flat}} also common, and many train in the use of all four pitches of tubas.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Trombone and Tuba |url=https://www.uv.es/clil/ePortfolio/html/jorapra/brass/trombonetuba.html |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=www.uv.es}}</ref>

[[File:EuphoniumAndTuba wb.jpg|thumb|right|225px|Comparison of euphonium (left) and tuba (right)]]

The next smaller tubas are the '''bass tubas''', pitched in F or E{{music|flat}} (a fourth above the contrabass tubas). The E{{music|flat}} tuba often plays an octave above the contrabass tubas in brass bands, and the F tuba is commonly used by professional players as a solo instrument and, in America, to play higher parts in the classical repertoire (or parts that were originally written for the F tuba, as is the case with Berlioz). In most of Europe, the F tuba is the standard orchestral instrument, supplemented by the CC or BB{{music|flat}} only when the extra weight is desired. [[Richard Wagner|Wagner]], for example, specifically notates the low tuba parts for ''Kontrabasstuba,'' which are played on CC or BB{{music|flat}} tubas in most regions. In the United Kingdom, the E{{music|flat}} is the standard orchestral tuba.

The euphonium is sometimes referred to as a '''tenor tuba''' and is pitched in B{{music|flat}}, one octave higher than the BB{{music|flat}} contrabass tuba. The term "tenor tuba" is often used more specifically to refer to B{{music|flat}} rotary-valved tubas pitched in the same octave as euphoniums. The "Small Swiss Tuba in C" is a tenor tuba pitched in C, and provided with 6 valves to make the lower notes in the orchestral repertoire possible. The French C tuba was the standard instrument in French orchestras until overtaken by F and C tubas since the [[World War II|Second World War]]. One popular example of the use of the French C tuba is the ''Bydło'' movement in [[Maurice Ravel|Ravel]]'s orchestration of [[Modest Mussorgsky|Mussorgsky]]'s ''[[Pictures at an Exhibition]]'', though the rest of the work is scored for this instrument as well.

A very small number of larger '''[[subcontrabass tuba]]s''' exist as novelty instruments. Two in 36′ B♭, an octave below the B♭ contrabass, were built by Gustave Besson on the suggestion of [[Patrick Gilmore]], but were not completed until after his death in 1892. One survives in the [[Harvard University Band]], where it was restored and features occasionally in concerts.{{sfn|Yeo|2021|p=141-2|loc=subcontrabass tuba}} Another with four valves was exhibited by maker Bohland & Fuchs in 1928, {{convert|110|in|cm|order=flip}} in height with a {{convert|50|in|cm|order=flip|adj=on}} bell, weighing {{convert|200|lb|order=flip}}.<ref>"Bohland & Fuchs Show Largest Brass Bass Horn." Music Trade Review, 87:8 (25 August 1928), 16.</ref> In 1956, British musician [[Gerard Hoffnung]] used a 32′ C subcontrabass tuba, built {{circa|1899}} by German maker Rudolf Sander, in the first of his comedy [[Hoffnung Music Festival]]s.{{sfn|Yeo|2021|p=141-2|loc=subcontrabass tuba}} In 2010, a fully playable ''Riesentuba'' in 36′ B♭ with four rotary valves was built and resides in the Markneukirchen Musical Instrument Museum, Germany.<ref name="Detwiler-2019">{{Cite web |title=The wonderful world of Giant Tubas! |last=Detwiler |first=Dave |work=Strictly Oompah |date=31 May 2019 |access-date=13 September 2024 |url= https://tubapastor.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-wonderful-world-of-giant-tubas.html }}</ref>

===Size vs. pitch===
In addition to the length of the instrument, which dictates the fundamental pitch, tubas also vary in the overall width of the tubing sections. Tuba sizes are usually denoted by a quarter system, with {{frac|4|4}} designating a normal, full-size tuba. Larger rotary instruments are known as ''kaiser tubas'' and are often denoted {{frac|5|4}}. Larger piston tubas, particularly those with front action, are sometimes known as ''grand orchestral tubas'' (examples: the Conn 36J Orchestra Grand Bass from the 1930s, and the current model Hirsbrunner HB-50 ''Grand Orchestral'', which is a replica of the large York tubas owned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra). Grand orchestral tubas are generally described as {{frac|6|4}} tubas. Smaller instruments may be described as {{frac|3|4}} instruments. 
[[File:230128-N-DK722-1001 - NAVEUR-NAVAF Band play live on Channels News.jpg|thumb|Nolan Derrick plays the tuba/sousaphone, showing a different series/model of tuba/sousaphone]]
No standards exist for these designations, and their use is up to manufacturers, who usually use them to distinguish among the instruments in their own product line. The size designation is related to the larger outer branches and not to the bore of the tubing at the valves, though the bore is usually reported in instrument specifications. The quarter system is also not directly related to bell size, though there is typically a correlation. {{frac|3|4}} tubas are common in American grade schools for use by young tuba players for whom a full-size instrument might be too cumbersome. Though smaller and lighter, they are tuned and keyed identically to full-size tubas of the same pitch, although they usually have 3 rather than 4 or 5 valves.

===Valves===
Tubas are made with either [[piston valve|piston]] or [[rotary valve|rotary]] valves. Rotary valves, invented by Joseph Riedl, are based on a design included in the original valve patents by [[Friedrich Blühmel]] and [[Heinrich Stölzel]] in 1818. [[Václav František Červený|Červený]] of [[Kraslice|Graslitz]] was the first to use true rotary valves, starting in the 1840s or 1850s. Modern piston valves were developed by [[François Périnet]] for the [[saxhorn]] family of instruments promoted by [[Adolphe Sax]] around the same time. Pistons may either be oriented to point to the top of the instrument (top-action) or out the front of the instrument (front-action or side-action).

Piston valves require more maintenance than rotary valves – they require regular oiling to keep them freely operating, while rotary valves are sealed and seldom require oiling. Piston valves are easy to disassemble and re-assemble, while rotary valve disassembly and re-assembly is much more difficult and is generally left to qualified instrument repair persons.

Tubas generally have from three to six valves, though some rare exceptions exist. Three-valve tubas are generally the least expensive and are almost exclusively used by amateurs, and the [[sousaphone]] (a marching version of a BB{{music|flat}} tuba) usually has three valves. Among advanced players, four and five valve tubas are by far the most common choices, with six-valve tubas being relatively rare except among F tubas, which mostly have five or six valves.

[[File:Tuba.JPG|thumb|left|250px|Tuba with four rotary valves]]

The valves add tubing to the main tube of the instrument, thus lowering its fundamental pitch. The first valve lowers the pitch by a whole step (two semitones), the second valve by a semitone, and the third valve by three semitones. Used in combination, the valve tubing is too short and the resulting pitch tends to be sharp. For example, a BB{{music|flat}} tuba becomes (in effect) an A{{music|flat}} tuba when the first valve is depressed. The third valve is long enough to lower the pitch of a BB{{music|flat}} tuba by three semitones, but it is not long enough to lower the pitch of an A{{music|flat}} tuba by three semitones. Thus, the first and third valves used in combination lower the pitch by something ''just short'' of five semitones, and the first three valves used in combination are nearly a quarter tone sharp.

The fourth valve lowers the pitch by a perfect fourth, so it can be used in place of the combination of the first and third valves. When tuned properly it helps solve the issue of valve combinations being too sharp. Using the fourth valve with the first three valves allows the musician to extend the instrument's range down to the fundamental pitch. As with other valve combinations that lengthen the tubing considerably, some of these lower notes can be sharp.

A fifth and sixth valve, if fitted, are used to provide alternative fingering possibilities to improve intonation, and are also used to reach into the low register of the instrument where all the valves will be used in combination to fill the first octave between the fundamental pitch and the next available note on the open tube. The fifth and sixth valves also give the musician the ability to trill more smoothly or to use alternative fingerings for ease of playing. This type of tuba is what is most found in orchestras and wind bands around the world.

The bass tuba in F is pitched a fifth above the BB{{music|flat}} tuba and a fourth above the CC tuba, so it needs additional tubing length beyond that provided by four valves to play securely down to a low F as required in much tuba music. The fifth valve is commonly tuned to a flat whole step, so that when used with the fourth valve, it gives an in-tune low B{{music|flat}}. The sixth valve is commonly tuned as a flat half step, allowing the F tuba to play low G as 1-4-5-6 and low G{{music|flat}} as 1-2-4-5-6. In CC tubas with five valves, the fifth valve may be tuned as a flat whole step or as a minor third depending on the instrument.

===Compensating valves===
Some tubas have a compensating system to allow accurate tuning when using several valves in combination, simplifying fingering and removing the need to constantly adjust slide positions. The most popular of the automatic compensation systems was invented by Blaikley (Bevan, 1874) and was patented by Boosey (later, [[Boosey and Hawkes]], which also, later still, produced Besson instruments). The patent on the system limited its application outside of Britain, and to this day, tubas with compensating valves are primarily popular in the United Kingdom and countries of the former British Empire. 

The Blaikley design plumbs the instrument so that if the fourth valve is used, the air is sent back through a second set of branches in the first three valves to compensate for the combination of valves. This does have the disadvantage of making the instrument significantly more "stuffy" or resistant to air flow when compared to a non-compensating tuba. This is due to the need for the air to flow through the valves twice. It also makes the instrument heavier. But many prefer this approach to having additional valves{{snd}}or to the manipulation of tuning slides while playing{{snd}}to achieve improved intonation within an ensemble. 

Most modern professional-grade euphoniums also now feature Blaikley-style compensating valves.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dwerden.com/eu-articles-comp.cfm|title=Compensating System|website=Dwerden.com|access-date=4 February 2018}}</ref>

===Resonance and false tones===
Some tubas have a strong and useful resonance that is not in the well-known harmonic series. For example, most large B{{music|flat}} tubas have a strong resonance at low E{{music|flat}} (E{{music|flat}}<sub>1</sub>, 39&nbsp;Hz), which is between the fundamental and the second harmonic (an octave higher than the fundamental). These alternative resonances are often known as [[Acoustic resonance#False tones|false tones]] or privileged tones. Adding the six semitones provided by the three valves, these alternative resonances let the instrument play chromatically down to the fundamental of the open bugle (which is a 29&nbsp;Hz B{{music|flat}}<sub>0</sub>). The addition of valves below that note can lower the instrument a further six semitones to a 20&nbsp;Hz E<sub>0</sub>. Thus, even three-valved instruments with good alternative resonances can produce very low sounds in the hands of skilled players; instruments with four valves can play even lower. 

The lowest note in the widely known repertoire is a 16&nbsp;Hz double-pedal C<sub>0</sub> in the [[William Kraft]] piece ''Encounters II'', which is often played using a timed [[Flutter-tonguing|flutter tongue]] rather than by buzzing the lips. The fundamental of this pitch borders on [[infrasound]] and [[missing fundamental|its overtones define the pitch]] in the listener's ear.

===Materials and finish===
The tuba is generally constructed of [[brass]], which is either unfinished, [[lacquer]]ed or [[electroplating|electro-plated]] with [[nickel]], [[gold]] or [[silver]]. Unfinished brass will eventually [[tarnish]] and thus must be periodically [[polishing|polished]] to maintain its appearance.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Winter|first=James|title=Brass|journal=Music Educators Journal|year=1975|volume=62|issue=2|pages=34–37|doi=10.2307/3394871|jstor=3394871|s2cid=221063884}}</ref>

=== Manufacturers ===
There are many types of tubas that are manufactured in Europe, the United States, and Asia. In Europe, the predominant models that are professionally used are [[Meinl-Weston]] (Germany) and Miraphone (Germany). Asian brands include the [[Yamaha Corporation]] (Japan) and Jupiter Instruments (Taiwan). [[Holton Instrument Company]] and [[King Musical Instruments]] are some of the most well known brands from the United States.<ref>{{Cite journal|title=Instruments and Equipment|journal=Music Educators Journal|year=1969|volume=55|issue=9|pages=101–102|doi=10.2307/3392572|jstor=3392572|s2cid=221060268}}</ref>