Wind

[Greyduster]

I play with the local Baybeat Street band. We practise regularly but I've only played outside with them about five times.

Last Tuesday we had our practice on the sea front. At times I was having real trouble playing, to the extent that on ocaasions I couldn't sound a couple of notes. I was getting really hacked off, my playing was really ****. There was a breeze blowing and I noticed if I turned slightly my playing was better.
So my question is, does the wind affect the playability/intonation of a sax more than say trumpets or trombones because of all the extra holes in it? Has anybody else had a similar experience. I am relatively inexperienced and have not read anything about this anywhere.

[sax_appeal]

I don't really know, I do know that the wind does 'carry' your sound. Therefore if you are playing against the wind the sound would come back to you and the audience would not be able to hear it.

[Captain Beeflat]

You will probably find that your saxophone will not play under water either! I like to think that the saxophone should not be played out of doors; neither should it be played in daylight. It is a crepuscular instrument- at it's best after nightfall......Bb

[Greyduster]

I trust you're not going to suggest that if I have to play outside I should take up..........the trumpet!!

[Mike Cesati]

I play outside by the ocean often. It requires you to really put air into the instrument .It will build your sound. The air is very fresh and invigorating also.You don't get anything to give you your sound back to you. Just play with as much air and power as you can.Sonny Rollins practiced on a bridge with wind and traffic noise and he said that if he could get a big sound out there blowing in a club would be a piece of cake. Playing inside against the wall is great to hear yourself but it's good to get the horn out where you have no crutch but your own power.

[Morry]

I played plenty of outdoor gigs back in the day, and never really had a problem. It's a real headache for the sound guy though.

[shmuelyosef]

I had a lesson from Joe Lovano years ago (that cat has a HUGE sound)...he said the best thing that you can do for your sound is to practice outside. He said if you get a sound that is consistent to you in different outdoor settings, that you will have a huge sound. I still practice long tones outside and it helps a lot.

[Riff]

This is probably an issue of acoustics.
Inside you hear reflections of your sound from the walls around you.
Outside there are no walls, nothing to reflect your sound back at you.
Except for the wind itself like sax_appeal said.