Accessories Resource and practice books

[SEAsax]

Does anyone have recommendations for resource books? I'm looking to augment my lessons.

Amazon seems to have a few that are popular for different reasons such as:
25 Daily Exercises for the Saxophone by H. Klose
Daily Warm Up Exercises for the Saxophone by J. McLean
The Art of Saxophone Playing by L. Teal

Does anyone have an opinion that can support or contradict the recommendations there? Any other books you would put on a list for people learning or looking to get better?

Thanks!

 

[kevgermany]

Teal's great as a reference. Rob Buckland's book (not on amazon, find it through google) is also good that way.

But what are you looking for? Method books, jazz stuff, sax general?

Pete's stuff on Taming the Saxophone is excellent as well.

 

[ProfJames]

Have you bought Taming the Saxophone DVD?

 

[Jay]

What sort of music do you want to play?

I've really enjoyed this one: Jazz Method for Saxophone

 

[SEAsax]

I'm looking for some references to help with technical stuff, method, how to play better, as well as some books that have good exercises for daily warmups and things like that. (I did receive 'The Devil's Horn' for Christmas...looking forward to that!)

I want to play jazz and blues mostly.

I'll check out 'Taming the Sax'.

 

[SEAsax]

What sort of music do you want to play?

I've really enjoyed this one: Jazz Method for Saxophone

Is this good for beginners?

 

[ProfJames]

Is this good for beginners?

I've got it and it is pretty good. Worth buying

 

[zelda]

What sort of music do you want to play?

I've really enjoyed this one: Jazz Method for Saxophone

I went to the link and read up on this book/cd. In addition to the backing tracks, does the cd play the tunes so that one will know how he should be playing the tune? My reading skills aren't good enough yet that I can look at the sheet music and tell how the tune should be played.

 

[GJ77]

The Jackie McLean one is a little dry (just a load of scales and arpeggios) however it does what it says on the tin. Great for dexterity and to warm up. I use it and can see the merit in it but it's not a massively enjoyable book to work through - there's a couple of nice transcriptions of McLean solos at the back.

 

[Jay]

I went to the link and read up on this book/cd. In addition to the backing tracks, does the cd play the tunes so that one will know how he should be playing the tune? My reading skills aren't good enough yet that I can look at the sheet music and tell how the tune should be played.

Yes, the CD has the saxophone playing, to play along with. The accompaniment and the sax are on different channels, so you can adjust out the sax when you're ready.

One or two of the tunes were quite fast, when I was first learning them, and I benefitted from putting them through a 'slowdowner' (I use Anytune Pro+ but there are lots of them around) - most were fine.

 

[ellinas]

25 Daily Exercises for the Saxophone by H. Klose
Daily Warm Up Exercises for the Saxophone by J. McLean
The Art of Saxophone Playing by L. Teal

Klose is the ultimate articulation-keywork drilling. Klose's method (other book) although a little bit messy has incredble exercises and wa practiced by most classical saxophonists I know. The 25 daily exercises should be practiced SLOWLY at first. And only if you play them slowly and correctly you get to play therm faster. If you can play accurate these exercises and by accurate I mean articulation, dynamics eveness of tone and with right timing at any tempo 60+, you are in a very good track.
McLean'sexercises are really really good as well.
The Art of saxophone playing is a really valuable source of technical advise. I highly recommend it to anyone that touches saxophones.

The Jazz method for saxophone is an incredible beginners method for jazz for those that want to take the jazz path. a very consistent book that will need a lot of work and self discipline and take you from the absolute beginner to the early intermediate level. It won't make you jazz artist however it will help you motivate yourself into playing the sax through the paths of jazz music. It's the only book I would suggest to anyone that tries to learn by himself.

 

[zelda]

Thanks, Jay and ellinas. I've been learning jazz standards and I want to do a little improvisation here and there and I find myself lacking. So I've decided to take the jazz path. As Yogi Berra said, lol: "I came to a fork in the road and I took it."
Jim

 

[ellinas]

Learn your scales and modes. Learn your arpeggios. Hear the scales. Hear the arpeggios.
Play them with an even round tone.
Listen to jazz as muchas you're practicing.
Start humming your favourite artists solos from start until the end.
If the melody is not in the brain it's unlikely that it will pop out in your fingers.
Humming is a great tool.
Read transcriptions (20%) in an analytic way and write transcriptions (80%)from your favourite songs.
This will train your mind about melodic patterns, note distances, time! etc.
It will improve your relative pitch.
Get a solid jazz theory book like the one or Mark Levine and read it slowly and nicely.
Soon you will be able to hum and play your own lines & know why you're doing what you're doing.

Experiment with chord changes from your real books at home.
There are lots of backing tracks in youtube, hal leonards and Aebersold books.
It doesn't matter if you play messy in the beginning. The idea is ti figure out how much messy you are and improve it. One bar at a time 🙂.
FIND A BAND. and start playing easy standards. The motivation involved in a real band is invaluable.
It also trains you how to get responsive. No backing track or self study will teach you that. (Sometimes in the band you get tought the hard way 🙂 )

These are some rough points on how to get better at improvisation.
Improvisation books are MANY but you can only get bits from each and every one of them.

 

[Salva Domingo]

I recommend the "Look, Listen & Learn" method (3 books). They are written separately depending on the instrument. You can get them for tenor/ soprano or alto/ baritone (basically they have the same text but change the tuning of the music in the CD). You will be able to learn not only to play but to get musical vocabulary and ideas. The styles go from classic music to blues & jazz. The contents and teaching path are really pedagogic.

 

[ellinas]

Not a book, but solid information.
I like the "miltary" way of solving things with a solid example. Best or not it doesn't matter. Their answers are solid and fit for all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE8c_Z4g0-s
I saw in this video the best explanation of voicing octave jumps, reed care suggestions etc.

Solid advice from high level classical performers 🙂

I strongly hope this video is legal. If not you can remove my post.

 

[kevgermany]

I strongly hope this video is legal. If not you can remove my post.

If it's on Youtube, it's ok to link from here. We assume they deal with copyright.

But this series is posted on Youtube by the musicians themselves. So clearly legit. It even works in Germany.

 

[ProfJames]

I posted a Youtube link which was taken down a month ago. It was Steve Harley recorded at the Albert Hall. Who is responsible for copyright? Grey area?

 

[kevgermany]

There's a recent thread on it somewhere. Basically if it's the big boys like youtube, it's up to them and we assume it's legit. Anything else we delete unless it's clearly ok.

 

[ProfJames]

Here you are Kev...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RhFUjY-YQM

 

[SaxDon]

Peter Gelling has a Complete Method which I've found useful. It has lots of good stuff to think about technically and theoretically (both on and off the sax). Takes you from beginner to 'pro' level.