The Perfect Tuba: Forging Fulfillment from the Bass Horn, Band, and Hard Work

A limited number of copies signed by author Sam Quinones are available while supplies last!

The tuba’s sound is mighty, a resonance that feels as though it emerges from the very depths of the human chest.  For years, the instrument was relegated to the back of the band, offering its players little hope of fame.  Yet, since 1835, this "youngest" of the brass family has inspired a fiercely loyal subculture of musicians.  In The Perfect Tuba, Sam Quinones travels across the American landscape to uncover the stories of those who live for the bass line.  This narrative non-fiction journey follows:

• The Quest for Perfection:  Two craftsmen determined to replicate the "York Tuba," a legendary 1930s instrument considered the "Stradivarius" of the brass world.

• Musical Legends:  Profiles of Big Bill Bell, who redefined the tuba’s landscape in the 1950s, and Arnold Jacobs, the Chicago Symphony’s "tuba guru" who revolutionized the science of breathing.

• Community Spirit:  A look at the vibrant tuba scenes in New Orleans, New York City, and Roma, Texas, where a visionary high school director turned a dusty border town into a powerhouse of state championships.

More than just a book about music, this is an anthem for humble achievement and a testament to how discipline and a common goal can stitch a fractured nation back together.

Named a best book of the year by BookPage and California Review of Books, this work is described by The Wall Street Journal as a "delightfully offbeat book with unexpectedly profound overtones." Author Sam Quinones delivers a story of a nation "brought together by the transformative power of shared joy and humble achievement."

*Currently only available in hardcover

Sam Quinones is a National Book Critics Circle Award-winning author and journalist. Best known for his landmark reporting on the opioid crisis in Dreamland and The Least of Us, Quinones has spent decades chronicling the American experience. With The Perfect Tuba, he shifts his lens from the front lines of addiction to the front lines of fulfillment, exploring how community and hard work create hope.