[SopranoSax Girl]

I'm getting a soprano saxophone for this Christmas because I would really love to learn it. It is a great jazz instrument, and I love the way it sounds. I already know a lot about music and that it is a Bb instrument like tenor. I was just wondering, do you have any tips for starters? (I already know one that I will do, practice a lot.)

 

[davsoprano]

Patience.
Long Notes.
Get balanced Mouthpiece. (4c yamaha is good and cheap)
Find a reed that match your setup.
Hire a teacher...

 

[Gary59]

Lots of patience with the soprano. They are more tempermental then the alto or tenor. Just keep practicing and don't give up!

 

[Pete Thomas]

Do as much work on ear training as possible, you need it with the soprano as the intonation (for many people) is much more difficult than with the larger instruments.

I second the suggestion to get a mouthpiece if the one that comes with the horn is not very good (as is often true)

 

[RootyTootoot]

I'm getting a soprano saxophone for this Christmas because I would really love to learn it. It is a great jazz instrument, and I love the way it sounds. I already know a lot about music and that it is a Bb instrument like tenor. I was just wondering, do you have any tips for starters? (I already know one that I will do, practice a lot.)

Don't get discouraged if some things seem harder than you thought. If playing an instrument well was easy everyone would be doing it and (like they said) soprano is not the easiest of the saxes for most people.

Listen to lots of saxophone (and other) music to inspire you.

Try and get to play with other musicians (as long as you get on and like playing with them) as soon as possible.

If you like using the internet and chatting about hobbies, use SOTW as a good resource and sounding board but don't take it too seriously.

Get a good teacher early on - you don't have to have lessons forever but they do help a lot at the start.

Enjoy!

 

[Dave Dolson]

Welcome to SOTW. I started on soprano when I was 16 but there wasn't an Internet to ask the inevitable questions. I tamed the beast by trial-and-error.

I think contacting and arranging for a teacher would be one of the first moves you should make.

And here's a hint . . . telling us you live on EARTH isn't the best way to start here. As questions arise, answers may depend on knowing where you really live - in general, of course. DAVE

 

[bruce bailey]

Decent horn (not an ebay one from China) and a Yamaha 4C should get you started.

 

[69193]

Have you played any other instruments...or is this your first (can't tell from your initial post)? Picking up soprano seems to be different for every player. Before I got mine, I read a bunch of threads talking about how difficult it was. It didn't take me long to pick it up (granted I already had a tenor).

I've never had much of a problem transitioning between woodwinds (brass is another story). I was able to pick up a tenor without playing a horn for ~14 years and play it. The soprano was just as easy for me. Granted I'm nowhere near the level that most people here are...I just like to play at home when I get some spare time.

 

[Saxman96]

Ummm, you might want to reconsider that. The soprano sax is a complex instrument, so you might want to start on alto sax, because the alto sax is an instrument easy to control.

 

[SveinJo]

Main advice: The first 2 -3 weeks, make sure you are alone in the house when practising. You are going to sound awful.

Observation: When I first brought my shiny new curved soprano to band practice, everybody wanted to try it. The experienced saxophonists and clarinetists sounded awful, the brass players sounded halfway decent.

Morale: Except for the fingering, there is very little resemblance between the soprano and the other saxophones. It must be treated as a different instrument.