The Jacobs School of Music’s Octubafest will return this month, with the tuba and euphonium studio participating in six concerts throughout October.
The festival began at Indiana University in 1973 and serves as a celebration of the tuba and its history. Matt Hightower, associate professor of music in tuba and euphonium, said he wants to keep the tradition going because of the festival's roots within the university.
Hightower, who started his position this semester, is the fourth tuba professor at IU; the second was Harvey Phillips, who created Octubafest. Phillips was part of the Jacobs faculty from 1971 until his retirement in 1994.
“The way the tradition started here was there are three or four recitals that every student in the studio can play at least a piece on,” Hightower said. “So, they get some public exposure and performance experience.”
Hightower said Phillips, who died in 2010, helped get rid of the stigma surrounding the tuba and it being a “silly” instrument. Phillips was even nicknamed Mr. Tuba.
Phillips’ Octubafest has grown bigger than just IU, being held at other universities across the country. Hightower said he’s experienced Octubafest while teaching at Florida State University and the University of Kentucky, which both had Octubafest concerts of their own.
Hightower was also able to participate in Octubafest as a master's student at IU from 2010-2012.
“There are Octubafests at many major universities throughout the country,” Hightower said. “They are kind of following in the footsteps of the tradition that was established here, which is pretty cool.”
In addition to celebrating the instrument and its history here, the festival also gives students a chance to show off their abilities.
Andrew Sieradzki, a first-year master's student in tuba performance and arts in arts administration, will be performing in his first Octubafest this semester. He received his undergraduate degree in tuba performance at Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York.
“It’s really exciting to be a new student here and to be joining in this history,” Sieradzki said. “The tuba legacy at IU is literally world renowned, and something like Octubafest that’s become so widespread, it’s cool to be in the place where it started.”
Sieradzki said he was looking forward to gaining more experience performing for an audience, but he is also excited to be able to say that he’s played for IU, where Octubafest began.
Although his alma mater didn’t participate in Octubafest, one of his professors at Eastman, Don Harry, was an IU alumnus who performed at Recital Hall inside Merrill Hall at Jacobs, and Sieradzki will be following in his footsteps.
“I get to make some connections with the past that really excite me,” Sierdaski said.
Alex Nacchia, a senior studying euphonium performance, has participated in Octubafest every year at IU and said she jumps at the opportunity to showcase what she’s been working on throughout the semester.
She also said she thinks low-brass instruments, like the euphonium, can be underrepresented in the music scene, making Octubafest an opportunity for people to hear what they can do.
“This is my last one, it’s really sad, but I’m really excited to play my piece,” Nacchia said. “It’s just a great performance opportunity for us to get to play in front of people because that’s a rarity.”
Nacchia said the Jacobs community loves Octubafest, and she’ll often have professors come up to her on campus asking if she’s participating and expressing their excitement for the performances.
This year's festival will start with a solo performance by Hightower on Oct. 15, when he will perform “Air and Bourrée” by Johann Sebastian Bach, one of the first pieces ever performed at an Octubafest. Then, on Oct. 16, Øystein Baadsvik, a Norwegian tuba soloist, will perform a guest recital at Ford-Crawford Hall. The festival will continue Oct. 19-21 and 25 with student recitals. Times and locations which can be found on the festival’s schedule online.
