By Darragh Kempson
Last week, the ears and eyes of the patrons of Pub/Zoo on Grosvenor St. were greeted by an odd and rather amazing thing: an ensemble of brilliant and talented musicians playing their hearts out in a fashion that can only be described as extraordinary.
The ensemble, known as Tuba Slap, had an energy that was something to marvel at as they played medley after medley with a passion unique to musicians of this sort. Using a mix of drums, trumpets, saxophones and a tuba, the group created a sound that soon had a crowd gathered in the chilly September air.
Tuba Slap played a mix of everything from Classics through to Modern Pop and even some Disney songs. Taylor Swift, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Avril Lavigne and Simon and Garfunkel were also among their repertoire. Along with Star Wars themes like ‘The Cantina Song’ and the opening title theme and Disney classics like ‘I’ll Make A Man Out Of You’ from Mulan and ‘The Place Where I Belong’ from Hercules, that makes only a small selection of what you can expect to hear from them.
Each mash-up was followed by claps and cheers from their audience, and more than one had pub goers singing and dancing along. By the end of their set the crowd had grown quite large and their last medley, a mixture of Star Wars themes and Skater Boy, was well received by everyone. Illy Quane, a group member and trumpet player when asked for comment proclaimed: “We’re Tuba Slap and we’re the greatest ensemble that’s ever existed,” and with the level of talent I heard yesterday evening, I’d say they’re well on their way there.
If you’re longing for a chance to hear them or would just like to find out more about this unique band, you can find them on Facebook here, tweet at them on Twitter @TUBA_SLAP and also listen to some of their stuff on soundcloud.
Darragh Kempson is 20 and in his third year of English and Creative Writing at Manchester Met. You can find some of his creative work on his writing blog here: revelationsofawriter.tumblr. com .
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