[Dixielandjazz] Tuba & String Bass Players

[Stephen G Barbone]

Currently Ben Jaffe plays both instruments with Preservation Hall.

And there is Jim Self in Los Angeles, a superb musician who plays  
tuba, string bass, electric bass, bass trombone, cimbasso, contra   
bass trombone, Steiner EVI (electronic valve instrument) and FLUBA  
which is best described as a tuba sized flugel horn. He is a  
musician's musician with a huge list of Hollywood (and other) credits

And there was "Pops" Foster who played tube on Mississippi Riverboats  
with Fate Marable's orchestra, but is best known today as one of the  
GREAT jazz string bass players. I saw him play tuba for one song at a  
loft party in NYC in the early 1950s

And there was John Wood, an original member of the Buck Creek Jazz  
Band who recently passed away. Wonderful 4/4 tuba player whose  
approach to the instrument was influenced by his earlier training as a  
string bass player. He played a string bass line on Tuba and IMO was  
one of the top tuba players on the festival circuit for many years.

Also "Chink" Martin Abraham of the NORK.

Slightly off topic, there is a wonderful article about the expanding  
role of Tuba in Film Music. Tuba players on the list should have fun  
reading all 17 pages of it. Especially the vignette about tuba parts  
characterizing Jabba The Hut in "Return of the Jedi" - 1983. See:

http://www.bassethoundmusic.com/articles/YubaMeetsJabba.pdf

It also states on page 1 that the primary double for for studio tuba  
players in film music during the 1930s, 40s and 50s was String Bass.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband