Host Caitlin Malcuit brews up the first Friday Morning Coffee of 2026 by discussing *deep breath* Canadian Brass' tuba rendition of "Flight of the Bumblebee," the rad Lowell, Mass.-based, aptly named brass ensemble The Party Band, Somerville's HONK! Festival, and Minnesota's Brass Solidarity, "a band founded in 2021 in response to the murder of George Floyd and the ongoing fight in the movement for Black lives."

Author and journalist Sam Quinones (The Least of Us, Dreamland) then returns to chat with Daniel Ford about his book The Perfect Tuba: Forging Fulfillment from the Bass Horn, Band, and Hard Work.

To learn more about Sam Quinones, visit his official website. Listen to our past Friday Morning Coffee conversation with the author, as well as our discussion about his book Dreamland in Episode 253. Also check out Daniel's Friday Morning Coffee chat with his high school band director.

This episode is sponsored by Libro.fm and the Is It Streaming podcast, the newest addition to the Writer's Bone Podcast Network.