saxophone specific music

scooch · May 24, 2007

Hello all,
I've been checking out the music books available via musicroom.com and notice that they have a 'tenor saxophone', 'alto saxophone' and just 'saxophone' section.
I am awaiting delivery of a tenor, but am I right in thinking I can play any of this music on a tenor? If a piece of music for alto says 'g' I play 'g' on the tenor? Obviously if will sound different but I guess thats not relevant if I'm playing on my own?
Of course I understand that any backing CD for an alto book would not be useable, but the printed music should be fine? Can anyone clarify 8|
Many thanks

philthd · May 24, 2007

yes, its about the whether the accompanying cd or piano music goes with it. the written range of the saxes is the same.

some things will sound a little strage a fifth out if they are things you are used to hearing in a singable key, mind

sharon · May 24, 2007

Scooch - what you've just said is right I think. I've got books that are alto and some just saxophone. My understanding is that as you say - a G is a G on both instruments but they sound different. It's ok as long as you play on your own but the cd will sound different.

I'm sure those with the music theory can clarify.

Sharon

saxplayer67 · May 24, 2007

Saxes, like many other instruments, are transposing instruments. An alto is in Eb, which means if you finger a C it sounds a major sixth lower, so it sounds Eb in concert pitch. Ditto baritone. On tenor, fingering a C gives you a concert Bb, ditto soprano. So you can't take concert pitch music or another pitch of sax's music and hope to sound in the same key. It's okay to do so if playing solo (at least down to the low Bb fingering!) but not if you want to play with other instruments in a different pitch to you.

The names of the keys on a sax are called the same, regardless of size of sax, which makes life a lot easier, otherwise you'd have to learn a different set of fingerings for each sax!

Since alto is my main horn, I buy alto books w/ backing tracks and if I want to play the tunes to the backing on tenor or sop, I just transpose them. I wonder why one can buy alto or tenor but not soprano backing track books though?