The Tuba, BMC

Resonant and full of heart, The Tuba, BMC captures the deep, anchoring pulse of New Orleans jazz. Sketched live inside the iconic Balcony Music Club (BMC) on Decatur Street, this expressive study captures a tuba player in action, balancing the physical presence of the heavy brass instrument with the fluid movement of the music itself. You can almost hear the low, rhythmic basslines vibrating off the page. Sketched in person during a live performance, this foundational work was later used by Al Sprague to compose major paintings, offering fine art collectors a direct connection to both French Quarter nightlife and Sprague’s creative process.