Switching to tuba from trumpet

[u/EndExact242]

Hello everyone, as you may have read from the title, I am switching to tuba after playing the trumpet for almost 11 years (half-profesionally), but now due to medical reasons i need to switch to tuba (long story, i can only play a big mouthpiece). I've been practicing the tuba every day for over a month now.

As you might guess, I'm going through a sort of "backwards learning process" as i have no problems in the mid-high register (articulation is not a problem, neither is endurance - i've found i can play all day without getting tired, which is pretty amazing for someone coming from trumpet haha)

My main problem is the low register, i know i need to breathe more and blow a lot of slow, warm air, but i also hear and see everyone talking about "dropping your jaw", which seems very unnatural to me. When playing in the mirror i tend to pull my chin down when going up and dropping it when going lower seems to make it worse: it pulls my lips apart and they don't vibrate.

Do you think i need to learn the habit of "jaw' dropping, or is it fine if my embouchure barely moves at all and just slowly but surely expand my lower register with what i have?

I know it's a lot of theory to take in but i'm writing this while away from my horn so it'll be a couple of days before i can record myself playing to show what i mean.

Thank you in advance and have a good day!

[u/WoodSlaughterer]

I double on tuba and horn. I also am not a low-note player. I think if i only played tuba i'd get the low notes more solidly. One thing you're going to find is that the parts for tuba (assuming concert band) are quite boring in most cases, and you find every other part playing melody or snippets while the tuba is often just tuned percussion. If you're happy with that, great. Otherwise, you might check out euphonium, which does get a lot, and counter-melodies too. If you can find yourself a british-style brass band, those parts are usually quite better. If you're orchestra mostly, tuba parts are fewer and further in between. Good luck!

[u/MisterBrackets]

I am a tuba/trumpet player as well. I have played trumpet for over 40 years and tuba for about two. I still practice my trumpet enough to keep my chops in shape but most of my practice time is on the tuba. I am in the same boat as you regarding low notes. I start each practice with long tones, beginning on my lowest open note (Eb in my case) and continue down as far as I can go. Usually about an octave and a half. Then some basic flexibilities and continue down as far as I can go. I've been playing etudes and will play them an octave down in some cases. I like the Boris Grigoriev book because the melodies are interesting and they cover the low range more than some of the other etude books I have. Sorry, I can't really comment on jaw position - I just do what feels natural and produces the best sound. I do try to think of changing the shape of my mouth as opposed to the position of my mouth on the mouthpiece. Regarding getting tired, I don't feel it the way I do on trumpet, but I can tell when I'm getting tired when my notes start to sound mushy and intonation isn't great. Then I usually wrap it up for the day.

What kind of tuba are you starting on? Have you found a group to play in yet?

[u/Ducky_Slate]

I also switched, though from cornet to tuba. I was told by one of the other tuba players that when you warm up, you have to do a downwards scale. I usually then play a G major scale, because I'm still struggling with the low G. But in the beginning, I struggled with the C, so there's been improvement 😊

[u/Mindless-Pumpkin-753]

I switched from trumpet to tuba about 6 months ago and never looked back. I still play trumpet for jazz band though. All I can say for your low notes (anything below a Bb below the staff) you can kind of puff your cheeks to make it lower. I know all through learning trumpet they say to keep your corners tight and not puff your cheeks, but it’s so much different in tuba. As I have gotten more experienced on tuba, I have learned that when your learn tuba as a beginner, they tell you to keep your corners tight, just like trumpet, but loose lips. I can not do that after having such a tight embouchure for so long. I also excel at high range at high articulation, and can play forever without blowing my chops, but low notes were a challenge for me. Another thing I struggled with and still struggle with is breath support. I can barely go a measure and a half with loud low notes, but can go forever on high notes. Good luck on your new journey nonetheless, and hope you love playing the best instrument in the world

[u/Weak-Resident-3755]

Disclaimer - I'm not a professional and I'm not formally trained in tuba. But I can hold my own in a community band or an oompah band, so something worked to some extent for me.

I'm assuming this is about hunting for the notes below the normal low Bb. If not, stop reading here - this won't be helpful.

One way to think about dropping the jaw is just to open a large diameter tube from the mouthpiece deep into your lungs. You want to be able to get a ping pong ball all the way from your teeth down your throat. Imagining how to make that large air passage might help you to not only drop your jaw, but also to lower your shoulders and take deep, comfortable breaths. (Obviously you're not literally trying to open up to ping pong ball size.) You can also think about a vowel progression from "Ohhh" to "wahhh". Despite the fact that "Ohhh" is a "lower" vowel, the "wahhh" will actually force your jaw to open farther. If you say "Ohhh - ooo - wahhh" without stopping your breath (e.g. don't articulate each "syllable"), when you say "ooo" and aim for "wahhh" you will open your jaw and throat. And the "ooo" keeps your lips fairly closed. There are lots of tricks like this. When I was converting middle schoolers to tuba as a volunteer in a band program, not every trick worked for every student even to get the normal low Bb. Try different things until you find what works for you.

I personally found it easier to develop a low range by jumping from the "normal" low Bb (below the staff) to the pedal Bb (on a Bb tuba). The notes between the pedal Bb and about G below the staff are much more difficult to play than the pedal Bb. Once you get that pedal Bb to pop then you can pat yourself on the back and start to work your way down from the Bb below the staff, knowing that if you can play the pedal Bb that eventually the notes in between will develop. If you have access to a trombone or euphonium you can also try playing pedal Bb on that instrument. It is *way* easier than the pedal Bb on the tuba, but the techniques are sort of similar.

I'm not sure how you interpreted the advice to drop your jaw. This should not pull your lips apart. If it is, perhaps you're dropping your jaw too much. For notes that aren't particularly low, your teeth should be close enough together that you can't even fit a pinky finger through them. For low notes, your teeth should be apart enough to comfortably fit your thumb (sideways) through them. For me if I form a low note embouchure, relax my lips, and try to push my sideways thumb between my teeth (keeping lips between thumb and teeth) the thumb will not fit.

I wish you luck with this conversion - the concert band and brass quintet worlds need a *lot* more tuba players.

[u/professor_throway]

Ok so first...what do you mean by low register. What is the lowest note you are comfortable on? Bb below to the staff... F 4ledger lines below BBb pedal six lines below?

Honestly if you can get down to F pretty comfortably don't worry about it right now. Focus on other things. If you can't well that's definately something to work on... because that is really part of the money range. For 95% of amateur playing .. wind band etc that F is the lowest that really shows up.

Set your tuba embouchure pretty similat to trumpet actually. Close your mouth completely.. put your mouthpiece up to your face and open until you lips barely don't touch. They key now is to make sure everything is perfectly relaxed. No tension in your jaw or throat or neck. Any tension whatselver is going to kill your low end. Just like learning high range on trumpet.. as you go down try to play the note as quietly as possible... then once it is secure add volume. Really think about fogging up a mirror.. or whispering sexxy things into a lovers ear. That is the kind of slow hot air you want.

Dropping the jaw... don't think too much on this. Many people find there is a natural embourchre shift where you play more towards the bottom of the mouthpiece. THink more dropping your chin to your chest... not opening your mouth farther. For me it is at Low D (5 ledger lines) when I shift my lips down towards the bottom of the mouthpiece... then from there to pedal F (8th space below) it stays that way.

Drop the jaw is often used for beginning players who are adopting a smile embourchre and are too tight across the board.

[u/OchenCunningBaldrick]

I also moved from trumpet to tuba - similar to you, my main difficulty was with the lower register, getting it to sound good and in tune. I just tried making small changes, and kept what worked, and repeated. There's probably a more efficient way to do it, but that worked for me!

[u/tunehumsinger]

Honestly, your only issue may be learning how to transpose🤔. I too am a former trumpet person and for me, understanding the "new fingerings" took some time. I also learned to play a "G" tuba (contrabass bugle) and the fingering were exactly the same as trumpet. just get use to reading bass clef and the fingerings. The rest will take care of it's self.

[u/smallghostsightings]

I am not a professional tuba player (im a hobbyist and play in community band) so please take my advice with some nuance. When I play low notes I dont intentionally drop my jaw I just relax it and let it fall naturally.

The other thing that might help is to think more about what your lips are doing, when you hit those low notes you lips are literally going to buzz or flap inside the mouth piece, which you never have to do on a trumpet since the mouth piece is small and your ameture is tight so you'll feel like youre fighting your natural instincts.

I hope this helps!

Also when I say buzz I literally mean like this gif.