Mr Tuba
Harvey Phillips“Mr Tuba is not only a memoir, but it is a history of the twentieth-century American music world and a resource for all music teachers and music lovers.” — NBA Journal
With warmth and humour, tuba virtuoso Harvey Phillips tells the story of his amazing life and career — from his Missouri childhood through his days as a performer with the King Brothers and the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circuses, his training at the Juilliard School, a stint with the U.S. Army Field Band, and his freelance days with the New York City Opera and Ballet. A founder of the New York Brass Quintet, Phillips served as vice president of the New England Conservatory of Music and became a Distinguished Professor of Music at Indiana University. The creator of an industry of TubaChristmases, Octubafests, and TubaSantas, he crusaded for recognition of the tuba as a serious musical instrument, commissioning more than 200 works. Enhanced by an extensive gallery of photographs, Mr Tuba conveys Phillips’s playful zest for life while documenting his important musical legacy.
“[Phillips’s] autobiography is a fitting end to his life’s works, underlined with the same sense of inspiration and integrity that informed all of his musical activities.” — Bloom Magazine