Playing the saxophone Recording yourself play

[thehunt]

I have written on another part of the Caff.. about recording devices. I have been playing now for 18 months and not ever heard myself play, just bought a Zoom H2 as recommended by my esteemed fellow sax players and recorded a few tracks last night.
Wow! what an eye opener or should that be ear ?
I would recommend if you have not done it do it, i was amazed at how i perceived some notes as being good were in fact to harsh, i tend to tongue too much and attack most notes too harshly. It was not all bad though as my impro was ok and timing was good. As far as my ears could tell me.
It would be good to hear from others if they have gone through this phase and if it helped.
I do work a lot on tone, long notes etc but boy do i need to do more of that. Phil:welldone

 

[Chris98]

I have written on another part of the Caff.. about recording devices. I have been playing now for 18 months and not ever heard myself play, just bought a Zoom H2 as recommended by my esteemed fellow sax players and recorded a few tracks last night.
Wow! what an eye opener or should that be ear ?
I would recommend if you have not done it do it, i was amazed at how i perceived some notes as being good were in fact to harsh, i tend to tongue too much and attack most notes too harshly. It was not all bad though as my impro was ok and timing was good. As far as my ears could tell me.
It would be good to hear from others if they have gone through this phase and if it helped.
I do work a lot on tone, long notes etc but boy do i need to do more of that. Phil:welldone

Hi Phil,

I've always found it a humbling experience, but well worth it. You could always be kind to yourself and add a little reverb in Audacity, that is unless your already playing in your bathroom!

I think I'll follow your lead and dig out a mic and record my practice tonight.

All the best,

Chris

 

[c9off]

i was amazed at how i perceived some notes as being good were in fact to harsh, i tend to tongue too much and attack most notes too harshly.

Yep that sounds just like me! Having recorded myself since the off sadly I am still disappointed in progress, keeps my feet firmly planted though!...

It is amazing how many people in the community band that have played forever without hearing themselves (until I came along!)....

 

[half diminished]

It kind of worked the other way for me. I've been moaning to my teacher about my sound and how poor it was compared to hers. She kept reassuring me.

Since recording myself, I've realised that I sound better than I thought. Now don't get me wrong here, there is still huge room for improvement but t lest I now have a better idea of my sound.

You are right though about nuances and articulation. Its easier to spot how well you have mastered this in a recording than during 'live' sessions.

I'm hoping to get a proper mic stand soon and I'll then be doing some more recording. I'd love to hear how different I sound now to what I did a few months ago.

 

[thehunt]

Ouch, Karen must be a good teacher then!! Thats what i like positive thinking.

It kind of worked the other way for me. I've been moaning to my teacher about my sound and how poor it was compared to hers. She kept reassuring me.

Since recording myself, I've realised that I sound better than I thought. Now don't get me wrong here, there is still huge room for improvement but t lest I now have a better idea of my sound.

You are right though about nuances and articulation. Its easier to spot how well you have mastered this in a recording than during 'live' sessions.

I'm hoping to get a proper mic stand soon and I'll then be doing some more recording. I'd love to hear how different I sound now to what I did a few months ago.

 

[old git]

I've always listened to myself, everyone else runs away clutching their ears.

 

[half diminished]

Ouch, Karen must be a good teacher then!! Thats what i like positive thinking.

Oi! How rude. I was just starting to like you.

 

[AndyB]

Thanks for starting this thread. I have been very self critical because I'm totally unsure about where to tongue and how hard and where to play legato. Maybe the answer is to record myself like you suggest and let my ears be the judge rather than looking at dots.

BTW, I ordered the budget USB model of the interface that CrazyDaisyDoo recommends. It looks very compact and my practice corner is cluttered enough.

Alesis_IO_2_iO_2_USB_Audio_Interface

 

[visionari1]

BTW, I ordered the budget USB model of the interface that CrazyDaisyDoo recommends. It looks very compact and my practice corner is cluttered enough.

QUOTE]

I missed that Andy, can you put a link up to it please.

Let us know how you get on with this new unit and what else do you need to go with it?
Have you posted any audio's before, if so you could maybe do a before and after.

Cheers.;}

 

[AndyB]

I'm new at this. I don't have any great aspirations other than recording myself to improve my phrasing. So I didn't need all the power and features of the exact model that Mathew recommends in this link:

Good Audio and Video Recording for Youtube

The one I ordered looks like a scaled down, simplified version.