In re Cecil’s column on the TubaChristmas phenomenon: Maybe she just doesn’t want to toot her own horn, so to speak, but I for one thought it negligent of Cecil not to mention that our very own Tuba Diva has taken part in many TubaChristmas performances herself. Heck, it was probably negligent that she didn’t write the entire column (is there such a thing as a Chicago Staff Report?), but she should have at least had a mention.
As a regular participant in TubaChristmas events in the Twin Cities area I thought I would point out a few items that got missed:
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As Cecil mentioned, the events are almost always free for spectators.
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There are literally hundreds of performances all over the world every year and generally larger metropolitan areas have more than one performance at different times and places throughout December. For example this year besides the Palmer House event in Chicago there were events in Antioch, Flossmoor, Naperville, and slightly further afield in Milwaukee. Some are bigger and some are smaller and each event is slightly different but that’s part of the charm IMHO. For example I participated in the St Paul, MN event which usually has around 120 participants and is held in a gorgeous century+ old church in downtown and was a spectator in Milwaukee which had about 30 participants and was held in the atrium of an upscale mall near the suburbs.
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Dates and times for events usually start getting announced right around the beginning of November. If you think you will probably forget in the intervening 11 months event coordinators often (but not always) have mailing lists (email and sometimes snail mail) that you can get on to be reminded when they have set the date.
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Participants pay a modest fee (Usually $5)
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Participants must have purchased a copy of the sheet music book, titled “Carols for a Merry TubaChristmas” published by the TubaChristmas foundation.
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Participation is limited to the tuba family of instruments. This includes tubas, sousaphones, euphoniums, baritones, and a few other related marching instruments. However if you know how to play the trumpet and can get your hands on a baritone or euphonium you can play from the Treble Clef euphonium part very easily. I should also note that usually a subset of the music from the book is performed so contact the coordinator for an event you plan to attend and find out which ones you should practice before showing up.
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All you really need to host your own is two tubas, two baritones/euphoniums, the music, and a public location that you have permission to play in. Though to be official and get listed on the website you need to register your event with the parent organization.
I really do encourage everyone to attend one sometime, though especially those who have the skills and the horns to participate. I’m not generally much of a fan of a lot of the folderol around christmas but this is an event I look forward to every year.
–Nathan in MN
(Euphonist)
Thanks for the shout out Chronos my dear – though honesty forces me to admit that while I have played many TubaChristmases in my life in all sorts of places I have never made it to Chicago for their event. So I’m not featured in this report, not entitled to be, really
I hope to attend a Chicago TubaChristmas one fine day – it’s at the same time as the Midwest Band/Orchestra convention which is also in Chicago and I keep thinking I’m going to go next year.
Also, full disclosure: Howard Johnson is my mentor/teacher, so I’m more than a bit supportive of jazz on the tuba. I am grateful that Cecil gives the tuba and thems that play it any attention at all, even if he’s not personally appreciative of tuba jazz.
What Cavorter says is correct – though we also need audiences for TubaChristmas – well, for all public performances, really. A performance without an audience is just a rehearsal in fancy clothes! 
I have very little to add to this thread, other than to point out that one of my favorite parts of the film Christmas Vacation is Cousin Eddie emptying his RV’s waste tank into the storm drain, accompanied by a tuba rendition of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”!
We just celebrated the 30th Anniversary of the Akron, OH Tubachristmas. Generally we have between 500-600 players and several thousand in the audience at each of two performances.
Here’s a pic on my Flickr from 2008’s, if you’re curious as to what that sort of thing looks like.
And here I thought we were doing pretty good at 120ish.
Your image did remind me that the local paper in St Paul posted a slideshow with audio a few years back that gives a pretty good idea of what our looks and sounds like: Merry Tubachristmas
With Tucker Jolly! What’s not to love about Akron’s Tuba Christmas!