Rondo for Tuba & Piano, Op. 14

One sunny spring day in 2004, I walked into a Sam Ash Music store in Torrance, CA and met Abel Rios, who I soon learned was a tuba player. Even without hearing him play, I got the sense he was a solid musician, so I invited him to play in a brass quintet I was putting together.

Turns out he was more than a solid player. He went on to spend 10 years playing as principle tubist in two different professional orchestras in Mexico, and a number of others as a guest.

In fact, Abel is the reason I moved to Mexico in early 2012—a few months before the Mayan apocalypse. I was looking to get out of Los Angeles (only in part because of the impending apocalypse!) and experience more of the world, possibly by teaching English somewhere. But Abel invited me to come visit him in Mexico, and I wound up spending the next six years (minus a year performing on cruise ships) in Monterrey, where I met my future wife.

To this day, Abel is a good friend of mine, and one of my oldest friends. Which is why I decided to write this piece for him.

It is a simple rondo form, with contrasting sections showcasing lyrical playing and more technical staccato playing. The demands of the part require the more agile F tuba, though an Eb might work, too.