Instruments & Voices

Tuba

Pronounced TOO-buh

Definition

The tuba is the largest and lowest common brass instrument, with a wide conical tube, a big cup mouthpiece and three to six valves. It reads bass clef at concert pitch and anchors bands and orchestras.

The tuba is the bass of the brass family. Its tube is wide and conical, about 16 to 18 feet long on the common B♭ and C tubas, coiled into an instrument you hold upright on your lap with the bell pointing up. Its sound is deep, round and surprisingly soft-edged, and it can be gentle and lyrical as well as powerful.

How a tuba makes its sound

You buzz your lips into a large, deep cup mouthpiece. As on all brass instruments, changing the lip tension and air moves you between the notes of the harmonic series, and the valves add tubing to lower the pitch. Tubas have three to six valves, and four is common; the extra valves improve the tuning of low notes and fill in the range below the open notes. Valves may be pistons or rotary valves.

Tubas are built in different keys: B♭ and C (the large "contrabass" tubas), and E♭ and F (smaller "bass" tubas). Orchestral players often switch between a C tuba and an F tuba depending on the music.

Range

A professional tubist's range runs from about D1 up to about F4, and further at both ends in solo music. Students usually work in the middle of that, roughly from F1 to B♭3.

A bass staff with two whole notes: D2 just below a ledger line under the staff with an 8 sign beneath it, labeled D1, and F4 above two ledger lines over the staff, labeled F4. — A professional tuba range, from about D1 to F4. D1 is printed as D2, just below the first ledger line under the bass staff, with an octave sign 8 below it (8vb: an octave lower). F4 sits above two ledger lines over the staff.

How tuba music is written

In orchestras and most bands, tuba music is written in bass clef at concert pitch, whatever key the instrument is built in. Players learn fingerings for their own instrument rather than transposing. The exception is the British-style brass band, whose E♭ and B♭ basses read treble clef parts written as transposing instruments.

Relatives

The sousaphone is a tuba made to wrap around the player's body, with the bell high above the head, for marching bands.
The euphonium is a smaller, tenor-range tuba with a mellow tone, common in bands.
The baritone horn is a close cousin of the euphonium, with a narrower bore.

Its role

An orchestra usually has one tuba, which plays the bass of the brass section and often doubles the double basses. Concert and marching bands have several. The tuba also plays in brass quintets, New Orleans jazz and brass bands, polka and Mexican banda music, where it often provides the bass line.

Tips for beginners

Breathe deeply and use a lot of relaxed air: the tuba needs volume of air more than pressure.
Sit tall and bring the mouthpiece to you, adjusting your chair or a stand rather than slumping.
Keep the lips loose and buzzing freely for low notes; tension makes them thin and sharp.
Practice reading ledger lines below the bass staff, where many tuba notes live.

Common questions

Is the tuba a transposing instrument?

In orchestras and most bands, no: tuba parts are written in bass clef at concert pitch, even for a B♭ or E♭ tuba. British brass bands are the exception, with treble-clef parts that transpose.

What is the difference between a tuba and a sousaphone?

A sousaphone is a tuba shaped to wrap around the player's body for marching, with a large bell that faces forward above the head. A concert tuba is held upright on the lap with the bell pointing up.