SOTM SOTM September 2022 "The Entertainer"

Jimmymack said:
I agree with Wade, try to get away from the dots so you can relax a bit. It’s hard to comment on your tone because I think the recording isn’t doing you any favours, and you say you were having to blast it out which never helps, but I recommend the dreaded long tones, and try and get the mic sorted.
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Dont think the caravan helps but ive at least been through the process now..Feedbacks so important..time fir anorger lesson maybe..
 
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Congratulations. That is a great first effort. Putting on my "teacher's hat" I would suggest taking a bit less mouthpiece inside the mouth to add more refinement to the tone quality. Record yourself playing long tones and make small adjustments to the embouchure, etc. to move toward the tone you are looking for, and then record the tune again. I am looking forward to hearing more from you in the future.
 
LostCircuits said:
Somewhere between laid-back, cool and experimental:
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Wow! And I though Roland Kirk was creative. 😉 I didn't expect the synthesized sounds to take over where the sax left off. That took me completely by surprise, but in a good way. It sounded a bit like a synthesized muted trumpet and a bass clarinet and soprano sax near the end. That was, in fact, very cool. Thanks for the addition to the thread.
 
jbtsax said:
Wow! And I though Roland Kirk was creative. 😉 I didn't expect the synthesized sounds to take over where the sax left off. That took me completely by surprise, but in a good way. It sounded a bit like a synthesized muted trumpet and a bass clarinet and soprano sax near the end. That was, in fact, very cool. Thanks for the addition to the thread.
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John, thanks for the kind words.

I wanted to do the c-mel as a starter, it's just such a laid-back salon instrument but then it can also get boring after a while.

That's why I wanted to add something different and after listening to some Miles tunes (I listen to Miles a lot!), I thought a mute trumpet would add a very different accent to the song. Disclaimer: listening to Miles is very far from playing like Miles and yes there was some inspiration but I'll be darned if I even had an illusion of pulling off something along his style - maybe a tiny little bit of wishful thinking 🙂. So I dusted off my Roland AE-10 (the synth sounds aren't really great but it is recognizable). There are clear limitations to it though, it's cool for a few things as long as you don't listen to it too closely.

Then I did the c-sop and the c-sop is a little race horse, it just wants to play many notes but listening to it it sounded a bit thin. That's how the idea with the bass clarinet duet was born. And to be honest, I had to record the bass clarinet track about 8 bars at the time to get rid of the squeaks and other ugly noises. I mean, if I keep practicing again, I could probably play it life in a week or less but it sounds better in the recording than it really is relative to my proficiency
 
eb424 said:
Thanks better than I was expecting from feedback..I thought it was flat and soulless..need some technique quickly..oh and a non wired set of headphones..lol..seemed a bit strained if thats the right word..
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Eddie, sorry, I completely missed your track earlier in the week - I was traveling, though and I did not see any notification either. Nice work! I like the way you approach the notes, just a little bit of scooping and that's really all you need to make it sound lively! Keep it up!! And some of the "dissonance/distortion" appears to come from the recording setup, with a better mic, you probably sound 10x better. But there is nothing to be ashamed of. Next year, you are going to look back and maybe think OMG that was awful (which it is not) but it's a milestone in your journey to playing sax!
 
rhysonsax said:
I have recorded all four parts of an arrangement for Saxophone Quartet that I am keen to try out with our quartet. Now I have a head start on the other three members of the quartet.

The Entertainer - Rhys Sax Quartet V1.mp3 - Box

Rhys
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That is a delightful arrangement and recording. It made me smile from beginning to end. Great job playing all four parts with such good intonation, precision, and balance. Please share a video when your quartet performs your arrangement. Thanks for posting.
 
jbtsax said:
That is a delightful arrangement and recording. It made me smile from beginning to end. Great job playing all four parts with such good intonation, precision, and balance. Please share a video when your quartet performs your arrangement. Thanks for posting.
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Thanks @jbtsax . The arrangement was done by Oliver Griffith and was published by Dorn Publications in 1981. I heard it on a recording but it seems to be out of print. I did a bit of detective work and tracked down Oliver who is still an active musician and he very graciously sent me a manuscript copy.

Not sure whether our quartet are willing to be filmed in performance. I will ask !

Rhys
 
rhysonsax said:
Thanks @jbtsax . The arrangement was done by Oliver Griffith and was published by Dorn Publications in 1981. I heard it on a recording but it seems to be out of print. I did a bit of detective work and tracked down Oliver who is still an active musician and he very graciously sent me a manuscript copy.

Not sure whether our quartet are willing to be filmed in performance. I will ask !

Rhys
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Phenomenal....
 
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