Intonation playing in tune

[stringy]

When practicing blowing individual notes they are falling short of their pitch, too low. Any advice how i can alter the sound to make it go slightly higher in order to attain the correct pitch. I am using the app TE Tuner as a guidence. Totally frustrated. Welcome any advice. Thanks

 

[Jeanette]

You could try pushing the mouthpiece further on the cork.

Jx

 

[Neffmusic]

When practicing blowing individual notes they are falling short of their pitch, too low. Any advice how i can alter the sound to make it go slightly higher in order to attain the correct pitch. I am using the app TE Tuner as a guidence. Totally frustrated. Welcome any advice. Thanks

If they are low all the time simply push in your mouthpiece like Jeanette suggests. If you mean they are falling out of tune as you hold them, that is probably an issue of an undeveloped airstream that isn't supported by the diaphragm. That would suggest spending time with long tones and working on proper breathing technique.

 

[jbtsax]

There is an exercise that I used to use with my band students that was designed to teach them how to "match pitch".
I played an amplified pitch from a tuning device and using hand gestures had them play above the pitch then below the pitch and then slowly raise the pitch up to the target. For most instruments this was done by tightening and loosening the embouchure. For flutes it was raising and lowering the head keeping the instrument in the same position. It is important to learn to tune with our ears---not with our eyes. 😉

 

[mizmar]

app TE Tuner

This app has a matched tone drone function. Screen "sounds" then touch the icon lower left corner with a mic and two quavers. With headphones to avoid feedback! And if you are going to look at the display, don't forget to set the transposition. I use it for longtones, matching by ear rather than eye (if I can resist the temptation). I think this has helped me. It's much like jbtsax & Neffmusic says.

 

[stringy]

Thank you to the following members who's advice i will follow.
Thanks to :Mizmar, jbtsax, Neffmusic, and of course Jeanette the Vixen.
Stay safe and well.

 

[GCinCT]

This app has a matched tone drone function. Screen "sounds" then touch the icon lower left corner with a mic and two quavers. With headphones to avoid feedback! And if you are going to look at the display, don't forget to set the transposition. I use it for longtones, matching by ear rather than eye (if I can resist the temptation). I think this has helped me. It's much like jbtsax & Neffmusic says.

I use the app the same way. I make a point of turning my back so I can’t see it. Eliminating the “safety net” really helped me learn to trust my ears.

 

[stringy]

I use the app the same way. I make a point of turning my back so I can’t see it. Eliminating the “safety net” really helped me learn to trust my ears.

Thanks for the tip GCinCT. Never thought of using it like that. It;'s a really good idea.
Regards,
Dave. UK🙂

 

[mizmar]

I reckon a good way to get used to playing in tune is something like;
Set your emboucher and play a few scales - without looking at the tuner.
Look at the tuner and get the B flats in tune (get the horn in tune with itself) by adjusting the mouthpiece on the cork.
Go through longtones and overtones with the ear/drone function making slight emboucher adjustments.
As we learn / mature our emboucher changes or you might want to try firmer or looser styles... This should help keep you in tune.

 

[stitch]

making slight emboucher adjustments.

Until you can spell it correctly?

 

[mizmar]

Until you can spell it correctly?

we're talking about the tyranny of the equal temperament tuning systems not the vagaries of the English (nor, indeed, French) language.

 

[stringy]

I reckon a good way to get used to playing in tune is something like;
Set your emboucher and play a few scales - without looking at the tuner.
Look at the tuner and get the B flats in tune (get the horn in tune with itself) by adjusting the mouthpiece on the cork.
Go through longtones and overtones with the ear/drone function making slight emboucher adjustments.
As we learn / mature our emboucher changes or you might want to try firmer or looser styles... This should help keep you in tune.

Thank you mizmar. I'll certainly follow your advice.
Regards, Dave, UK

 

[LostCircuits]

The ears are what matters, like everybody else just said. And there is also Tuner Ninja just in case you need a variation in your visual feedback. These apps are all great to get started and to hone your ears, that is, to remove some of the confusion about whether you are flat or sharp because often enough you will just know you are not in tune but not which way you are off, specifically when you are a novice. But like the general consensus here states, use it as a learning tool. Our brains are wired for synesthesia and one sense can learn from another but you will eventually discard the training wheels, it just takes time and practice.

 

[mizmar]

Thank you mizmar. I'll certainly follow your advice.

Don't follow me, I'm a stranger round here myself!

 

[Veggie Dave]

As jbtsax says, you have to tune your playing with your own ears. Use the tuner to set your sax up before you start playing then put it away while you play to your favourite song/backing track.

As a beginner, you're not going to be playing quick songs but still make an active choice to practise some slow ones/ballads specifically as a way to hone your intonation. The trick here is to balance the volume of the song with the volume of the sax so that you can hear yourself within the music as this makes hearing your intonation much, much easier. Backing tracks with a guide melody really come into their own for this as you're pitching your playing to a clear melody.

There are a number of reasons why I think this is a good excercise. First off, you're playing a song you like - that's always fun and far more likely to keep your interest than playing individual notes while staring at a tuner. Next, you're learning to play and listen at the same time, which is of paramount importance. That may sound odd at the moment but it should very quickly make sense. Also, I think this helps bring confidence to your playing because you'll really hear yourself improving because you've learned to listen while playing. You're not teaching yourself to play half-heartedly as you constantly try to change the pitch of your note to what the tuner says is in tune.

No one will ever be 100% perfect no matter how long they've played for or how much they practice - having a tuner constantly telling you you're out of tune is never going to acheive anything other than to destroy your confidence. I'm doing a lot of recording at the moment for various lockdown videos and I'm playing with other wind players who've got decades of experience and who sound incredible. Not one of them has produced a recording that was 100% in tune.

That's not to say tuners don't have a place, especially when it comes to problem solving certain issues, but at the moment learning to hear yourself playing while you're playing will be far more productive and positive.

 

[turf3]

Lots of good advice here, but I think OP may be more at the level of "push in".

OP, play a G without octave key, and push in or pull out till it's in tune on the tuner (the tuner will indicate either Bb for alto/baritone or F for tenor/soprano). If as often happens the cork has been crushed down so there's a lip or rim beyond which you can't push the mouthpiece, delicately trim the larger-diameter section that's hindering your pushing in with a single edge razor blade (or take it to a repair shop where they'll properly fit the cork to your mouthpiece in about 10 mintues for about $10).

I tune to middle G because it's not affected by the octave vent, it's a fully vented note (rather than being one where there is an open pad and then closed pads below it) and it's in the middle of the length of the tube.

 

[Dave Dunn]

It just occurred to me that something seems to have been overlooked here, despite all of the great advice.
The term "intonation" is what you want to include in an online search on the subject of playing in tune, there are lots of videos and written tutorials on the subject that may not come up without intonation in the wording of a search.
You may have already known this, but I thought there's no harm in mentioning it. 🙂