Don't you watch SNL?

Lenny Pickett=GOD OF ALTISSIMO.

His high range is on a completely different level then any other sax player. Period. It's like his horn has an extra 3 or 4 octave keys.

 

Lenny gets my vote also.

Chris S

 

I love Lenny as well - inspiration. On alto I've always like Marc Russo (the original saxophone player for the Yellowjackets) - Brandon Fields has the strongest alto upper register I've heard. I've also always loved Bob Bergs upper range - very throaty.

This one I hate even to say - BUT - Kenny G has the smoothest upper register on Tenor. Again I hate to say it but G-Man does do a few things well. Boney James is in the same category.

Paco DiRivera (I think that's the spelling) is has a super upper range on Alto. Very smooth and plays it as if it's a normal (which according to A. Sax) part of the saxophone range.

Just my thoughts. Please no hate.
Tony

 

I'll say it again: Lenny Pickett. If you haven't listen to Knock Yourself Out by TOP... you have to, Pickett is just sick in that song!

 

Here's another for Lenny. And I just can't let this one slide: it's Paquito D'Rivera, man

 

Marc Russo!

whats he up to anyway?

 

Gotta agree............Lenny Pickett!

 

Mark Turner

 

Lenny Pickett- awesome altissimo.

 

Gotta be Lenny, but John Stubblefield had a pretty incredible altissimo range too.

 

Are we talking range, or are we talking control?

If it's control, I wouldn't even put Lenny in my top five. I'd say Sigurd Rascher, Nobuya Sugawa, Paquito D'Rivera, Vincent Abato, and Michael Brecker.

 

John Handy is certainly among the masters of altissimo. Check out his historic Live at Montery performance.

 

Are we talking range, or are we talking control?

If it's control, I wouldn't even put Lenny in my top five. I'd say Sigurd Rascher, Nobuya Sugawa, Paquito D'Rivera, Vincent Abato, and Michael Brecker.

Great comment, I'd say so too. You might want to add Mark Turner, Rick Margitza and Chris Potter to the "control list".

 

Are we talking range, or are we talking control?

If it's control, I wouldn't even put Lenny in my top five. I'd say Sigurd Rascher, Nobuya Sugawa, Paquito D'Rivera, Vincent Abato, and Michael Brecker.

Define "control." It's hard to compare Lenny Pickett to Sigurd Rascher, even if it's just in the altissimo department because pretty much everything Lenny does, he just WAILS on, but that's because he has no choice. When you play TOP-style funk or commercial music like the SNL band, you better be wailing on those solos!

 

Check out Lenny's borneo horns album, you'll find some altissimo control in there.

Add another vote for Lenny Pickett

 

I'd say Sigurd Rascher, Nobuya Sugawa, Paquito D'Rivera, Vincent Abato, and Michael Brecker.

Quite a motley crew! (Not a criticism -- I enjoy and admire eclectic tastes.)

I'm curious, Rick -- where have you heard Abato play altissimo? On the recordings of him that I've heard, he (almost) always takes altissimo passages down an octave -- e.g. Ibert, Glazunov (last note), etc. The only examples of altissimo I can think of that I've heard him play are the G in the Creston sonata and the G near the end of the Glazunov.

 

In this sense control means tonal consistency, with each pitch having the same timbre as the one beneath it, such that if you had terrible pitch (really terrible pitch) you wouldn't be able to tell if the player was on a D2 or a D4. It also means strong intonation and a clear center for every pitch, with no sliding in between pitches. Third, it means facility at all dynamic levels, with an E4 speaking just as well pp as it does ff. Finally, it means not missing pitches, and possessing the technical facility to jump around with all the weird fingerings we use - but of course at the level we're talking about, everyone has this.

I think that the sort of music Lenny plays makes it okay to ignore that third bit, but I don't believe it has any bearing on the first two - and that's why I feel as I do.

KSQ - Years ago, my teacher gave me a tape he'd made from an Abato record (at least he told me it was Abato). It was the Ibert, performed with a chamber orchestra. I can't remember if the saxophonist played the F4 in the first movement, or the altissimo in the cadenza, but he did play the altissimo in the Larghetto, and it was the most beautiful sound I'd ever heard. I remember thinking it sounded a lot like a clarinet - extremely full and warm, and really, really clean.

Unfortunately, I lost that tape a few years ago.

 

I'd have to say definitely Lenny. He has a range that goes beyond anything i've ever heard another player do. Has anyone heard any of Bert Wilson's work?

 

BTW- Bert Wilson taught Lenny.

Others; George Young, Charlie Mariano, Handy, Lacy, Wilton Felder, Morris Atchikson, David Woodford, John Stubblefield -WOW, Lockjaw on Stolen Moments, Oliver Nelson on Blues and Abst Truth, Ronnie Cuber on bari.

Lots of guys out there are sounding great.

 

Here's another for Lenny. And I just can't let this one slide: it's Paquito D'Rivera, man

Paquito is fantastic. He's all over his horn with ease and grace, always seemingly in control and singing beautifully in every register. And he's no slouch on clarinet, either. A Cuban version of Parker, IMHO.

 

I like emotion over smoothness up there: David Murray. Honorable mention to George Adams.

 

John Edward Kelly
Harry White

 

I would have to go with Mark Douthit as a favorite.

 

I think Lenny Pickett probably has the craziest range of anyone but I haven't heard anyone that can touch Chris Potter so far as being really fluid up there in terms of playing lines, ideas and technical things. He's so comfortable he just lives up there man!

 

Chris Potter i personally think,

My teacher is extremely good friends with him and he came to did a master class with the university he played the most extreme improv solo on giant steps ever, didnt play below palm key D, and this wasnt slow stuff.

i personally think Chris Potter doesn't get as much respect as he should