Alto or Tenor?

[tris]

Ok here is a question. As you all know I am in the process of thinking about a new-pro sax.... question is of what type? Alto or tenor?


I was wondering what YOU chose and why? I was maybe thinking that at first there would be more tenor gigs? In the end of the day the bread and butter still has to come in and I have the rest of my life buy more horns.

 

[Bobby G]

There certainly seem to be more tenor players around, whether this is because other Bb instruments like trumpet are more common also. I guess if all the horns are in Bb perhaps they each occupy their own space wit out overlapping or swamping each other. Maybe it's just that the tenor is the coolest-looking sax!

I don't think being 5' 7" should be a problem for playing tenor, I find it very comfortable and I'm only an inch or so taller.

Having said all that, I started on alto, and my alto would be my 'desert island' horn.

Cheers, Bob

 

[Pete Thomas]

5ft 7" no problem. I think I'm 5ft 8".

Get both.

 

[suethesax]

Get both - I am 5 ft 1 (vertically challenged) and can manage a tenor.

I know a girl at LCM who is about the same as me and she plays baritone and bass - extremely well too!

 

[mfox]

first thing to consider is what you want to do with the horn..
play as a front soloist, part of a section, rock or jazz.
the tenor is the most versatile of the family, its easyer to fit into a section with trumpets. much easyer to transpose for as a soloist..gels better in a rock group(and is more manly for the long hair look, which is always important if you wear your hair long)

my grandfather said to me when i first started "Tenor player get all the work"

i would go for tenor if i had 1 to chose from..
then bari.. i get lots of work playing bari.. just cos there much rarer..

 

[Linky Lee]

I would of thought you would of had this decided before you were on the market for a new pro sax.

Without knowing what type of sax you're after it sounds like you just want to spend money where it is really necessary.

It's good to have a healthy balance of saxes in your collection that you like. My collection is very Alto dominant. (2 great Altos, 1 very good for the money Tenor) So I'm shopping for a pro Tenor, then either a 'good for the price' soprano or a Baritone if I can source the money.

Play through your saxes, see what ones you really really like, see where your weakness is and get something you don't really cater for that well in your collection.

E.G. I have the vintage warm alto, and the modern bright alto, without having the vintage alto I probably wouldn't of gotten into Tenor or Baritone. Getting something that opens up new sounds, ideas and pitches is great! It may not be your favorite one in your collection, but it will be worth it as you will open up to new players, new music and sounds and that will influence further decisions.

Base your choice on your weak area. Or if you really need need a pro sax, get a top quality one to cover your strongest area. whatever that may be.

 

[Pete Thomas]

Here's a though, get the pro alto you love, and get one of the really cheap but good Chinese tenors (gear4music).

 

[Bobby G]

Has Gear4music got a bari?

CheersBob

 

[Pete Thomas]

Bob Green wrote:
Has Gear4music got a bari?

CheersBob

Not yet, but they are about to. The price they are talking about is too high. I'm sure a Hanson would be better for the money.

 

[tris]

Thanks for the advice!!

Well... I was nearly 99% certain about this alto now 100%. To be honest I have really outgrown my TJ. I am not spending money for the hell of it. (A new car would be a better idea!) This would be my first pro horn. My wife even agrees: which must say something!!

This has been a long and hard decision to make as the acquisition of the necessary funds has required the sacrifice of a very special guitar. To be honest it was more difficult telling Val my plans to sell it. It has always been a bit too posh if you know what I mean. Plus as far as artistry is concerned I have battled with the guitar which is by nature a percussive instrument. You can get round this will compression / overdrive etc. but this strips any personality from your playing. I think I have been drifting towards the sax for 9 years or so.



Bari players do get the gigs... A friend of a friend down to London not that long ago, he is now playing Bari for Amy Winehouse. It is weird seeing him in the videos!

 

[mfox]

WTG look forward to see some pics of the new beast..
if your shoulders not completely healed maybe a harness would be a wise investment too..
amy winehouse is good.. i will have to look out for your friend..

 

[Bobby G]

There's something odd about Amy Winehouse's latest recording. Fine, she has a voice, but it's as if her voice and the drums have been grafted on to the main backing track, which sounds very strange - kind of muffled, as if a certain frequency has either been lost, or over-emphasised, in the studio, and the dynamics are not there either (over-compressed?). Whatever it is, it doesn't sound right. I actually find it quite uncomfortable to listen to. Very peculiar.

Is your friend-of-a-friend on the record, Tris?

Cheers, Bob

 

[tris]

I think so I will have to check. I only jamed with him a couple of times. We share a common friend.

I know what you mean about the recordings. It is the way that things are done. R' works with this Manchester dance act called the Futureheads. Last year they worked on a track for Lemar. The vocals were recorded with basic harmony... then it was farmed to them in Manchester. Sasdly the record company dropped the track 🙁 R' could have done with the PRS cash!

 

[Bobby G]

Yeah, I'm aware of the Futureheads, and Lemar; his stuff although very produced has a coherent sound, and he's a good singer too. I'm ok with 'dance collectives' or whatever they are called, who really muck around with sounds and synths and things, I'm a big fan of Underworld, the Orb, Banco de Gaia, Orbital etc etc. I've even played live a couple of times with the 'Kane-it' crew, a kind of old-skool/trance thing. My echo-delayed acoustic guitar worked well with their sound, I'd like to play some sax over that kind of thing too. It's a genre where I think the soprano might work well.

And I like the specs with the torches in 🙂

Cheers, Bob