By Chris
I started as many do in retirement, with time to spare and the desire to play an instrument. The saxophone did it for me. You blow and press some buttons – hey how hard can that be? And the noise is just fabulous. Naïve or what? I’ve now been practising for around 10 months and whilst twinkle, twinkle little star and merrily we roll along are behind me the road is long and difficult. However, if it was easy, where would the challenge be?
Sometimes I make nice noises and more often it is horrible, but blowing the horn raises my spirits and whatever the sound, it is a joy just to play and translate those odd characters on paper to music. Yes, I’m in love with my sax.
This article is for beginners who want ideas to help them get started and how they can make progress even without a teacher.
I live in England and I will begin with a ‘plug’. Saxophones are expensive pieces of kit, you need to try before you buy. I went to Saxhire.co.uk and bought a student sax on the understanding I could return it and only pay for the time I'd had it. I bought an alto which is a very good place to start, easier to blow and support than a tenor. Having enjoyed my time with an alto and deciding the saxophone did it for me, I decided I really wanted a tenor and given the rave review at http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk/Reviews/...tein_tenor.htm, I decided I wanted a Bauhaus Walstein tenor. I wasn’t sure if Saxhire would be as obliging when I wanted to return my alto as they had been when I bought it. My concerns were unfounded and Richard was very pleasant to deal with. The BW was one of the few horns he couldn't supply. On my experience I can only recommend his service to those of you who wish to try the sax and see if it suits before committing to a serious purchase.
How was I going to learn? My nearest teacher Harry Fulcher lives in Salcombe some 25 miles away. I see Harry when I can because one to one teaching is the best way to progress quickly and Harry is very good company and very highly skilled. But I can only visit when I have access to a car. Many of you around the world live 100’s of miles away from a teacher so here is my experience. I started with 2 tutor books ‘The Complete Saxophone Player – Omnibus edition’(TCSP) and Essential Elements 2000: Alto Saxophone Book 1 (DVD Edition) (EE) This is when I made my best discovery – Smartmusic. Before I discuss this I should say that TCSP is o.k. and has some good tunes once you can play a few notes, but the lack of interactivity makes progress slower. EE is designed for a school band of many instruments and enables each to practise on their own and when they come together, they can make music more easily. EE has been criticised in several places, even on this site, due to its uninspired choice of tunes to play, but what makes it stand head and shoulders above any of its rivals is the access to Smartmusic, a software program not only illustrating the accompanying book but listening to every note that you play, identifying the good notes (green) with the wrong notes or mistimed correct notes indicated in red. The metronome ticks, there is an accompaniment to your playing, you can record and playback your output, it scores your performance and you can email this anywhere on the planet to any teacher using this system. This is learning for the 21st century. Are there any teachers out there using this system? Please I need you and others will too!
Smartmusic is rented to you for $30 per annum, which is remarkably cheap for what you get. There are several embedded tutor books, which provide a greater selection of starter tunes. There are also collections of more difficult pieces and a full selection of scales to practise plus ear training, rhythm etc.. You can alter the tempo of each piece so that you can play the notes in the right order and then speed up the tempo when you are confident with the fingering. Also you maybe able to find another learner musician in your area who is learning one of the dozen or more supported instruments (flute, bassoon, clarinet etc.) and you then would have someone else to practise with. For further information see www.smartmusic.com.
What about sheet music that you have obtained from elsewhere. Here are two ideas which I’ve used. I downloaded ‘Audacity’ which is a free recording program and I often practise using this to see how I’m playing – can be a bit soul destroying listening to squealing and wailing, but keep these recordings and see what they sound like when you repeat them in a month’s time, you will be pleasantly surprised by your improvement. If there is anyone willing to offer an 'Audacity' master class to help us make better recordings that would be really useful. The other program is ‘Noteworthy’ also free. This can be used to transpose music between keys and I have used it to play along to as it will play the written stave, again, at the tempo you choose.
Finding free sheet music on the web is not too difficult. Try Amazing Grace for alto sax in all twelve keys http://drfeezell.com/freesheetmusic/...aceAltoSax.pdf . If you fancy there are also free Carols for tenor and alto, some free duets and also various pieces to buy. Another wonderful resource is http://capotastomusic.com/. There are many others and I hope that someone will give us a comprehensive list. That would be a great contribution to the site. Finally, in this small section, if you start looking for sheet music on the web, it won't be long before you need to download 'Scorch' from http://www.sibeliusmusic.com . Some freebies here too.
Timing is very difficult for me, but unless I can learn to play to time then I will only ever be a soloist and anyone listening to me play will know that my timing is off. One of the really useful tools on the net is a metronome. http://www.metronomeonline.com/. I use the metronome and Audacity to critique my playing. On screen in Audacity when in playback you get the time along the top and can see whether those crochets last the time they should and hear if the notes are sharp or flat. Find a piece with a tempo of sixty beats a minute and take sixty beats of notes. Try playing those notes in the sixty seconds – its not going to be easy, I used ‘Away in a Manger’ It is nearly Chrismas time as I write this. By practising you will get more accurate. When this is successful, find a piece with a faster tempo and again count the number of notes to last the minute and practise that.
To play any instrument you need to know some theory. There are hundreds of books and web sites, but I like www.teoria.com, perhaps you will too.
I run out of puff easily and the tenor sax needs air in high quantities. You will need to practise breathing even though you’ve been doing it all your life. There are breathing notes here on http://cafesaxophone.com/saxophone-breathing.html or try this http://www.andytweed.bigshedmusic.co...%20handout.pdf
Dealing with the noise and neighbours can be difficult. Try and get away. I have played in lay bys, a British Rail car park and other car parks or anywhere where you are away from critics (anyone who's not completely deaf). When you are out in the car, don't drive too slowly in some inner city areas as it could be misconstrued, scout for likely spots - under bridges is good as great acoustics and keeps the rain off. There are lots of places but you will have to go and find them. The very small car I use is a VW Lupo which has a lift up tailgate and the parcel shelf makes an ideal perch for my PC and doubles as a sheet music stand. I can play the alto in the back seat as the front seat tilts forward, but not the tenor as its too big. Why not go and busk. Many buskers are rubbish (I didn't mean you Taz) and you might even get paid. What you will do is get better, faster.
Finally, as well as hoping that you may find some of the above helpful, I am looking forward to reading similar articles from near ‘newbies’ to see how they are managing to learn as I need all the help I can get.
Chris (Tenorsaxman)
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