About The Saxophone

Now what I could start by telling you about the saxophone is that it's a conical bore transposing instrument originally designed for marching bands and that it was an instrument aimed at....... etc, etc.

But do you really want to hear that? No. I don't think so. Well, I hope not

If you are here reading this then it's most likely you are interested in giving it a go. Well I'm here to tell you the sax is one of the easiest instruments to pick up and learn to play

So I'll tell you what I think you should know about the saxophone

The sax is a big sounding, usually brass, wind instrument. Wind instrument means it uses air flow over a reed to make it's sound.

And what a sound it makes. From the higher pitched Sopranos and Sopraninos to the booming, rasping and penetrating sound of the Baritone and Bass Saxes it has invaded just about evey type of music around today.

About the saxophone. Types of saxophones

You have options when you think of the saxophone. The options are based on the range of sound. If you know nothing about music then it's best to say that the sax will cover from the highest pitched sound to the lowest pitched sound

The most common around are the Alto and then the Tenor and these two cover most of the sax music you will hear today or from previous eras.

To the right is my own beautiful Yanagisawa Tenor saxophone. Expensive but gorgeous and a pleasure to play.

Prices usually start at around £600 for an Alto and £700 for a Tenor but you can get cheaper. Thankfully today, cheaper doesn't necessarily mean bad and shopping around can get you some good deals

As I mentioned earlier the saxophone was originally designed with marching bands in mind. But, thanks to the wonderful array of talent out there the sax has found it's way into mainstream music

Infact just about any genre of music you can think of will have had a saxophone introduced somewhere. Blues, Jazz, Rock, Pop, Classical and Dance have all seen the saxophone make an appearance.

Now the important stuff. If you are dithering about getting one then I can only say 'go for it' You won't be disappointed and it will give you hours and hours of fun, and a little bit of frustration. However, when you nail that tune you've been practising for hours and hours it will be the best feeling you will have. And all because you took a chance to find out about the saxophone.

Search This Site And The Web

Custom Search

---