Tuba Christmas

If you’ve never been to a Tuba Christmas, you really haven’t lived. Today, Lee and I went to our first Tuba Christmas, in West Brattleboro, and so we can say that. I knew I wanted to go when I read in the paper yesterday that rehearsals started only an hour before the performance.

Some of these events, held in places like Washington DC or New York City, have dozens or even hundreds of tuba, euphonium, and baritone horn players. We had nine, including Steve Rice, the local high school band director, who admitted to only playing the tuba “a few times a year.” He did a nice job leading the ensemble and emceeing. They slogged their way gamely through almost an hour of Christmas carols, with the audience singing along. A good time was had by all.