I this article, I’d like to share some specifics on two regular fixtures from my practice routine – warm ups and creating lines. Warm Ups #1: Body Wake Up I first try to ‘wake up’ my body with this exercise. I put almost-exaggerated air and body support on the notes marked with articulation, which makes [read more…]
Introduction As a fan of the SNAP Saxophone Quartet, thus far, I have been fortunate enough to speak with three members of the group (Sam Dillon, Andrew Gould, and Nick Biello). In this interview, I complete the circle by speaking with Paul Jones, the remaining member of the quartet who, up until now, I hadn’t [read more…]
Recording artist and master class clinician, Adam Larson shares his proven system for building technique in a way that not only uncovers and removes your technical "blind spots", but also opens you up to a whole new world of jazz improv vocabulary. Even if you don't have a ton of time to practice each week, if you're ready to move out of your comfort zone in a fun and inspiring way, then click the picture below and check the program out for yourself!
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Lightning-Fast and Crystal-Clean Saxophone Technique
To keep it interesting for myself, one of the things I did while writing The Jazz Saxophone Book, was to create what I called “Short Asides.” When something I was writing about sparked an idea that deserved a bit of a detour, I’d go ahead and write about it, and the Short Aside format helped [read more…]
Introduction I have always been a big fan of the WDR Big Band and recently was checking out the WDR Big Band playing Chick Corea’s tune Matrix featuring saxophonist Jon Beshay (see video below). After listening to the band (always great) and hearing Jon play this amazing solo, I knew I had to get in [read more…]
Introduction Since reviewing saxophone gear for quite some time, I have had the opportunity to play test quite a few vintage Meyers, Links, Dukoff’s, Brilhart’s, Guardala’s as well as the “new” vintage copies or close replicas of these sought after mouthpieces. Now, for many of us the idea of spending between $500-$2,000+ on a vintage [read more…]
Introduction I recently took a trip down to San Diego to visit family and was able to meet up with Chris G (IG: @chrisgsax) who has created some great content under his YouTube Channel Positively Progressing. During our hang, Chris shared with me one of his fairly recent II-V- Tuesday videos and this one was [read more…]
My experience with recording various woodwinds at home during the pandemic was full of trial and error. Check out these 6 tips and tricks I learned to help your woodwind recordings sound more professional! 1. Have a Couple of ‘Perfect’ Reeds As always, make sure you have a few reeds that are perfectly worn-in, like [read more…]
Learning to play an instrument is the dream for many students. Music connects people from across the world in ways that modern machinations, like the internet, simply cannot. But music lessons and affording an instrument can be stressful for the families of budding musical talent. This is true for all instruments, including students who wish [read more…]
Even the most motivated of us can fall into a slump. This happens to all creative individuals including saxophone players. Even athletes, writers, and artists are prone to experiencing creative blocks now and then. The thing is, it’s completely normal. But, once you know you’re there, how do you get out of it? Hopefully, these [read more…]
Introduction When someone says, “I was listening to Wayne on tenor”, usually they are referring to Wayne Shorter, but whether you know it or not, there is another burnin’ saxophonist named Wayne. My first major introduction to Wayne Escoffery’s playing was his solo over the tune, “Fly Little Byrd”. I am excited that Wayne was [read more…]