The Wagner TubaWagner Tuba  The Wagner tuba combines elements of
both the horn and the tuba but it is not an instrument which is
frequently heard. Originally created for Richard Wagner's
operatic cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen, the Wagner tuba has been
written for by many other composers - most notably Anton
Bruckner, in whose Symphony No. 7 a quartet of them is first
heard in the slow movement in a memorial tribute to Wagner. The
euphonium may sometimes used as a substitute when a Wagner tuba
cannot be procured.  It was after a brief visit to Paris in 1853
that Wagner found the inspiration to invent this fascinating
instrument. He visited the shop of Adolphe Sax, the man who
invented the saxophone, with the idea in mind that he wanted to
create an instrument which could express his Valhalla motif with
the gravity of the trombone, but with a more rounded, noble tone
than that of the French horn. To achieve this effect, a conical
bore was utilised along with a horn shaped mouthpiece, as
opposed to a cup mouthpi