In my opinion the best exercise for improving tone is by finding a corner in a carpert room with no desks or anything in front of you, and play facing the corner, with your sax about a foot away from the wall. play through the any scale preferably something easy like c major and play from the bottom to the top holding each note for 10 to 15 seconds taking a breath after each note.
the important thing is to focus on your sound and technique. breathe expanding your stomach focus on your embourchure and then play. as your playing really concentrate on your sound and adjust embourchure etc untill you get a sound that is clear.

do this a couple of times a day and within no time at all you will have a great tone

and for the record the guy in the youtube video really doesnt have that great a tone, half his notes are fuzzy without any resonance behind them.
he belted out a few good ones but it was really nothing special

 

and for the record the guy in the youtube video really doesnt have that great a tone, half his notes are fuzzy without any resonance behind them.
he belted out a few good ones but it was really nothing special

Joe "Fuzzy" Lovano I guess you're kidding?

-TH

 

I think what you are asking is also a function of the horn to some degree as well. Some horns just sound weaker in the high register, so I would try out a few more horns as well and see if that may be part of the problem.

 

Nasty long tones focusing on producing the sound you want. You really need to use your ears, embouchure, and breath support to achieve your goal.
Sometimes just switching to a different cut/hardness reed will help a little to thicken the sound.

You didin't mention what brand/level sax you are playing or your mpc/reed set up.
As was mentioned before, some horns just have a weak upper register. Some the more 'inexpensive' student mouthpieces will also contribute to sounding thin.

 

You didin't mention what brand/level sax you are playing or your mpc/reed set up.
As was mentioned before, some horns just have a weak upper register. Some the more 'inexpensive' student mouthpieces will also contribute to sounding thin.

Hi thanks a lot for all the advise guys. Some good stuff!

My setup is: I play an Amsterdam Winds Tenor, Its a new horn but hand finished by the guys at Amsterdam winds. It's I guess what you would call a semi pro horn. I use a Lebayle jazz metal 7* piece and Alexander superial 2,5 reeds.

My sound is quite solid over the whole horn. It only starts getting kinda thin above the A(5). For example when I play (all my favorite things (the high parts).

I'm going to try all your tips tomorrow, I'm also going to check out some other horns this week I think, just to make sure .

Good stuff guys, thanks! I'll let you know how it goes. If you have any more tips because now you know my setup, I'd love to hear them

Greats

T.H.

 

Ok, yes, it is a goal everyone should have, to have the best sound possible, but remember that the saxophone is long tube and it is impossible to have the same texture with high F# (not altissimo fingering) or a low Bb...

Just having that in mind, earplugs help. Yeap, anyone should protect their ears, but as having them, the general sounding gets every time better.... and of course, practicing.

All the best,

JI

 

Just like any note on the sax, you need to focus in on the note by blowing long tones and listening to yourself as opposed to players you enjoy.
Here is a wonderful Youtube video on the altissimo register.
This guy has a temendous sound which is keyboard perfect!

Altissimo Register

I must tell you, and this may seem like a personal plug. Shame on me....
I've been playing for approx. 15-16 years on and off again. I never bothered with the altissimo register.
I own a $300 Simba and I use a stock mouthpiece. I recently decided to practice the altissimo register with this cheap horn. I think I'm coming along okay. So it's not the horn, it's the embouchere/diaphram combination that can help prouduce a decent tone in the high register.

If you wish to listen.
Olive Oyl

Best of luck to you!

 

Play low on the horn - big fat tones... Be aware of the sensation in your throat when you play a with a fat full tone... Now play the upper register. Is your throat still open or are you "closing up"? Try to achieve the sensation of your throat remaining open as you play the upper register.

Remain relaxed as you play throughout the range of the horn.

 

Think blowing down as you go up, and warm air, like making frost on a windowpane.

 

A more open throat as Dr G suggested... or buy a Super 20 tenor. :twisted:

 

Ditto...but instead of the Super 20 make it a MKVI.... Never a bad tone on a VI.

For all of you who think I am serious..... I am!!! Just kidding.....

PEACE.......

 

Yeah, and that piano player...nothing special:TGNCHK:

 

try playing your higher octave with out using the octave key. It will force you to support the notes better and voice them properly to get them to speak in the upper octave.

 

I would suggest practicing overtones. If you use the search function, you will find several threads describing overtones and some ideas for practicing them.

Right now, I'm working on some Allard-esque exercises I found on David Valdez's blog.

 

I wouldn't argue against practice, but the right equipment helps. I have found that the following (with reeds that are not too hard) fatten up the upper register on my Mk VI: Sugal Millenium 7*-8, RPC 115 High Baffle, Mojo STM 111 with my own baffle.

 

Mojo STM 111

Man!!! That's a big tip opening. Something like 1.5?

 

...and I'm still confused as to how helpful some of these suggestions are because he wrote "A5". Is this really what we're addressing or is A5 a misnomer - OP?

 

He has got to mean A2. I don't know. I bet you can play an A5 but There is know way it would sound full.

 

I agree with the tone development advice given so far, but nobody has mentioned fixing the reed to open up the higher notes. See the chart attached in this thread. Get yourself some reed rush (sometimes called dutch rush) or you can use small strips of fine sandpaper, and rub/sand area #3 on your reed (as indicated in the chart). If you're using reed rush you need to soak it (the reed rush) first. Make small adjustments at a time and play test between. This area of the reed needs to be made softer in order to free up the high register and improve your projection and fullness of the high notes.

 

My approach has been to work on mouthpiece alone and mouthpiece + neck exercises (search for more info). I think if I can get a decent tone out of the mouthpiece and neck, I should be able to voice those high notes properly.

Also: practice note bending on front F and front E (if possible with a piano).

Whenever you're practicing any scales, arpeggios, etc., make sure to go all the way to the top of your range. Go slowly at the top and don't be satisfied with a thin reedy tone.

Rory

 

Ummm, I think it's called a 'subtone'.

 

Yeah. Well, subtoning doesn't always sound like that. The kind of sound he seems to be going for in that clip just doesn't appeal to me, it's just a personal preference. Part of it may have to do with the way it's recorded, I can't say.

 

I had this problem for a long time. it could have to do with your setup. but im betting you arent blowing enough air to sustain the pitch. you should strive to have an equal resonance in sound in all registars of the horn. open the throat and play out with tons of air. dont worry about being loud. just get the feeling of it.

once you start using air to shape your sound it will start to unlock other things such as overtones and altissmo.

 

Is there such a thing as a "textbook subtone sound"? To me it sounds quite different from player to player.

I like this kind of sound:

That's definitely a fuller, bigger tone with more body to it than the Lovano clip, imo (not saying that Lovano's tone is bad, just not to my taste).

 

I would say the subtone is the same. I would say there is a text book subtone sound, it's the fuzzy smokey sound. The difference I here is their general tone. Ben Websters tone is a little brighter, more focused with a little bit of buzz. joe's tone is darker, more spread, with no buzz. This difference in tone would come through subtone or not. I tend to like Ben's tone more myself but I wouldn't say Joe has bad tone. In fact he has a very good tone just different from what I like for myself.

 

Lovano has a unique sound (one I used to be able to duplicate, but can't seem to anymore . I think I need to listen to more Jazz and Lovano again!). I like it I also like Redman, which seems a mix of Lovano and 'Trane (and Lovano took a lot of style from 'Trane as well!). Ben Webster has a nice Schmaltzy sound that I would love to duplicate on ballads, but haven't practiced enough to achieve.

 

I'm gonna start putting forth the following when I see a thread with both good and bad advice:

"Dear [insert forum newbie's name here],
When considering the advice of the wonderful members of SaxOnTheWeb, please utilize the statistical information below each member's name. I suggest you give more weight to those members who have posted more than 2000 posts and to those who have been posting or lurking since 2006. Consider it a total privilege to have gary, Dr. G, Saxmanglen and 50 other 'distinguished members' comment on your thread. Those members have fought the wars-of-words on SOTW and know saxophone technique very well. Their advise is sound.
Disclaimer: Obviously, there are some members who meet the 2000+ posts and >2006 criteria who know very little. There are also new members who know a PhD's worth of sax advice...YMMV (your mileage may vary)."

[Impnt]

 

Just condense that statement, and put it in your sig !

 

I think the way he did it was good. It was a way to inform the OP that some of the advice given was hogwash with out directly putting anybody down and hurting someones fragile ego.

 

Hi Stormott77

As far as I know , it is no one person's job here to slap another member down, just for being naive. I believe the words were ment with good will.

Also, can you tell me...who decide's what is,and what is not hogwash ?

Regards

ManEast

 

In regards to the original post, a fuller sound throughout the range is acheived with steady practice and a sprinkle of magic.

 

I'm just saying that he is a distinguished member because he has given a lot of good advice and he has been around SOTW for a while. I like how he handled it. He isn't saying "this person is wrong" he is saying "I strongly disagree with some of the advice given to you." Hopefully this will encourage the OP to investigate this subject more with the search button where he will find a lot of good advice on this much talked about topic.

I have been around for a short time but I have really done a lot of research and figured out who seams to know their stuff by using the search button. Not everybody gives good advice all the time. I heard that one time 2 years ago Gary gave some bad advice but he has more than made up for it

The problem with starting to call some people out directly on SOTW is more often than not it gets ugly and threads get locked and deleted at the expense of the OP and the Admins.

I don't agree with all the advice given on this thread either and I don't feel like calling any one out. You may think I don't know what I'm talking about. I personally think he did a good job of raising an eyebrow with out pointing fingers.

 

Sorry to go back to the original topic...

I can tell you what has helped me improve my altissimo playing; "voicing" type exercises. I practice overtone scales slowly instead of doing long-tones to learn where to place the air over the range of the horn. This helps me place the air correctly on altissimo notes as well. If I can 'picture' the note before I play it, it is more likely to sound fuller.

The other thing I do is to always practice regular scales at least up to altissimo G so that going into that range becomes second nature.

Check out some Joe Henderson. I think he has amazingly full tone on altissimo notes.

Hope this helps or at least makes sense.

They really need to invent that sarcasm font one of these days. I think a lot of stupid arguments could be avoided.

Why can't we all get along?

 

Sorry to go back to the original topic...

...Why can't we all get along?

Where's the fun in that ?

And now, back to your regularly scheduled debate...

 

If you do figure out how to get the high notes to sound full, please do let me know. I'm one of those 2000+ post, pre-2006, "Distinguished" types that is incapable of giving sound advice on this (and many other) topics.