Which to Choose

[AQuinn]

I'm a teenager, and a very serious jazz saxophonist. I have only ever played tenor, but in a year or so I might look at purchasing either a soprano or an alto. I was wondering which is more recommended to complement the tenor which would probably remain my main horn.

Soprano really intriuges me, but then I know how useful it is to be playing an Alto in a big band setting.

Reccomendations>

[Grey]

I only play alto and tenor, so I'm a bit biased, but I've heard that the soprano is a bit harder to keep in tune than the other horns. That said, there was a wonderful sax player that just graduated last year from my school, and he played tenor and sop equally well, and he didn't seem to have any problems. If you get a sop though, you probably won't get to play it a lot, unless you're in jazz combo or something, because not much music is written for the sop.

I guess it all comes down to what you hear yourself playing. If you've been listening to a lot of alto players and really like alto, you'll probably develop a good sound on alto relatively easily, and the same with sop. So who do you listen to most often?

BTW, I'm a teenager too (14) and I started on alto but recently acquired a tenor, which is real fun to play :)

[CircaRevival]

I guess it all comes down to what you hear yourself playing. If you've been listening to a lot of alto players and really like alto, you'll probably develop a good sound on alto relatively easily, and the same with sop. So who do you listen to most often?


Soprano is a tough cookie to learn, the emboshure is completely different than alto and tenor and I have heard many teenagers have troubles with sopranos, I believe alto giant (who is 16) has some experience with them. You may want to give him a pm.

Cheers

CR

[Chizzy]

I'm 15, I'm grade 7 on alto and have a Soprano recently bought, I've had it for about 4 months but I must have only played it for about 3 hours in total tops, I've used it for one concert because every thing was in the higher range, when I play it the higher range of the sax (High G up to top F/F#) is much sharper then the lower range (Low Bb up to the C before the octave key is needed) and then the D to F are inbetweeny kind of in pitch with the both with a little lip movement. This could be down to purely me as I may be overbiting in the top register, or the instrument and maybe the placement of the octave hole on the neck as its an el cheapo sax. My sax teacher doesn't know as he is primarily a recorder/clarinet player so I'm getting the tube to howarths on wednesday to let them have a look at my instrument so I know who's the culprit, me or it. (It was cheap sax wise, £230 of "shock horror" EBAY, but it seemed alright, bentley sax......£230 is a lot of money to me though, couldn't afford any more, but hey if it's total boll**ks least it's in a sexy black laquer, I can just pretend to play, I'm hoping at most all it will require is a new neck *gulp*).

[CircaRevival]

Chizzy-

If it's a cheap soprano (<$400), I wouldn't count on it to play great. But It may need a quick repair, especially if it is from ebay. :-/

Good luck,

CR

[gary]

AQuinn, if your goal is strictly personal expression, try both instruments and listen to them a lot and go with what your heart tells you. If you are looking to expand your value as a player get the alto because playing opportunities for alto are considerable greater than for soprano.

[Razzy]

Soprano's no more difficult to play in tune than the other saxophones. You do have to put in the time and have a horn with good intonation, just like with the others. It is a little tougher on the chops, requiring more muscle and a greater sense of voicing to play the highest notes. It also helps to have a mouthpiece with a more open tip opening than you may be used to on the other instruments. For example I know many players including some theater/recording professionals who play an "E" or "7" opening on soprano while using the comparable "C*" or "5" openings on their other saxophones. Reeds should probably be a bit harder too. I personally play a Selmer "E" mouthpiece with Rico jazz 3hard reeds, and this compliments my alto setup of a Meyer 5M with Rico jazz 3soft reeds. You get the idea... I suffered through a C* with Rico jazz 3soft on soprano for long enough before I realized it was hurting my alto chops and causing me to bite to get out the highest notes.

Soprano will be more useful as a supplement to alto or tenor playing. Alto will be most useful as another instrument on its own, and will probably open you up to more playing situations than soprano would. However if you "specialize" in soprano than this may bring many opportunities your way as well. It's really up to you to decide which is best. Most players who play tenor and soprano are going to be limited to jazz quartet gigs, which is no problem if that's the type of work you want to get.

My personal recommendation is to try alto for a while, and if that floats your boat, stick with it until your proficiency is equal to that of your tenor. Then, add soprano and see how you like that. If you wind up NOT liking the alto, give it a fair trial of a few weeks/months, and then try out soprano.

[CrazyMusician]

Alright, I too am a jazz saxophonist, although I have recently hit that 20 mark and am a performance major in University. I am going to be honest about one thing... with the exception of big band jazz you are not going to find the same use for playing soprano as you are alto. The jobs are more plentiful on alto... speaking strictly from usefulness you may want to lean more towards the horn that is going to be more help to you in the future...