Playing the saxophone "Bring Out"

[ESJohn]

One of our tunes for the Christmas season is A Charlie Brown Christmas (arr. Paul Murtha). Of course, one of the selections is "Christmastime is here" and I have a soli with another instrument for the phrase

Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year

I don't know what other instrument is playing as I've been concentrating on hearing the sound coming out of my horn.
It's easy and enjoyable to play except that I'm thrown off by the instructions by Murtha to "bring out". Does that mean the same as mf or f? Or is it referring more to the feeling of the melody at that moment? And if that is the case, how would I accomplish that? Our director has made no comments on it, but I haven't taken the time to ask her, either. Just curious as to your thoughts. Thanks!

 

[Tuppertn]

I assume a direction like that means to pump up the volume a bit. A soli section carries the melody using fewer instruments so if the rest of the band's dynamic is stable then the soli players need to play a little louder to "bring out" the part above the band.

 

[Pete Thomas]

I'm thrown off by the instructions by Murtha to "bring out"

I'm not surprised. It isn't a musical term.

But maybe it just means play louder then anyone else?

 

[Pete Effamy]

It means as you’d guess - make sure the line is heard. It’s probably not the melody, but could be a harmony to the melody or a nice inner line. Whatever it is, the arranger wants it heard.

 

[ESJohn]

the arranger wants it heard.

I guess we're doing it correctly, then. I am able to hear myself and the other (who is on the opposite side of the room) well enough. I just don't want to sound like I'm yelling. The phrase is repeated a second time, so the first playing would be this:
Fun for all that children call
Their favorite time of year
and then the one in my earlier post.
I try to imagine a soft, gentle snowfall as I'm playing it, not a blizzard.

 

[Pete Effamy]

I just don't want to sound like I'm yelling.

That’s up to the conductor to mitigate. The conductor is the sound engineer in this case and has a good position to “move the faders”. It’s up to the players to play the dynamics though - a conductor can beckon or check a particular dynamic but doesn’t have time to “re-mix” constantly.

 

[Gandalfe]

I always bring up the volume on solos and in my whole career, no director asked me to play quieter. I also often mark interesting and fun parts of my chart as SOLO so that I will bring it out to be heard over the often thundering herd. Again, no director has ever asked me to play softer. But I do get a *lot* of "bring it out a little louder" queues from the big band director when I play bari.

 

[ghostler]

In the community band when I was playing first alto, I always brought out the solos by picking up the volume with respect to the band's backing. Dynamic markings are relative. This is the "time to shine".

Since moving to tenor (then we had many altos but one or no tenor), rarely now do I get a solo. Most of the time I'm doubling with the French horns, trombones, sometimes in transcribed pieces I have the viola counter melodies. With the counter melodies, I will bring it out a little bit, but not to dominate the melody, let its presence be known. I will push a little bit to bring out a moving line in a chord but then quickly back off. It is little nuances like this that reflects one's proficiency. A smile on the conductor's face when hearing something he or she likes is satisfying.

 

[ESJohn]

I always bring up the volume on solos and in my whole career, no director asked me to play quieter.

I always brought out the solos by picking up the volume

In the five years that I've been in the NHB, the words "you're too loud" were heard repeatedly by the band members. Our director for all of those years is now retired, but the words are very much ingrained in our brains. Only on rare occasions would anyone hear instructions otherwise, and generally those were the trombones. We would receive instructions for the majority of the band to play softer so that if a section or soloist was playing, they could be heard better. We're under different leadership now, so those words aren't uttered very often.
'Christmastime is here' is the last part of the medley. It's cool to be an important part of the what the audience will remember more than the songs that don't make up the beginning or the end. I also have a very nice part (along with many others) during what would be, lyrically, 'Christmastime is here'. I have four measures that have two beats of rest, and then alternating B and Ab, which I try to play softly in the background supporting the melody. These four measures are repeated, as is the soli.
I will do my best to be heard above the others without being obnoxious.

 

[ghostler]

Normally if the conductor has full control of the band, the members shouldn't have anything to say about your dynamics except to mention if there is an intonation problem.

Playing too loud is usually directed at the brass because they can easily overblow the woodwinds. This is true also of saxes if not careful.

You got a new conductor who appears to be bigger on balance. Sounds like your band is turning over a new leaf, better horizons ahead. I'd forget the past and move on.