How do you know if you sound good!

[jackiek]

I know this is a strange question. but while i am practising , people tell me it is sounding better. But to me it sounds awful!
Is taping yourself the best way to pick out where you are going wrong?
When practising I go over certain pieces regulary and I find them easier to do. I am also finding it easier to hit the low notes and hold notes for longer, so i guess I am improving in technique.
but how do you judge how well you are doing? Are the people around me just lying to make me feel better! lol
Hope everyone is having a great day

 

[frankb]

It's a really good question and one that applies to many fields besides the sax. Friends and family often have an annoying habit of being polite. Whilst this generally makes 'em a lot more pleasant to be around(!) it does make it more difficult for you to assess your level of ability.

The other factor is that "good" is not an absolute term. People's standards differ. So do their tastes. People may genuinely think you sound good whilst you yourself feel that you haven't yet reached the standard for which you're aiming.

My advice (free and (as a newbie myself!) worth every penny):

- Have an idea of your ultimate goal. Listen to other players and work out what about their playing you like / dislike.
- Set some milestones up along your route, some close in, some further off.
- Be realistic about the time and effort it's going to take you to get to each point on your route.
- Most importantly, enjoy the journey!

A good teacher should be able to help you map out the above and should also be able to give you feedback on your progression.

Recording yourself may help too, but bear in mind that any shortcomings in your recording setup will make you sound different (and usually worse!). If nothing else it would give you a snapshot of what you sounded like on a given day. You could then make another recording a month later and see what improvement there was.

Hope the above ramblings are of some use (and that your day is great too!),

Frank

 

[Linky Lee]

recording yourself and listening back is in my opinion the best thing you can do to analyse your playing!

You hear everything when listening back, articulation, vibrato, tone, fluidity etc.
Unfortunately this isn't normally hugely pleasant for perfectionists, which a lot of musicians seem to be.

I'm almost never satisfied with my performances when played back, but I'm happy with what I'm achieving for the time I've had with the instrument.

I'm looking forward to university and having 24 hour a day access to practise rooms and the studio. Also living a minute walk from a fully fledged studio will be great for spur of the moment stuff, being able to get it down and record all sorts of things. And when the inspiration rears it's head, practise all night long.

 

[jackiek]

Thanks for the tips! I feel i am improving, as I dont get out of breath when trying for the long notes! But I know I still have along way to go, but I am enjoying the journey!

You are so right about people being polite. My mom is my best critic. She tells me where she thinks it doesnt sound quite right, without putting me down. God bless moms!
Again thanks for your tips and anymore that you can pass on will be gratefully excepted!

 

[philthd]

Linky_Lee wrote:
I'm almost never satisfied with my performances when played back

i cringe at every tiny mistake

sadly the only good way is to find someone whose opinion you respect and who you can be trust to be honest with you.

although - when i was young i used to work in a library and on my break i used to read the telegraph and the morning star for a balanced view of the world. so in the same vein, maybe you can balance out the positive bias of your family with someone you can be sure will be really critical

 

[Saxlicker]

jackiek wrote:

When practising I go over certain pieces regulary and I find them easier to do.

I am also finding it easier to hit the low notes and hold notes for longer, so i guess I am improving in technique.

Are the people around me just lying to make me feel better! lol

Hi J.K.!

people are generally too polite when seeking appraisal like you are.
That said, as you can see from your own post that I've chopped about a little bit...you know you're improving so why shouldn't they notice a little extra control and fluidity here and there?

It all makes for sweeter playing thats easier on the ear.

BTW...about recording yourself......
At such an early stage, I wouldn't bother. Its validity that Lee swears by will become useful to you.... but right now?
I think your brain, fingers, lips, jaw, eyes and lungs have plenty to cope with without trying to adjust your new found, ever developing basic controls based on a dry recording.

You'll hate it! and without some reasonable gear it'll do you an injustice.

Just enjoy the comments and remember your own milestones.

 

[Linky Lee]

that's a very good point, bad recordings are useless.

I think it;s always good to hear yourself from a listeners point of view, but you're probably right saxlicker, there's a lot you can do now that will help you improve and it probably is undue stress and effort to start recording yourself at this point into your career.

A teacher is a good one to ask, they have heard so so many beginners that they can honestly tell you how you are sounding in comparison to others of a similar ability.

 

[mfox]

when you sound good people pay you..

 

[Pete Thomas]

This is a very good question actually. Developing a sort of impartial ear, ie listening to or hearing yourself as others do is possibly a very neglected and quite difficult area of musicianship.

So many people are either too modest or arrogant, striking the balance is quite tricky, it's not something I'm sure I've even got to grips with after so many years.

 

[mr__myles]

I think recording yourself at any stage in playing is always a good idea. I've recorded myself since the very beginning and its awesome to see how much I have improved. You learn to hear what you could be doing better, how to attack that certain note, plus, its always good to hear yourself in many different types of environments. Bear in mind, some days you'll sound way better then others.

Practice your major scales, and use a tuner while you do it. Go slow and make sure every note is clean. Long tones are key as well. Practice all of these scales over the entire range of your instrument.

I think you can tell that your sound is getting better when you learn to realize that a note is out of tune by one or two cents, and when you get that feeling that your sax is cuttin' through your soul. Ya gotta feel it man.

 

[Rogerb]

There's quite a lot been written advising *against* over-use of a tuner, mainly because it works against developing your 'ear'... the common advice appears to be to use it only for tuning-up at the start of a practice session.

After that, just listen!

 

[mr__myles]

True, point taken. I play my long tones and try to get it in tune without looking at the tuner, when I feel its right, I glance up to make sure I'm in tune.

 

[philthd]

mfox wrote:
when you sound good people pay you..

ive got away with playing really quite poorly and still walked away a little richer - not everyone knows what theyre paying for

 

[Bobby G]

mfox wrote:
when you sound good people pay you..

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

If that was really true, I'd be minted by now.

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Modestly yours, Bob.

 

[frankb]

Bobby G wrote:

mfox wrote:
when you sound good people pay you..

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

If that was really true, I'd be minted by now.

You mean you only play after eight?



I'll get my coat...

 

[Simon]

Great question Jackie...

Another way to track your progress is to transcribe - not necessarily writing it down but playing along with a recording. I (and a fair few others) get a kick outta sounding close to 'legendary recordings', articulation and phrasing wise. Tone develops as you go... 🙂

Tracking your progress against actual recordings is part of the fun, and gives you targets to work towards. As you achieve a certain degree of success, so your confidence and abilities build.

Simon

jackiek wrote:
I know this is a strange question. but while i am practising , people tell me it is sounding better. But to me it sounds awful!
Is taping yourself the best way to pick out where you are going wrong?
When practising I go over certain pieces regulary and I find them easier to do. I am also finding it easier to hit the low notes and hold notes for longer, so i guess I am improving in technique.
but how do you judge how well you are doing? Are the people around me just lying to make me feel better! lol
Hope everyone is having a great day

 

[jackiek]

thanks everyone.
Simon when you talk about playing along with recordings dont you need to be able to play by ear for that?
or do you just sit down and try and find the notes as you go? And keep on until you get it right?
Whats the best way to try it?

 

[Bobby G]

jackiek wrote:
thanks everyone.
Simon when you talk about playing along with recordings dont you need to be able to play by ear for that?
or do you just sit down and try and find the notes as you go? And keep on until you get it right?
Whats the best way to try it?

It can be a matter of finding a few right notes and filling in the gaps as you go, and the more you do it the easier it gets.

I've always been primarily an ear player (or a player by ear) since taking up the guitar at 13; parallel with increased facility playing by ear is an increase in feel, wehere you develop some kind of instinct about what you need to play (or equally important, what to leave out, or when not to play at all) to fit the music.

The best way to try it is to try it 🙂

Cheers, Bob

 

[Pete Thomas]

Whether you find the right notes or not, playing along by ear is very good. You'll soak up the feel and rhythmic style. Even if you don't get the "right" notes immediately, listen to what you do play and decided whether or not it fits anyway.

 

[Bobby G]

Pete Thomas wrote:
Whether you find the right notes or not, playing along by ear is very good. You'll soak up the feel and rhythmic style. Even if you don't get the "right" notes immediately, listen to what you do play and decided whether or not it fits anyway.

Good point - not only can you teach yourself a tune by ear, but sometimes you'll find that a 'wrong' note is a valid harmony, and you can go down the route of trying to harmonise with a tune, or parts of it. Developing feel is another thing that can be learned playing by ear, e.g. what licks or phrases fit in between or complement a vocal tune in the way you'll often hear a horn weaving round a singer. Then of course there's the ear-training method of developing the mighty riff!

Cheers, Bob