Today’s post comes in response to a question by reader Chad Lamkin. Chad asks: I play Alto and I really just want to improve and just learn it all at the moment. I’m trying to get these altissimo notes down but the highest I can get F# and I can’t get it any higher…Would you [read more…]
This guest post comes to us from Andrew Hadro, a professional baritone saxophonist, educator, and curator of THE definitive baritone saxophone destination on the web, JazzBariSax.com. After years of being a professional baritone saxophonist, I still can’t shake people’s persistent assumptions that the baritone saxophone is a lesser instrument. A Bum Rap This myth has understandable – if [read more…]
Flashy technique and altissimo are all fine and good, but a rich, powerful, and distinctive saxophone sound that truly grabs your listeners is the hallmark of any great player. Thing is, without the correct methods, you're likely to waste time, looking for the perfect setup and trying to make sense of vague and conflicting instruction from books, videos, and private teachers.
Luckily, sax legend David Liebman, one of the world's foremost experts on saxophone sound production, takes you on a step-by-step journey through the method used by legends such as Michael Brecker, Bob Berg, and other masters. Starting from your mental concept of sound, to the breath, to the throat and the oral cavity (lots of cool overtone exercises here!), to the embouchure, and then on to expressive effects and working on reeds - Dave covers everything you need to develop the sort of sound that turns heads - from the first note.
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Ready to go Deep Into the Art of Building a Massive Saxophone Sound?
UPDATE: Adam is no longer 21, as you might imagine being that this article is a few years old, but it’s a nice snapshot in time of his development. Incidentally, since this article came out, I had the privilege of publishing Adam’s game-changing streaming video course focused 100% on sax technique, so head over to [read more…]
We spend hours practicing our instrument (well, at least some of us). We bust our chops trying to sound better all the time. Playing long tones, scales, etudes, harmonics, learning tunes, soloing over changes, taking lessons – you know what I’m talking about. Hard work works every time, but sometimes it’s worth asking – “am [read more…]
This article was inspired by a great question from reader in the UK, Peter (“reader”, “Peter” – that sounds kind of funny, doesn’t it?). Peter writes: Hi Doron, First of all let me say what a great site you have, a fantastic resource. Thank you. I have just bought my first sax (alto) and I [read more…]
This week’s Best. Saxophone. Podcast. Ever. features highly renown Manhattan-based jazz saxophonist, multi-reedist, electronic wind instrument player, composer, and drummer Adam Niewood. Adam hails from an incredibly musical family, with his father being the late great saxophonist, woodwind doubler, and composer Gerry Niewood and mother, Gurly, a classical clarinetist and pianist. Adam’s carried on the family [read more…]
As saxophone players, it’s clear that nothing occupies our thoughts on a daily basis more than the question, “Should I be using a mouthpiece patch or not?” OK, I kid, but it is an interesting topic to look into as anything that can affect the “signal chain” of body to bell is something to be [read more…]
Whether you’re looking to get a great horn at a great price, or whether you’re looking to put your own spin on the classic sounds of your idols, a used saxophone can be a perfect solution. A little bit of Google-ing on the topic of buying a used horn will yield you bushels full of [read more…]
Selmer’s Reputation Speaks for Itself Ask any saxophone player, and they’ll tell you that Selmer saxophones are the standard by which all other saxophones are measured. Selmer saxophones are world renowned for their quality both in manufacture and in musical tone. Not only is a Selmer saxophone the clear choice of most professionals, but it [read more…]
Getting a beautiful and distinctive saxophone sound in the recording studio is a bona-fide artform. What I’d like to do here is provide just a few basic guidelines that we sax players can use in our own home studios, using a single mic as we experiment to find what works best for the sound that we’re [read more…]