|
| |
|
There are many
things to take into consideration when learning to play saxophone. |
| Let's start with
the horn. Some times the best sounding horns are the ugliest. Many beginners invest in something that looks
nice, only to find that the sound quality or the mechanics are
discouraging. The repair of the musical instrument is also
important. It is hard enough to keep yourself motivated with
a horn that is in good repair. Having a horn that has pads not
floated properly, or improperly fitted corks, can be frustrating
for you and your teacher. Manufacturers usually have less
expensive student horns, and more expensive intermediate and
professional horns. Most horns from the student line will work great.
If you buy one used, make sure it is in good repair. You may
want to find a repair person to look the horn over, before you
purchase it. Keep in mind that the horn will need regular maintenance in order to
play well. It is important to have a good repair tech for this
reason. Usually the local music store will have a repair
person, or a phone number to contact one. You may want to ask
your teacher to put their mouthpiece on the horn and check it out
every 6 to 12 months, for leaks. This brings us to the next step. |
|
| Find a
good teacher. We are developing a
teacher list that may direct you to a teacher in your area.
The local music store may have rehearsal rooms for lessons. If not, they may have a
teacher list they can give out or a phone number to find a specific
teacher. Chances are, they will have heard feedback, from other
customers. They may have seen the results in the other
students. Feel free to get nosey. Ask around to find out
what kind of reputation a teacher has before committing to lessons. |
|
| About finding your
books. Once you land a teacher that you are comfortable with, the teacher
will more than likely have a method book they prefer to teach out of.
For instance, when I taught lessons I used the "Universal Method for
Saxophone" by Paul DeVille, published by Carl Fischer. It is
quite a large book, but once you get one, you will not have to purchase
another book every time you advance a level, like other methods.
It contains music and
exercises for all levels of sax players, from beginning to
advanced, and a solo and duet section. I
also required my students to read "The Art of Saxophone Playing" by
Larry Teal. |
|
|
The Art
of Saxophone Playing
by Larry Teal,
Published by Summy-Birchard
Binding: Trade
Paper (Paperback)
List Price:
$16.95
 |
Universal Method for Saxophone
by DeVille, Paul
Published by Carl Fischer
Binding: Trade
Paper (Paperback) List Price:
$26.95
|
It covers everything from embouchure
(fancy word for:
What-your-mouth-does-and-should-look-like-when-you-play-properly) to
technique, and everything to the left and right of that.
Depending on the attention span and age of the student, when I taught
lessons, I would read and demonstrate parts of the book in a class,
and
encourage them to read and experience it of their own
motivation. Your teacher may use these, or other books. To
search out a book recommended by your teacher, or any music, click on
our affiliate link below, for great prices:
|
 |
| We also have reeds available.
For a discount on our Sax reeds, use the coupon below, on our
reeds and winds page. |
|
20% Off
Ipock Art & Music Saxophone Reeds. Limited to 2 uses. |
|
 |
|
Coupon Code:
ESax777 |
|
|
| Be sure to check out the Tips at the
end of this e-zine. This
will tell you what kind of reeds you will want to start out with.
If you play other instruments, such as
acoustic guitar,
electric guitar,
woodwinds, or are in need
of supplies for your
PA gear (for professional musicians), we have pages with these
items as well. |
|
| You might find, for one reason or another, that you and your first teacher
may, or may not "click". Just get a new teacher, and see if this helps.
We are not all made from the same cookie cutter, so some of us are better
combinations than others. This is ok. On the other hand, if you have
switched to your 5th or 6th teacher, this may be too great of a turn over to be
productive. A teacher's goal should be your success, so most of us will
appreciate if you are honest about a stand still in your progress, and a good
teacher will
see it before you do. |
|
| I can not stress enough how important it is to practice, practice, practice!
We have some tools for practice, such as a
metronome (bottom of our percussion
page) for your
success. If a monkey were forced to practice enough, it could play the
sax. It just takes work. A monkey, even if it could play, would not
make it as a professional sax player. Don't expect it to happen overnight.
The more you practice, the sooner you can get from squeaks and squawks to real
sound, to expressive music. You should find enjoyment in that moment, when
your practice of a piece pays off, with a flawless performance (usually this
will happen when the audience isn't around) That split second when you
realize that part of a piece that you have struggled with, came out the way it
was supposed to! Oh the accomplishment! The satisfaction! The
bliss! Take enjoyment in these small victories. If you are a
perfectionist, remember: you don't have to "nail it" on every recital or
performance. If you are not a perfectionist, don't let yourself slack off.
Either way, practice. It will boost your confidence. Practice, it
will make it easier the next time. |
|
|
Accuracy is important, especially in
those pieces where the black dots on the music, look like noodles. Amazingly
enough, God did make our fingers capable of hitting all those notes in
order, correctly, and even at that high rate of speed! Practice slowly, extremely slow if you must, to get it right
before you speed
up. The brain is a complicated machine, and you can train it to play
something incorrectly. This will cause you not only to have to learn to
play it right, but to unlearn to play it incorrect. Simple math: practice
right=play right. Remember we want things only worked out
once. We do not want to play it wrong over and over. If you practice
it wrong, you will have to practice it at least 3 times correctly.
TOO MUCH WORK OVER AND OVER!!! Get it? Take your time,
then work into speed. My rule of thumb:
play it 3 times flawlessly, then crank the
metronome up a notch, then 3 more
times flawlessly, and so on. This is what is called effective practice.
One could practice for hours non-productively, without results.
Be effective in your practice, and it will produce results. |
|
| The first lesson usually,
is for orientation. When I taught, I showed the student how
to hold their fingers in the right positions, and about what muscles in the face and
lungs are used to produce clear sound. The only playing involved, was long
sustained notes, until they got the hang of it. Some of these things are
discussed more in detail in the book "The Art of Saxophone". Some would be ready to
tackle a few more notes, yet some were not able until a few more lessons.
These basics were the foundation of their training. Building blocks were added
later. I do not recall any students who lost interest, in this portion of
slow beginnings. Soon as they were able to play the first limited-note
song they were feeling great! Then, they learned a more difficult song or
two and felt great again. Then they learned.......so on. |
|
|
|
As a new student, you will also be practicing something called 'stage
presence'. This is made up of facial expressions and posture that says 'I
have practiced and am confident!' This is the part of playing that
musicians most often fake. Nerves are a human condition, that we all must
accept as part of life. You may know that you are sweating, and your knees
are knocking, but never let your audience know this. Smile, look the crowd
in the eye, if possible, and stand up straight. Before you even play, you
need to look confident. Do not grimace or say 'oops!' if you make an
error. Remember, sometimes the audience will not even notice, or will
forget your mistake, if you do not bring attention to it. More likely,
they will notice the rest, where you did well. |
|
| The final stages of instruction, sometimes several years later, were more
about playing with expression, and less about getting the notes right. By
this time, the wonderful machine called the brain, knew which fingering was
symbolized, by which position on the staff, and could get there without struggle.
This stage of learning, is about expression.
Some of which can be taught, and some of it comes directly from the student
themselves. This is the part where all the rules learned, lend themselves
to freedom for the student, in expressing heartfelt music. The part the
teacher loves to see! When the student begins to develop their own style
and musical personality. |
|
| Choosing the right reed:
If you are either a beginner, or playing on a jazz mouthpiece, get a
softer #2 reed. Jazz will require ease of reed movement, and a softer
reed will give you a broader range of expression. Some jazz players
use 1 1/2. If you have good "chops", (been practicing), and have
played for many, many years, and are playing music other than jazz, then
work your way into a harder reed. (Up to #4, or higher, depending on the
brand of reeds) |
|
|
| Now it is your turn. Get a good horn, a great
teacher, your reeds, the right books and music,
and practice, practice, practice! Take joy in being in a place where you have the
freedom to get out there, and do it. Go grab life by the "horns". |
|
We invite you to
contact us if we can assist you in any manner, on the way to your success. |
|
|
|
|
|
