HELICON

also called Sousaphone, a bass or contrabass tuba built in a spiral circular form and resting on the shoulder. It is believed to have been invented in Russia but was perfected in 1849 by Ignaz Stowasser in Vienna. The helicon is chiefly used in military bands. In the United States, where the bandmaster John Philip Sousa introduced a removable bell, it is usually known as a sousaphone.