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Guys, great excitement be upon me for I can now enter these hallowed frums unashamed, as today I took delivery of my new horn of plenty, the Jupiter Tenor. It is old, scuffed, worn and generally used as it should be, and is without a doubt the most beautiful Saxophone on the planet, so sorry for the rest of you with your less attractive than mine saxophones.
This is the first time I have actually held a Sax, so here are my initial thoughts, particularly in relation to a Clarinet: Boy, this is a lot bigger and heavier, and also more metally. I am a delicate 6'3 flower so I'm sure I'll get used to it, but you sure get a good lump of metal for your money. There were a couple of reeds in the box, Rico Royal 3's. I only play with 2 - 2.5s on the Clari so these are way too hard, but you have to try don't you? Suffice to say that very brief attempt to get a sound was akin to drop kicking cats across the living room.
This evening when I've had a bit more time I've been blowing silently and going up and down C major just to get a feel for blowing and the keys, had to stop as it was becoming harder to not produce a tone, which is I think a good sign. I'll get some more suitable reeds tomorrow.
Anyway, there is a point to this. Other than the sax, a bog standard noname mouthpiece and plastic lig and a slightly broken sling I have no care kit. I jumped on Dawkes and was left bemused by the amount of different bits and pieces they offer from swabs through neck cleaners, bell cleaners, pad protectors etc etc, most of which looked much the same. What do I need to keep my Sax in good order, do you have any recommendations for good, reasonably priced slings, and finally, how am I supposed to get any sleep tonight when I'm all excited about my new acquisition?
My neighbours are really going to cop it tomorrow morning
This is the first time I have actually held a Sax, so here are my initial thoughts, particularly in relation to a Clarinet: Boy, this is a lot bigger and heavier, and also more metally. I am a delicate 6'3 flower so I'm sure I'll get used to it, but you sure get a good lump of metal for your money. There were a couple of reeds in the box, Rico Royal 3's. I only play with 2 - 2.5s on the Clari so these are way too hard, but you have to try don't you? Suffice to say that very brief attempt to get a sound was akin to drop kicking cats across the living room.
This evening when I've had a bit more time I've been blowing silently and going up and down C major just to get a feel for blowing and the keys, had to stop as it was becoming harder to not produce a tone, which is I think a good sign. I'll get some more suitable reeds tomorrow.
Anyway, there is a point to this. Other than the sax, a bog standard noname mouthpiece and plastic lig and a slightly broken sling I have no care kit. I jumped on Dawkes and was left bemused by the amount of different bits and pieces they offer from swabs through neck cleaners, bell cleaners, pad protectors etc etc, most of which looked much the same. What do I need to keep my Sax in good order, do you have any recommendations for good, reasonably priced slings, and finally, how am I supposed to get any sleep tonight when I'm all excited about my new acquisition?
My neighbours are really going to cop it tomorrow morning
