Posted by Sudbury Northern Life Reporter Matt Moskal 
TubaBoy will present a free concert April 16 at 7:30 p.m. at Starbucks on the Kingsway.
TubaBoy is the Sudbury-based musical trio of guitarist Richard Mende, percussionist Howard Mende and Rock Bivens on tuba.
The group originally consisted of Richard Mende and Rock Bivens, who both consider the story of the group's inception to be rather strange.
"I think we are the only band inspired by the Coen Brothers film The Big Lebowski," said Mende.
"The last song in that movie is a country and western version of a Rolling Stones song called Dead Flowers. We found it really amusing, but we thought it would sound funnier on a tuba and mandolin. After that we got a couple funny songs together and then we decided to start doing serious songs."
While the band's activities didn't really pick up until after the dawn of the 21st century, TubaBoy's music reflects a different era in terms of performance style.
"We try to take a 1930s approach to music with a lot of humour and entertainment with a solid musical base."
Mende said the group has composed over 75 songs together with three-part harmonies, guitars, percussion, kazoos and, of course, tuba.
Despite the size of their repertoire, Mende and company are still working on new material and setting their sights on a number of festivals this summer.
TubaBoy recently competed as part of the Northern Lights Festival Boreal Meltdown April 3, and will be auditioning for a show at Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto as part of the Canadian Organization of Senior Artists and Performers Jubilee in August.
