Saxophonnnne

[Eroick]

Well, I've started to play saxophone as of yesterday and I'm auditioning for our stage band next week. The thing is, I'm auditioning against people who have played the saxophone for 1 to 3 years. So, its one week vs 1 to 3 years...

So, if anyone here is a saxophone player, do you have any tips?

[Catboy]

do you have any tips?

Saxamaphoooone... Saxamahphoooone.

Put beer in it.

[Eroick]

Saxamaphoooone... Saxamahphoooone.

Put beer in it.

What kind of beer?

[Jerrick]

I dont play, but I have advice that you already probably know as a musician.

Even if your doing scales or something easy, put emotion into it, make it so when you play, the judges and everyone else just doesnt hear the notes, but they can hear and feel the feeling you are putting into the instrument and into the notes.

Other than that, stay relaxed, have fun with it.

Good luck! =p

[AnOldCripple]

i played saxophone just make sure you are in tune, you reed is broken in and try to go for a dark tone as opposed to a light happy tone or a reedy tone.(try to sound like a french horn if you have ever heard a good one that what my teacher would say)
good luck

[Dave Coleman]

Do you play tenor, alto, soprano etc?

My little bro is quite an accomplished sax player - he plays alto - has been doing so for about 2-3 years now. What kind of tips were you after? I can ask him to help you out with anything, if you'd like. Awesome chioce of instrument, might i add - i've picked up my brother's every now and then and its so much fun to play, eh! They look great as well, the brass instruments.

[habbywall]

UMM, breathe through the corners of your mouth, because if you breath through your nose you mite choke on your bugurs and die.

[skrobo]

no offense, but i used to play saxophone and they annoy me...unless played VERY well, i think you should play something very solidly, not something you might mess up on.

[Dave Coleman]

Everyone's gotta start somewhere with playing an instrument. No-one's gonna sound great right from the start. While there are some instruments, like violin, sax, flute etc that are harder to learn than say piano or guitar, the only way theyre ever going to sound better is if they keep playing and pratice their arses off.

[Spencer Hochberg]

no offense, but i used to play saxophone and they annoy me...unless played VERY well, i think you should play something very solidly, not something you might mess up on.
Nah, trumpets and trombones probably sound the worst when not played well. You will never be able to play them well if you don't suck first so yeah.

[Eroick]

Nah, trumpets and trombones probably sound the worst when not played well.

Agreed. The oboe sounds bad too.

To date I can play the flute, piccolo, trombone, guitar, oboe, piano, saxophone (sorta) and I dabble in drums. Yay.

But the trombone did sound REALLY bad at the beginning.

[Da Doofus]

i play the sax, and have since i was in...5th grade, and the only big thing i can tell you is look at the key signature and make sure you dont miss any accidental sharps/flats, or the whole piece sounds bad. also, know the different fingerings for those tricky notes if your having trouble making it from one note to the next on time

[Eroick]

i play the sax, and have since i was in...5th grade, and the only big thing i can tell you is look at the key signature and make sure you dont miss any accidental sharps/flats, or the whole piece sounds bad. also, know the different fingerings for those tricky notes if your having trouble making it from one note to the next on time

Yeah, I know key signatures and that stuff from other instruments. Im just needing some tips on tone and timbre.

[Eroick]

What causes squeeks and how can i stop them?

[yoopers]

Agreed. The oboe sounds bad too.

To date I can play the flute, piccolo, trombone, guitar, oboe, piano, saxophone (sorta) and I dabble in drums. Yay.

But the trombone did sound REALLY bad at the beginning.
I can play the radio.

[mawesome]

What causes squeeks and how can i stop them?

Your mouth is probably getting loose.

Just make sure you tongue your notes cleanly and tighten your mouth, also, breathe through your nose so you don't have to keep moving your mouth around and don't over/under blow, that makes it go out of tune and stuff.

[The Bruiser]

I have been playing sax for almost 8 years. I play Alto, Tenor, and Soprano.
My advice is make sure the G# key isn't sticking before you play. Be nice to the people you are auditioning for (this really does help). Slow down a little, they probably rather hear you play the song right and slower, than bad and fast. Have scales memorized, and use the full range of the horn when you play the scales. if you are playing classical music you might want to play with some vibrato. If it is more jazzy put some flar in it, but dont bend like every note, it doesnt sound very good. Relax and have a good time.

[The Bruiser]

O squeaks can be caused by a bad reed, or the wrong reed. Make sure the reed is strong enough cause if it isnt the high notes tend to squeak. Also check your sax for leaks. Make sure all of your pads are setting right.

What mouthpiece are you using (Brand, model, size)

[jake_amos]

if you wanna blow them away learn the solo to 'baker street' -' gerry raferty'