Tubax vs Contrabass saxophone/ A performance comparison

Tubax VS Contrabass
Those of us in the outer limits of the saxophone community are intrigued by the lower saxes, and especially the relatively new varieties of Tubax and Contrabass. The Tubax, invented by Eppelsheim, is an ingenious contrabass saxophone with a narrow bore and wrapped-around configuration. It is also extremely easy to play and is quite agile. Eppelsheim makes them in the keys of Eb and Bb (sub contrabass).
The traditional Eb contrabass, designed in similar proportions to the rest of the family, is a giant instrument, at least 6 feet, 6 inches in height. The earlier ones, mostly manufactured by Evette-Schaeffer of Paris from the late 1800s- the 1920s, are very hard to play, and the tuning and response is difficult. The one now made by Eppelsheim is a revelation. It plays, tunes and responds easily and can be played effectively by any saxophonist of modest experience. It is, however, a challenge to transport. Eppelsheim makes a full contrabass saxophone in Eb and in Bb (subcontrabass)..
The big question is the tonal difference. Clearly they will sound different, but what are the differences, and how can they be compared? This season, at the Manhattan School of Music and Rutgers University, I had an unexpected opportunity to find out.
On both of our saxophone orchestra concerts we performed Lee Patrick’s arrangement of Karl Husa’s “Divertimento”. Originally scored for SAATTBBs I added an optional contrabass part. For the Rutgers concert we used my Eppelsheim Eb Tubax and for the Manhattan School of Music concert we used my Eppelsheim Eb contrabass.
And to make it even better, Dr. Yo-yo Su, who just received his doctorate specializing on the Tubax, was the player for both instruments!
One movement in particular, “Elegie” features the contra as both a solo instrument and ensemble reinforcement. I’ve put together just those two movements, side by side, to hear and easily compare the differences. Granted, the ensembles, performance venue and recording setup are different, but one can still clearly hear each instrument’s distinctive tonal and resonant properties.
Hope you enjoy this experiment.

[@kevinbartolo2536]

jesus the attack on the first note is angelic

[@paulcohen2556]

It was a good evening for all!