That was great that you made up a DB book for them. I like your ideas of selectively combining tuba and bassoon parts for an actual "part" that supports the various voicings of the band. Occasionally, when I've played in a band that was sparse, I've had to take bassoon or contra clarinet parts and add some missing texture if it wasn't cued in the tuba parts.
The best year I had in a community band was completely different, however. That particular year I played conventional tuba parts, but we had a guy who recognized it was about his last, as Parkinson's was getting him. He couldn't hold his trombone anymore, but he could balance a bass guitar in his lap. So we took the entire book and made parts for him to be able to play that last couple of years before he had to give it up completely. Some were transposed tuba parts, others were DB parts, a couple of contemporary pieces had actual bass guitar parts, etc. Just like low woodwinds add so much needed texture to tubas, his musicianship was of the highest caliber and really broadened the foundation of the band.
Have fun at your gig!
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