1985-2016

Here are a few of my adventures as a pilot. Many of the stories involved dangerous or stupid things I did—and learned from!

Flying was my escape from the paranoia of the studio business. When flying your complete attention is on flying the plane. There is no time to worry about all the other bullshit.

Flying has been a wonderful hobby for me. It is challenging, relaxing, an escape, and has given me a whole new perspective of the U.S.  I wish I had made notes all along the way but didn’t and so, is this my attempt to recount my many experiences, good and bad, stupid and smart and try to express my feelings about this important part of my life.

To begin with, I consider myself fortunate to be able to afford flying–although it is cheaper than many spend for other ...

 7:30 PM Monday, March 4

 University of Southern California, Ramo Hall

Concert Review by Beth Chouinard Mitchell

The “Swan Song” Concert

What kind of tuba player doesn’t know the name Jim Self?

50 years ago, Jim Self was rising to prominence as a Los Angeles free-lance musician.  Many years later, he is a veteran of thousands of motion pictures, television shows, records, and tuba soloist on many prominent movies. He is Principal Tubist with the Pasadena and Pacific Symphonies, the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, and the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra. His compositions and arrangements include works for solo tuba, brass quintet, other brass and woodwind chamber music, symphony orchestra, and more...

October 2023

I have just finished one of the happiest and most rewarding periods of my life. It began with a week visit by my younger brother Joe and ended last night with a super concert and tribute to me at USC.

For several years Joe and I would find a few days to “hang” together. He would either come to L.A. and San Luis Obispo with me or I would spend a few days with him in Alabama or New Orleans–but COVID interrupted the last several years and we had a lot to catch up with. Joe is a super nice man who had a successful career in business and retired in Fairhope, AL. The politics and state of America and the world in the last 8 years have been tough on both Joe and me. We are in agreement that the U.S. works best when governed from the “broad” middle...

by Jim Self

Today I just finished a week of playing Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben. It was the opening week of the Pacific Symphony’s 45th season. The conductor was Carl St. Clair and we did four performances. The 48 minute work, conducted from memory by Carl, has become a staple and signature piece of orchestra’s repertoire. In 2008 the orchestra did its 1^st European Tour and we played it in 9 cities including Cologne, Munich and Vienna. We were all astounded by the standing ovations and great reviews we got everywhere. It’s a tough job for a young American orchestra to get those kudos in Germany and Austria playing THEIR masterpieces—but we did.

All this week the emotions of Ein Heldenleben had me waxing nostalgically about my inner feelings of being a symphony musician and deci...

A graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania and his wife are continuing their long-time support for students studying brass at IUP. IUP Now Article

Internationally known tubist Jim Self, a 1965 graduate and 2003 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, and his wife, Jamie Self, have made a gift to establish the Jim and Jamie Self Brass Scholarship, which provides scholarship support to students enrolled at IUP who are pursuing a major or minor offered by the Department of Music with a concentration in brass.

Previously, Self and his wife, Jamie, made gifts to establish the Legacy Brass Quintet, the honors student brass quintet, and the Jim and Jamie Self Tuba Scholarship...

Podcast Interview with Jim Self on Episode 24 of “A Song Called Life” with Osi Atikpoh

Personal Memories by Jim Self

I had a 60 year relationship with the late, great Roger Bobo. Many words have been written about his life and extraordinary career — including Steve Oberheu’s book of his life, “Pirate Songs and Love Songs”.  So, not to repeat that stuff, I will try to relate my personal moments, feelings, opinions and experiences with him.

My first knowledge of Roger was in the late 60’s, when I heard his 1^st Solo album “Roger Bobo Plays the Tuba“.  It blew me away! I was studying with Harvey Phillips in New York then. Harvey was the most prominent tuba soloist in the world at the time. Then Roger shook up the tuba world. That LP stretched the tuba technique, range and energy level to its extremes...

   A Memoir

This is my 4^th travel memoir this year. Each one required music performance and teaching. After 2 ½ years of COVID I am making up for lost time. 

The Amigos met up a Newark Airport for our flight to Lisbon. A glitch in the plane made us 4 hours late—but we did go that night. 

For several years now Portuguese tuba virtuoso Sergio Carolino has hosted a low brass festival/academy called Gravissimo in his hometown of Alcobaca.  He has often invited me to be a guest artist but, because it was held in late August, it always conflicted with the beginning of the Los Angeles Opera season—and I was unable to participate. This year he scheduled it in late July...

A Memoir

This week I travelled to Washington, DC to play in the Alumni Band celebrating 100th Anniversary of The United States Army Band. For many of the recent years they have had alumni bands, but I was never able to make it due to work conflicts. But the 100th only happens once and I was able to go. It was especially encouraging to know that Dan Perantoni and Chester Schmitz would be there too. We were in the concert band together in the mid 60’s, during the Viet Nam War. 

I graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 3 1/2 years in January 1965 with a Music Education degree. But mid-year there were no decent jobs available. Just by chance I went to a TUSAB concert in Harrisburg...

Pennsylvania 2022 

Memoir

I just finished one of the most rewarding weeks of my life in southwestern Pennsylvania. I was invited to be an Artist in Residence at my alma mater, Indiana University of Pennsylvania — more than two years ago. It was postponed twice due to Covid but finally happened this week. I am from the area and am a Distinguished Alumnus of the school. Because I had a relationship with the River City Brass Band in Pittsburgh and its conductor, James Gourlay, I made an agreement with them to do professional audio/video recordings of two of my challenging compositions for Brass Band, “Tour de Force” and “Flying Circus”. I think the RCBB is one of the finest in the world and have special understanding of my complex rhythmic music...

International Tuba-Euphonium Association

Oral History Project

Oral History Interview of

Dr. James M. Self

July 24^th, 2001

Recorded in Bloomington, Indiana

Participants:

James Self

Carole Nowicke

Approved by Narrator, October, 2001

©International Tuba-Euphonium Association

Dr. James M. Self

L.A. Studio Legends: Jim Self

(Click HERE to Link to Article and Podcast)

Legendary tuba player talks his 40+ years career as studio musician in Los Angeles and his collaborations with John Williams, including the “Voice of the Mothership” solo in Close Encounters of the Third Kind and his work on Home Alone, Hook and Jurassic Park

Tubist Jim Self is one of the true legends among both the international tuba community and the Los Angeles studio musicians. In a career spanning more than four decades, Jim has performed internationally as soloist, orchestral player, chamber musician and studio musician. He performed in more than 1,500 film and television soundtracks and can be heard playing solos on many of them. He has been John Williams’ principal tuba for 25 years (from 1990...

Jim Self of Locals 47(Los Angeles, CA) and 7(Orange County, CA) has performed internationally as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral tubist, and studio musician for 43 years. He’s recorded on more than 1,500 soundtracks and has performed tuba solos for major films and hundreds of TV shows. His skills as a classically trained multi-instrumentalist, doubling on string and electric bass and bass trombone earned him a reputation as an exceptionally versatile player. At 75, he is principal tuba in four orchestras—the Los Angeles Opera, the Pacific Symphony, the Pasadena Symphony, and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. This month, he will release his 15th CD of original classical scores, titled Flying Circus: Music for Brass Quintet.

Self, who routinely works with union players in Los Ange...

A Eulogy

William “Bill” Becker passed away three days ago after a long life of 90 years.

Bill was my teacher all through my bachelor’s degree at Indiana State College (now Indiana University of Pennsylvania). He was NOT a tuba player but was a trumpeter. At that time he taught all the brass except horns. He also conducted the Brass Ensemble and taught other classes–as was common in many smaller colleges at the time. I went there in 1961. I believe Bill was just in his 2nd year on the faculty–right out of a PhD from
The Univ. of Iowa. A trumpeter with doctorate was VERY rare at the time.

My memories of working with him are that he gave me my first ever private tuba lessons. He was honest about his limited knowledge of the tuba and its (at the time) sparse literature...

The China Tour was a milestone for the PSO. It has had some impressive musical successes lately and is becoming a force in the symphony world. The concerts we played and the goodwill and connections we made were important. Audiences were enthusiastic and I believe our rather unknown orchestra made a mark in Asia. The 1st 10 days and 5 concerts were spent in Shanghai, Hefei, Wuxi, Chongqing and Beijing but the purposes of this report is not to relate those fine musical experiences but to talk about my feelings about this exotic and ancient country and civilization. As a serious student of history and a frequent foreign traveler I am intrigued by other cultures. I have traveled many times to Japan, once to Korea and once to (nearby) Australia...

A Memoir

Jamie and I just spent a wonderful week in New York City. It has been over 30 years since I was in there. My first time, when I was 15, I went there to compete in a National Majorette Drill Team Competition with Oil City’s own Indian Bonnettes. I played bass drum in the rhythm section and we won the National Championship. In 1965 went to the NY World’s Fair with The US Army Band. While there we also played a concert in Carnegie Hall. Later I took private tuba lessons with the great Harvey Phillips in 1976/77–commuting from my gig in The US Army Band in Washington DC. In 1977 I was in the city with the unique Don Ellis Big Band. We played Avery Fisher Hall on our way to 3 weeks of Jazz Festivals in Europe...

Donald Grant

A Memoir

I have been visiting San Luis Obispo on the Central Coast of California for many years. It was an easy “escape” place for me to fly to. The weather is perfect, the ocean is very near and the restaurants and shops are wonderful. In 2009 (when the housing market crashed) Jamie and I bought a townhouse there and visit as often as we can.

On one of my trips I went to the Granada (an upscale eating place) in downtown SLO for a glass of wine. Sitting next to me at the bar was a man who, over the years, became a dear friend. His name was Don Grant and he was a retired Architecture Professor at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. We hit it off immediately. He had a VERY interesting life. Born in extreme poverty in dust bowl Oklahoma in the 1930’s he raised himself to get a Ph...

Jim was interviewed in the first episode of Last Row Music Podcast. Click on following image to listen the Podcast in full.

Read more about the interview HERE

Bone2Pick: Jim Self Interview – YouTube interviewed by Michael Davis (42:34).

At the end of May I spent one of most interesting and important weeks of my life. Jamie and I attended the International Tuba Euphonium Conference at Indiana University. The subtitle for this conference was “Where It All Began”, a reference to the first conference in 1973 hosted by Harvey Phillips–there at Bloomington. At age 29 I was honored to be a guest artist and a member of the planning committee at that 1st amazing event. I have often said that it was the most important event in the history of the tuba and euphonium. This year’s conference was meant to honor 1973 and to demonstrate the great progress our instruments have made in those 41 years. They have been the years of my career as a tuba player and teacher and are mirrored by my experiences...

In Loving Memory

Ethel “Dutch” Brink

Today I heard the sad news from my high school buddy Dan Brink that his mother, Ethel Brink had passed away. Her nickname was “Dutch” and she lived a long life of 94 years.

Dutch was a very special person to me-­?-­?like a surrogate mother. The entire Brink family was so kind to me. My own mother Helen had a stroke when I was 6 years old and was in a wheelchair for the rest of her life. Then when I was 15 my father Pete passed away. Bob Brink, Dutch’s husband, had the difficult task of telling me that my dad had died. I lived with my grandparents until finishing high school.

Bob was Assistant Manager at the Oil City A & P Grocery Store. Later that summer, when I turned 16, he gave me a job as a bag and stock boy. It was a HUGE thing for me...

Read this article at Davidbrubeck.com

April 15 -­ 21, 2013

I just finished a very interesting week of work in my life as a free-­lance musician. I have had so many of these in the last (nearly) 40 years as a musician in Los Angeles. I am grateful that, at my age, I am still relevant and changing and growing.

April 15^th came with the news that I was getting a good tax return— yippee!

Monday morning began with two less-­than-­pleasant visits to dentists— one in Encino to remove my temporary bridge in preparation for the other doctor in Beverly Hills to “open up” the six implants I had a few months earlier. Like a fool I accepted a movie session for that afternoon. I was in quite a lot of head pain for the first part of the session but it got better...

Jim Self….  Quotes from Reviews and Performances

I just finished another interesting and unusual week—this one in my role as a composer. My composition, “Tour de Force”

was performed by the River City Brass Band in Pittsburgh and the Omaha Symphony. It began on Sunday with a flight to Pittsburgh and a rental car to my hometown of Oil City, PA. There I spent two days visiting my “step mother”, Ethel “Dutch” Brink for Mother’s Day. She is 93 and nearly blind. I hope my visit cheered her up. She has the most wonderful children who get her meals and see to her needs. With this she is able to stay in her own home—and she does very well. I also saw my friend Doug Dinberg on this visit. He is a regional judge of the court and an avid musician.

Then on Wednesday I drove down to Pittsburgh and went to the home of James Gourlay a...

Visit the Wikipedia Article on Jim Self

The USC Bass Tuba Quartet has put the following video together in thanks and appreciation for making it possible for us to go compete in Austria this summer. It was an unbelievable and life changing experience for all of us! Thank you!

Video slideset with audio from ITEC 2012, Austria

(The first two pieces heard are the Allegro from Mozart’s 13th Symphony and John Stevens’ Moondance. These are the recordings we sent in to get into the competition in Linz. The third piece is a clip from Bruckner’s 4th symphony and then Johann Strauss’ Blue Danube finishes the slide show.)

Our experience in Austria began two days before our semifinal round, when we arrived in Linz...

Oil City newspaper artcile about a new Sousaphone donated to the high school by Jim. Read More Here

Today I am reminded of that famous soliloquy from Carousel called “My Boy Bill”: a proud father going on about his son.

I got a call this morning from my nieces Kelly and Suzie. Their father (and my brother) Bill died this morning. I am very saddened by this news and I don’t know how best to express my feelings other than to write my memories of my brother Bill. He is the first of the Self-­siblings to die. It affects me greatly-­-­as I am sure it does Barb and Joe. He was 78.

This memoir is strictly my feelings and experiences and I hope my facts are accurate. His life was so much more than I saw from afar.

For many reasons our family was spread out all over the country...

Festival of Friends Celebration Remembering
HARVEY PHILLIPS
(December 2, 1929 – October 20, 2010)

Saturday, Octuba 15, 2011 3:00pm MAC Center For The Performing Arts Indiana University

Distinguished Professor Phillips performed as tuba soloist throughout the world. His music career began as a teenager with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus Band. From 1950-­?71 he maintained an enviable freelance career in New York City, performing, recording and broadcasting with famous artists, conductors, bands and orchestras. In 1954, he was a founding member of the New York Brass Quintet. He served as personnel manager for Symphony of the Air, Leopold Stokowski, Igor Stravinsky, and Gunther Schuller. He was New England Conservatory Vice President for Financial Affairs (1967-­?71)...

Jim reminisces about his youth and High School friends

Last week one of my best friends in high school died. He was John Velier. I am at the age where too many friends and family are dying. It helps me to reminisce.

We met in junior high as members of the South Side Junior High Band in Oil City, PA. He was a drummer and a very popular kid in school. He was short but cute and the girls liked him. I always thought of him as rich but looking back our families were both middle class –but his was upper and mine was lower. It’s funny but in small towns like Oil City everyone knows everyone else and small relative differences meant huge things to kids and parents alike. These things were overblown in the 1950s...

A personal Memoir

Jim Self

April 2011

In 1969 I was hired to teach tuba at the University of Tennessee and play in the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra. One of my colleagues was Bill Scarlett who was the Clarinet professor, Principal Clarinet of the KSO and a uniquely gifted jazz saxophonist. We became great friends and have remained so ever since. Bill passed away this week and I want to write a few words so I will be reminded of how important he was in my life.

In those days in my twenties I was a bumbling guy trying to find my way as a musician and teacher. Bill became my mentor—the older, wiser professor. He seemed to understand me and he was razor shape in pointing out the things that I needed to grow as a musician...

Jim remembers the gregarious, warm, friendly, mentor and colleague Dan Perantoni.

My relationship with Dan Perantoni began in April 1965. I was the newest member of the tuba section in The US Army Band in Washington, D. C. Dan had been there a year and Chester Schmitz two. I was a country bumpkin for sure-­-­from a small college and Dan was the confident graduate of Eastman. He was and always has been a self-­ confident man and gregarious, warm and friendly. He (and Chester) took me under their wings and taught me all the evil ways of life – (sinning, drinking, womanizing) and how to avoid as much work with the band as possible. One of the earliest things I remember was the Army Band recording a whole bunch of German Marches and only four tubas were needed (of the six)...

Jim Self – 2011

I take the liberty of calling him Harvey even though he had many titles including Mr., Dr. and Distinguished Professor. But he always made me feel comfortable with calling him by his first name. I don’t worship anything (especially other mortals) but Harvey Phillips was as close to a “tuba god” that I have ever known—he was inspirational!

My special relationship with Harvey Phillips began in 1966 when I was in the US Army Band in Washington, D.C. I was studying for my Master’s degree at Catholic University and the man who taught tuba was a distinguished trumpeter but had no interest in teaching tuba and so I was pretty much left on my own. I needed direction. My band mate Dan Perantoni had been commuting to New York City and taking lessons from Harvey Phillips...

Jim’s perspective – both musical and business – on his first full Ring cycle performance

Tonight we finished the last Gotterdammerung at LA Opera. It was the end of a two-year commitment to the most elaborate, longest, and (arguably) the most important work of music ever written.

I feel humbled, proud and fortunate to have had the opportunity to do it – once in my life. The Ring has been a LIFETIME experience. Los Angeles Opera is a strange company. It is not a full time orchestra or job but it operates on a very high level. To tackle the Ring is said to be the mark of distinction for an opera company—a sign that you a have arrived. The opera world is very picky, with knowledgeable critics and audiences that judge it on a high level...

In 1996 R. Winston Morris and Edward Goldstein published the first edition of the Tuba Source Book. It was a monumental effort to compile complete lists of all music written for tuba by category, composer, publisher and recordings. It produced thousands of entries of all the music they could find at the time and has become the best and most complete source of tuba literature. Dozens of scholars participated in the compilations. The editors wanted the book to be more than music lists and asked a few musicians to write articles on related topics of interest to tuba players. I was asked to write a chapter on Doubling for Tubists. It is a lengthy report from my many years a freelance tuba player and doubler and reflects only my observations and opinions.

After many years there had been hundred...

I just finished a very interesting and challenging week playing 2nd Tuba on Symphonie Fantastique with the Chicago Symphony.  Gene Pokorny invited me to play with him and it made a profound impression on me. I was conscious all week of the entire CSO operation from the musicians, to the physical plant, to the management, to the audience, to the city. I felt greatly honored to play with Gene and that superb ensemble  but to also be so warmly welcomed by everyone. The guest conductor was Fabio Luisi, who I found to do a terrific job.

We had very little rehearsal – only about 10 minutes on the  first part of the 4th movement on the first rehearsal, a slightly  rehearsed 2nd rehearsal and a real, straight through dress with  a large  comp audience (of mostly musicians from the Mid-West Band ...

The 2009 Southwest Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference finished last night and it was 3 days of terrific artists, clinics, master classes, and concerts. Those who came were duly treated to an amazing series of concerts and clinics. Several instrument, equipment and music vendors displayed their stuff too.

Young LA Pros Beth Mitchell and Dave Holben took on the difficult task of organizing SWRTEC. Last year ITEA Conference Coordinator Tim Northcutt asked me if there was any way to have a regional conference in the Los Angeles area. There had never been one because of the busy schedules of the local pros and the lack of professors in the area with facilities and desire to tackle all the hard work. I hosted the 3^rd International Conference at USC in 1978 and that was 31 years ago...

I was working on a picture over at Sony tonight and we finished early. So I decided to drop in at the Jazz Bakery and see who was playing. Well it was Billy Childs, a string quartet and a great group of players. WOW it was one of the most incredible evenings I have ever had. It was new and fresh and beautiful stuff.  And I just stumbled into it.

It was all Billy Childs’ music and was interesting harmonically. And the rhythmic fluidity of the group was very intense—listening and creative. I come away feeling like I heard a new level of music a real synthesis of jazz, rock, R and B, and especially classical. I have watched this talented man Billy Childs since he was a student at USC. He has developed into one of the leading innovators in all of music   an amazing life altering artist...