Which saxophone is right for me?

The alto and tenor saxophones are the two most popular and most played of their kind. In addition to their construction and weight, they differ primarily in their sound and range. Due to its size, the tenor sax has a lower pitch and is therefore warmer, richer in overtones and earthier in sound. The smaller alto sax is tuned higher and its sound is generally characterized by more brilliance, radiance and treble. By choosing your mouthpiece and saxophone reed, you as an advanced player with some experience can greatly influence the sound of your instrument and adapt it to your personal taste. Especially at the beginning, the question often arises as to whether alto or tenor sax is the right instrument for you. This primarily decides what you like better in terms of sound and pitch and appeals to you more. So grab your record collection, your CD cabinet or just YouTube and listen to good music.

Is learning the saxophone difficult? – Tips for beginners

To do this you need 3 things: You love the saxophone, have some stamina and time and enjoy playing, trying things out and learning. Otherwise, you need embouchure, breathing and finger technique to learn the saxophone. Start small and then go step by step. With the right guidance it works well, it's not rocket science! A good saxophone teacher can be very helpful, especially at the beginning, because he stops incorrect training in the embouchure in good time and corrects the correct position of the incisors, lower lip, loose lower jaw and the correct interaction of tongue technique when thrusting, embouchure, breathing, and the airflow. This saves you a lot of detours and time and gets you to your goal much faster and directly: namely, playing the saxophone well. Learning the saxophone is really fun and you'll be able to play your first songs soon. Tip 1: The approach This is ensured by the correct lip tension and mouth position. You have to practice the embouchure a little and train the facial muscles around the mouth area so that you can gradually last longer while playing without the embouchure getting tired. But as soon as you have the principle figured out, you can get started. You train your lip tension particularly well with long tones, the so-called sustaining tones. Tip 2: Breathing You obviously need a lot of air to play a wind instrument of this size. There are special breathing techniques and gradually also techniques that support breathing, which make playing easier and much less physically demanding. A very good thing and overall you will notice how healthy and correct breathing affects the way you feel throughout your body. You can also train your breathing at the same time as using the approach with sustained long tones. Tip 3: The fingering and fingering technique The principle of the fingering technique is very similar to that of the recorder - with a little practice you can get the first fingerings in your fingers relatively quickly and can get started right away. In order to learn the most important grips and the associated notes at the start and to practice them in the game, I recommend our Reading Book – Blind Date with notes. The textbook guides you step by step through the forest of fingerings and notes in a clear manner and with great little game pieces. You will get more security and playing practice with our subsequent grade book Reading Book Training – Piggyback. Things are going really well and you can show off what you're capable of! What you still lack in terms of security when grasping or reading music, the training will give you. Learning the saxophone is really fun! In order to then improve your finger technique and gradually increase the speed, there are our simple scales - finger trouble with fun and groove. This music book with playback will get you really fit to play songs and pieces safely and with the necessary musical experience. Regardless of whether it's blues, jazz, classical or simple to moderately difficult pop songs, the saxophone is a very versatile musical instrument and our saxophone sheet music for lessons with a saxophone teacher or as an autodidact in self-study will help you learn the saxophone.

How much does a saxophone cost and what should I pay attention to as a saxophone player?

What you should definitely pay attention to when buying or renting a saxophone: You can either buy a good, reasonable entry-level instrument for around €1000 - €1500, depending on whether it's an alto or tenor sax, or you can also rent it, which is very popular and quite sensible: just rent it. Many music stores offer rental purchase for this purpose. You pay a small deposit and a monthly installment (around €35-50) for a rental instrument and, when the rental period expires, you can purchase the rented instrument by crediting your monthly installment payment. This has the advantage that you can simply try it out and find out whether the whole thing suits you and is fun before you buy a pig in a poke. With a rental period and playing time of 1 or 2 years, you already know very well whether you will stick with it. You can then purchase the rented entry-level instrument with a small remaining payment or opt for a higher-quality instrument, which will usually be credited with the rental payments you have already paid. Overall, a great thing. Even if various internet providers offer great prices, buying a saxophone is and remains a matter of trust. It needs to be serviced and overhauled frequently, and small repairs or readjustments to flaps and springs are often necessary. It is definitely an advantage to have a shop or instrument maker you trust on hand and perhaps even locally or in the next larger city. I really advise against the cheap instruments from the internet for €200 – €500, mainly made in China. They often look pretty, but that's about it. The quality is usually really inadequate, it really hinders your progress and you quickly reach your limits. But not yours, but that of the instrument. And that costs you your valuable time and does you no good. The sound is unstable, squeaky and doesn't get better with a lot of practice, the mechanics run unevenly, the fingers stumble and the mood is bad. First the one from the sax and then yours. Despite a lot of effort, hours of practice and possibly even money spent on a teacher, the noise just sounds like a sick cat. There is nothing more. Even if you're on a tight budget, rental purchase is by far the better and cheaper alternative.

The right mouthpiece for beginners

For beginners and beginners I recommend the Yamaha 5c mouthpiece. This mouthpiece is a bit wider than the standard 4c mouthpiece that is usually included with purchase. The 4c standard mouthpiece has a very classic and defined sound, which is also popular in brass bands. With the slightly larger opening of the 5c model, the sound inherently sounds a little softer and more pleasant and you can control your tone well after a very short time. For blues or jazz, the mouthpiece is a very good entry-level model that you can easily play for about 2 years until your embouchure and your own sound concept are so stable and mature that you can now start looking for your own sound - and So on to a more individual mouthpiece that comes closest to your desired sound and supports it. Welcome to the club! Creating your personal saxophone sound is definitely an exciting thing and a never-ending story.

Sound and sound on the saxophone

The singing voice is closest to the saxophone sound and is therefore the great model of the saxophone sound in terms of expressiveness and intensity. The singing voice is extremely variable in its design, from sky-high jubilation to deathly sadness, and a soulfully sung blues by Billie Holliday is moving and expressive and simply gets under your skin. Just like a soulful blues played on the horn. The aim is to have the deep expressiveness of Billie Holliday. Her fragile voice, as well as her strong emotions and expressiveness, are imitated by blues saxophonists and transferred to the instrument using the appropriate technique. Other singing elements such as strength and power, and a straight, direct, energetic beam in the voice can also be found in various sax sounds, depending on the style. In the pop and funk fusion of David Sanborn or with the old master and absolute high-energy player Maceo Parker, who in turn absorbed James Brown's irrepressible energy for many years as a saxophonist. Saxsound can do a lot and in a wide range - depending on your own wishes and feelings. Wow, just great!

The saxophone – a transposing instrument

Saxophones are so-called transposing instruments. They are not tuned in C, but in E♭ or B♭. The alto and baritone saxophones are in Eb tuning, the tenor and soprano saxophones are in Bb tuning. In practice, this means that the notes of the same piece for alto saxophone and tenor saxophone are in different keys and you therefore need 2 different music books. The nice piano player next door also needs his own C part of the same song. So you can't just take the notes from the piano and play the C notes together with the pianist, because that would sound slightly strange or hyper-modern because you would then be in different keys for everyone to hear! So always make sure that every player has the right notes and it will work!

The saxophone is a woodwind instrument?

Yes, but certainly, says the musicologist, and a clever, clever person also read that on Wikipedia. A sax is of course not made of wood, but the tones are produced via a wooden blade. That's why the saxophone is also a woodwind instrument. Whether sensible or nonsensical - it doesn't matter, because ultimately it is completely irrelevant for the eager player. There's only one thing that matters: the saxophone - regardless of whether it's a woodwind or brass instrument - is an incredibly great instrument, if not THE instrument! And that's all that matters.

The right reed for beginners

You still need the right reed to match your mouthpiece. As a beginner and entry-level blade I recommend the Vandoren Classic, blade strength 2. This is a good and very reliable all-rounder, doesn't make any antics, does what it's supposed to and is easy to handle. If the base is more stable and the base muscles are well trained, the blade thickness can then be increased to blade thickness 12 after about 2,5 months. This requires a little more embouchure muscles, but it also gives the sound more volume and sound stability. There are many different manufacturers, types and thicknesses of reeds. A lighter blade requires significantly less muscle power to play than a heavier one. For starters, a lighter reed is recommended, but in no way less than reed strength 2. With reeds of strength 1 or 1 1/2, it plays as lightly as a recorder, but the sound is very unstable and whines uncontrollably and from and it flies around your ears like a wailing siren. It takes immense embouchure muscles to keep the tone on track with a reed that is too light and to stabilize it in pitch - and it is precisely these embouchure muscles that are missing at the beginning. So it's much easier and better with reed strength 2. If you're a little more trained, you should try heavier reeds, which will then give you a fuller sound. It should be noted that the blades from different manufacturers cannot necessarily be compared with one another in terms of their strength. Ultimately, even from the same manufacturer with the same thickness, every blade is individual. It's normal for you to get along better with one blade than another of the same brand and blade thickness. Therefore, when trying out, always choose at least 3 leaves of the same type. Then you have a good chance of landing a good hit and can better determine whether this type of leaf suits you in terms of strength and cut or not. Don't be discouraged if a sheet doesn't work for you. Part of it is testing leaves. Often a hand can be played better once you have practiced it a bit. It is definitely worth using a few sheets in rotation so that you are always well equipped and well prepared. A great method is to correct the paper yourself easily and specifically. This is very easy and works great. Saves a lot of time, money and nerves, because you can always turn a mediocre sheet into a great sheet yourself. You can find out more about this in our saxophone forum or on our sax recommendations page.

How do you assemble the saxophone?

When you take a saxophone out of the case to play it, you have to assemble a few parts. You moisten the wooden leaf under the tap or by sucking it so that it can swing well. This applies to the entire rough area that can absorb water. Full length on the back. Then attach the reed to the mouthpiece with the clamp. Make sure it is placed straight and the tip of the reed lines up with the length of the mouthpiece. Place the mouthpiece onto the cork end of the S-bend with a slight twisting movement back and forth. Now put the S-bend on the larger lower part with the flaps and funnel and screw it lightly. So that you don't have to hold the saxophone, it is hung around your neck with a strap. There are different constructions for this. Some only go around the neck. Others are more like a harness and are easier on the back for longer periods of play. You can attach the saxophone to a ring on the instrument and attach it securely to you. So your hands are only responsible for playing. You don't even need to hold the saxophone.

Moni Schönfelder

Author of 16 books on the subject of saxophone and over 80 self-learning videos

“Learning the saxophone has never been easier”

Learn quickly with ease and confidence!

“Learning the saxophone has never been easier”

Moni Schönfelder

Author of 16 books on the subject of saxophone and over 80 self-learning videos

Learn quickly with ease and confidence!

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eBooks
from beginner up to advanced

Improve your skills and reach new heights

For every level we offer saxophone e-books for practicing, learning and playing along.
Our e-books for beginners and advanced saxophonists deliver know-how, quality and exiting playing pleasure right to your doorstep.
Neither you learn by yourself or with your teacher our e-books are the right choice to get along with.
With our inspiring play-alongs even practicing technical skills like easy major scales become real exiting and joyful motivation boosters.

eBooks – from beginner up to advanced

Improve your skills and reach new heights

play video

For every level we offer saxophone e-books for practicing, learning and playing along.
Our e-books for beginners and advanced saxophonists deliver know-how, quality and exiting playing pleasure right to your doorstep.
Neither you learn by yourself or with your teacher our e-books are the right choice to get along with.
With our inspiring play-alongs even practicing technical skills like easy major scales become real exiting and joyful motivation boosters.

Moni Schönfelder

“Learning the saxophone has never been easier”

Learn quickly with ease and confidence!

“Learning the saxophone has never been easier”

Moni Schönfelder

Learn quickly with ease and confidence!

What our customers say

Linda

Sanne

Kurt

Years

Learn scales with fun and groove

Master your daily exercises with my clear 4-step plan

eBooks
from beginner up to advanced

Improve your skills and reach new heights

eBooks – from beginner up to advanced

Saxophone Play Alongs

With heart and soul – from blues to pop

Saxophone Play Alongs

With heart and soul – from blues to pop

Saxophone songs

by Cooper's Finest

Saxophone songs

by Cooper's Finest

FAQs - The 10 most important questions about the saxophone

NEWSLETTER

Moni Schönfelder

“Learning the saxophone has never been easier”

Learn quickly with ease and confidence!

“Learning the saxophone has never been easier”

Moni Schönfelder

Learn quickly with ease and confidence!

Linda

Sanne

Kurt

Years

Learn scales with fun and groove

Master your daily exercises with my clear 4-step plan

eBooksfrom beginner up to advanced

Improve your skills and reach new heights

eBooks – from beginner up to advanced

Saxophone Play Alongs

With heart and soul – from blues to pop

Saxophone Play Alongs

With heart and soul – from blues to pop

Saxophone songs

by Cooper's Finest

Saxophone songs

by Cooper's Finest

FAQs - The 10 most important questions about the saxophone

NEWSLETTER

eBooks
from beginner up to advanced