Some of the bigger orchestral instruments are so unpopular with young Britons, that there’s a big shortage of players opening up. “It seems that the tuba, bassoon, double bass and trombone are too ugly and expensive for a new generation of teenagers who, if they like classical music at all, prefer the charms of the flute and clarinet. The result, according to the some of the country’s leading instrumentalists, is that Britain’s bass line is in danger of fading out.”