Chris98
Senior Member
- 1,062
I need to spice up my warm up routine and ‘technical’ workout, scales, arpeggios etc. I’ve realised I’m going through the motions instead of focusing in on the purpose of the exercises. I could just refocus myself but I know that’s only a short term solution, I need to spice it up or at least change what I do so that it’s different.
My current regime:
1. Long tones from middle A to low Bb holding each note for ten beats at 66bpm.
2. Then I work through my arpeggios at 112 bpm
3. Then a bit of work on the higher octave and similarly on the lower.
4. A warm up exercise James Galway developed for the flute that I’ve adopted for the sax and extended lower to incorporate to the low Bb.
5. Overtones exercise - Low C# to Low Bb.
6. Vibrato exercise.
Exercises 1, 2, 3, 5 & 6 taken from “Creative Saxophone Work Book”
7. Chromatic runs D-D and E-E - two octaves starting at 144bpm and edging up to 176bmp both tongued and untongued.
8. Major scales at 136bpm (umm should really be doing the minors as well but umm, well, umm…)
Depending on time I either do:
The major scales in diatonic thirds and diatonic thirds in inversion or Pete’s Ex 1-01. I then tend to go though the pieces I’m working on in my lessons, this will be broken up with an intonation exercise from David Beecroft’s book “Perfecting Intonation.” This really helps calm the mind after getting my fingers in a twist with any of the pieces because it’s about nothing other than focusing in on the intonation and tone.
There we have it, but I’m not getting the most out of it because I’ve been doing the same for a long time now and need to change or spice it up for get me focused again.
So, as I’m about to rework this over the next few days, I was wondering what you do to warm up and what exercises you find helpful or if there are any good books that you’d recommend.
I know there are glaring holes in my routine, no improvisation for example, a distinct lack of minor scales, blues scales, flexibility and speed developing exercises but it feels like there is too little time to fit it all in. Maybe rather than do the same thing day in day out I need to work out two, three or maybe more different routines and rotate through them.
Best wishes,
Chris
My current regime:
1. Long tones from middle A to low Bb holding each note for ten beats at 66bpm.
2. Then I work through my arpeggios at 112 bpm
3. Then a bit of work on the higher octave and similarly on the lower.
4. A warm up exercise James Galway developed for the flute that I’ve adopted for the sax and extended lower to incorporate to the low Bb.
5. Overtones exercise - Low C# to Low Bb.
6. Vibrato exercise.
Exercises 1, 2, 3, 5 & 6 taken from “Creative Saxophone Work Book”
7. Chromatic runs D-D and E-E - two octaves starting at 144bpm and edging up to 176bmp both tongued and untongued.
8. Major scales at 136bpm (umm should really be doing the minors as well but umm, well, umm…)
Depending on time I either do:
The major scales in diatonic thirds and diatonic thirds in inversion or Pete’s Ex 1-01. I then tend to go though the pieces I’m working on in my lessons, this will be broken up with an intonation exercise from David Beecroft’s book “Perfecting Intonation.” This really helps calm the mind after getting my fingers in a twist with any of the pieces because it’s about nothing other than focusing in on the intonation and tone.
There we have it, but I’m not getting the most out of it because I’ve been doing the same for a long time now and need to change or spice it up for get me focused again.
So, as I’m about to rework this over the next few days, I was wondering what you do to warm up and what exercises you find helpful or if there are any good books that you’d recommend.
I know there are glaring holes in my routine, no improvisation for example, a distinct lack of minor scales, blues scales, flexibility and speed developing exercises but it feels like there is too little time to fit it all in. Maybe rather than do the same thing day in day out I need to work out two, three or maybe more different routines and rotate through them.
Best wishes,
Chris