Saxophone Reviews

What do saxophone ligatures do?​ In spite of what you might read on reddit, or what AI tells you, if a mouthpiece table is flat the reed is fine the ligature is working properly and fits the mouthpiece then changing to any other ligature with the same characteristics makes no difference. Neither the material nor […]

Martin Indiana Saxophones Part 1 - The Indiana Band Instrument Company I have been trying to learn more about Martin Indiana saxophones recently. The Indiana was the brand name for Martin’s second-line instruments. I thought I would write down what I have found out. None of this information is new or original - I’m just […]

Preparing a reed for playing (summary)​ 1. Soak the reed: Place the reed in a cup of water for around 30 seconds to a minute. This will allow the reed to absorb water and make it play more easily. 2. Adjust the reed: After soaking, take the reed out of the water and examine it. […]

Examples of the saxophone growl​ Growling is one of the most popular effects on the saxophone. We often associate it with rock and pop playing but it's also a very legitimate technique in jazz, used by the greats from Ben Webster through to David Sanborn. Before I go on the describe it, here are some […]

So, you want to play in a band… and why you should One of the best things that you can do as a musician – whether you are very experienced or an absolute beginner – is to play together with other people. There are many reasons why you should do it. Unfortunately, too many people […]

Reverb​Why reverb?​There are two main reasons you might add reverb: As an effect to make the music sound "subjectively" better. In this case you, or the audience, hear the reverb as something that can add more life or sparkle to the sound. It is easy to overdo this effect and swamp the recording. This is […]

Soundproofing: DIY “Room Within a Room” Home studio acoustics Part 1 Home Studio Acoustics Part 2 – Making HF Absorbers Soundproofing: DIY “Room Within a Room”​You will be very lucky to get complete sound proofing for your studio or rehearsal room, but for basic home recording or practising you will get away with partial soundproofing, […]

This article is based on my experience playing the saxophone on recording sessions, and also recording saxophones while working as a producer/sound engineer sometimes alongside some of the best sound engineers in the world in some top studios. These methods work for me and are based on a lot of trial and error as well […]

Different Microphone Polar Patterns​ Polar patternCharacteristicsOmniPicks up signal all roundCardioidPicks up mainly in front (and a little off-axis sound from side and back)Hyper CardioidSame as Cardioid but more focussedFigure of 8Picks up front and back (with a little off-axis from the side) Sony C-100... Read more

Introduction​This is something I have been working on since I retired from teaching in 2002. It is a summary of techniques that proved successful in teaching beginning students. My emphasis from the beginning was on tone production. My reasoning was if students liked how they sound, they would practice more and enjoy playing music. If […]