Harvey Gene Phillips, Sr. (December 2, 1929 – October 20, 2010) was an American tuba player. He served as the Distinguished Professor of the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, Bloomington (from 1971 to 1994) and was dedicated advocate for the tuba becoming popularly known as Mr. Tuba.

Biography

Born in Aurora, Missouri, Phillips was a professional freelance musician in New York City from 1950 to 1971, winning his first professional position with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus Band as a teenager. In 1960, he co-founded The All-Star Concert Band with American cornet soloist James F. Burke. The band recorded three albums and was composed of virtually every top soloist and first chair player in the country. He served as personnel manager for Symphony of the Air, Leopold Stokowski, Igor Stravinsky, and Gunther Schuller. He was a key figure in the formation of the International Tuba Euphonium Association (formerly T.U.B.A.) and the founder and president of the Harvey Phillips Foundation, Inc. which administers Octubafest, Tubachristmas, Tubasantas, Tubacompany, and Tubajazz. In 2007, Phillips was inducted into the American Classical Music Hall of Fame, the only wind instrument player to receive this prestigious honor. Other inductees that year included Yo-Yo Ma, Donald Martino and the Cleveland Orchestra. He died of Parkinson's in Bloomington, aged 80.

Awards

Discography

With Kenny Burrell With Gil Evans Orchestra With Curtis Fuller With Dizzy Gillespie With John Lewis With Wes Montgomery With Gus Vali & His Orchestra With Matteson-Phillips Tubajazz Consort