Strictly Oompah: 2026

Sunday, January 4, 2026

Sousaphone History and AI Failure!

Just to see whether AI has caught up with the truth about Sousaphone history, I typed in a simple question to ChatGPT. Here are the results I got back . . .

Well, it did get one fact right - that the instrument was built at the request of John Philip Sousa. But every other statement is incorrect - so, no, AI has not yet caught up on the true history of the Sousaphone, which makes me wonder what else it is currently getting wrong!

And just to be clear . . .

The first Sousaphone was built in 1895
And it was built by J. W. Pepper - not C. G. Conn
Further, it was built as a concert instrument, not at all as a marching instrument (although, yes, it is easier to march with than a standard tuba!)
Finally, it was specifically built with a bell that pointed straight up, as that is what Sousa requested. The forward-facing bell version didn't come along until 1908, and was first offered by Conn. But Sousa stayed with bell-up horns in his band.

Sousa on the Sousaphone

"The Sousaphone received its name through a suggestion made by me to J. W. Pepper, the instrument manufacturer of Philadelphia, fully 30 odd years ago. At that time, the United States Marine Band of Washington, D. C., of which I was conductor, used a double B-flat bass tuba of circular form know as a 'Helicon.' It was all right enough for street-parade work, but its tone was apt to shoot ahead too prominently and explosively to suit me for concert performances, so I spoke to Mr. Pepper relative to constructing a bass instrument in which the bell would turn upwards and be adjustable for concert purposes. He built one, and grateful to me for the suggestion, called it a Sousaphone. It was immediately taken up by other instrument makers, and is today manufactured in its greatest degree of perfection by the C. G. Conn Company, of Elkhart, Ind." (John Philip Sousa, Christian Science Monitor, August 30, 1922, p. 8)