John Philip Sousa

Luso-American conductor and composer (1854–1932)

The sousaphone ( ) is a brass musical instrument in the tuba family. It was first created around 1893 by J. W. Pepper as a modification of the helicon, at the direction of American bandleader John Philip Sousa, after whom the instrument was named. Sousa intended the bass sound of his helicons to better project above the heads of the band, and into the auditorium. Like the tuba, sound is produced by moving air past the lips, causing them to vibrate or "buzz" into a large cupped mouthpiece. Like the helicon, the modern instrument is bent in a circle to fit around the body of the musician, a

musical ensemble of the United States Marine Corps