V & E Simonetti Historic Tuba Collection

The Vincent and Ethel Simonetti Historic Tuba Collection

Welcome to the Vincent and Ethel Simonetti Historic Tuba Collection web site. The 300+ instruments in the Collection, currently housed in Durham, North Carolina, represent a cross section of the history and development of the various members of the tuba family, from its inception circa 1830 to the present.

The Collection began with a beautiful Cerveny helicon dating from circa 1910, which I found in Boston in 1965 while I was playing tuba in the orchestra for the North American tour of the Russian folk ballet troop, the Moyseev Ballet Company. The majority of the Collection was acquired during my twenty-seven year ownership of The Tuba Exchange, which I founded in 1984. Ethel and I sold The Tuba Exchange to its current owners in 2011, but we have retained ownership of the Collection with the idea of developing it further and to make it more accessible to the public.

We invite all of you to learn more about the various members of the tuba family, by visiting our unique Historic Tuba Collection in Durham, and by looking through this web site – both of which we hope will be helpful to you as you further expand your knowledge about the instruments that we love.

The V & E Simonetti Collection is open for viewing to the public BY APPOINTMENT ONLY every Tuesday and Thursday 3pm – 6pm.

No admission fee during regular visiting hours. We do ask for a donation when you visit, but no minimum donation is required during regular visiting hours.