Beginner (playing) To slur or not to slur?

[rsksmiles]

I have just had a look at the warm up on this site http://tamingthesaxophone.com/saxophone-warmup.html and listened to the sample. The music sheet if I am not mistaken, does not indicate that the notes are to be slurred but it sounds that way in the sample.

Is my hearing so bad that I cannot make out the individual tongueing of the notes?

Robert

 

[JasonC]

Yes I see what you mean, I'm sure Pete will comment on it and explain, but that's how my tonguing sounds a lot of the time at the moment and my tutor has pulled me up on it big time! My tonguing used to be better but as I've started concentrating on other stuff its got a bit lax.

 

[Pete Thomas]

I have just had a look at the warm up on this site http://tamingthesaxophone.com/saxophone-warmup.html and listened to the sample. The music sheet if I am not mistaken, does not indicate that the notes are to be slurred but it sounds that way in the sample.

Is my hearing so bad that I cannot make out the individual tongueing of the notes?

The very first page of the book mentions the different articulations that you can use. the exercises are mostly not written out with articulations marked, it is up to the player to adapt them. It would make no sense to me to write the exercise several times with different articulations, especially when these exercises are aimed at intermediate and professional players with a view to learning improvisation as well.

having said that I think the exercise on the audio clip is played with very light tonguing.

 

[rsksmiles]

The very first page of the book mentions the different articulations that you can use. the exercises are mostly not written out with articulations marked, it is up to the player to adapt them. It would make no sense to me to write the exercise several times with different articulations, especially when these exercises are aimed at intermediate and professional players with a view to learning improvisation as well.

having said that I think the exercise on the audio clip is played with very light tonguing.

Thanks Pete for this explanation. I think I need to completely rework my embouchure and tonguing. I am breathing out too hard and making a loud sound and when I tongue it sounds so obvious that I am doing so. For example when I play "when the saints go marching in", if I tongue it sounds so terrible and does not have much swing to it. When I slurr it sounds better. I suppose I should learn to tongue lighter as JasonC says.

I have ordered your DVD - does the "book" come with it?

 

[Pete Thomas]

I have ordered your DVD - does the "book" come with it?

No, they are separate and actually unrelated. The DVD is a primer for absolute beginners, the book contains mostly exercises for intermediate/advanced players but with also a big section on tone and tone exercises as well as the fingering stuff. Parts of it are useful for beginners but that is not its primary objective.

I am very pleased that my soft tonguing sounds like slurring. 🙂

 

[half diminished]

The DVD is a primer for absolute beginners, the book contains mostly exercises for intermediate/advanced players but with also a big section on tone and tone exercises as well as the fingering stuff. Parts of it are useful for beginners but that is not its primary objective.

Does that mean books 1 and 2 are on the carsd then