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Hi, recently made this short video lesson on growling on the saxophone. Hope you enjoy 
More @ www.Hellosaxophone.com
More @ www.Hellosaxophone.com
How to growl on the saxophone (video lesson)
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ah .... now I know how this is done =)
Nice video. thanks.
Nice video. thanks.
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The accepted method is to hum into the horn.
We are told not to hum the same note....but I am not sure about that.
We are told not to hum the same note....but I am not sure about that.
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Humming is just singing with your mouth closed, no? The "growling" effect is similar to tuning an instrument when you hear the "out of phase" difference between the tuner and the instrument. If you hum the same note as you play, there is little dissonance (the wah, wah, wah sound of an off harmonic) because you are in tune. If you play a note that's within your singing (or humming) range and work at humming the same note in to your horn, you will hear the phase differences as you get closer to matching the played note. You can make the "growl effect" go away, or speed it up by changing the pitch of your humming.
It reminds me of an old boat that I had with twin engines. If you set both engines at the same rpm using the tachometers, you'd get a weird slow out of phase wah wah that was very irritating. If you set the speed by ear, it was a much pleasanter voyage.
Mark
It reminds me of an old boat that I had with twin engines. If you set both engines at the same rpm using the tachometers, you'd get a weird slow out of phase wah wah that was very irritating. If you set the speed by ear, it was a much pleasanter voyage.
Mark
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ah speculate (more dangerous then thinking) that the reed is a non-linear element and that when you create waves in your throat and non-linearly multiply them against the standing waves in the saxophone you get a form of Amplitude Modulation. Not as clean as AM radio where you use a very pure carrier frequency which is much higher in frequency then the sound that you wish to transmit.
So, try humming a very pure tone does the sound get less growly? in comparison to when you gravely growl into the note?
So, try humming a very pure tone does the sound get less growly? in comparison to when you gravely growl into the note?
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Good helpful video lesson James.
If I can make one suggestion when you are helping a beginner, or possibly an advanced player who is having a difficult time with this technique. Some people find it a little easier to start with just the m/p. Once they can produce the effect on the m/p then practice with the m/p on the neck.
I have found that it can be hard for some players to get the air through the sax (especially tenor) while trying to hum at the same time. Just a matter of coordination. But if they can produce the effect on the m/p, then the neck and m/p it can help. Just a suggestion.
If I can make one suggestion when you are helping a beginner, or possibly an advanced player who is having a difficult time with this technique. Some people find it a little easier to start with just the m/p. Once they can produce the effect on the m/p then practice with the m/p on the neck.
I have found that it can be hard for some players to get the air through the sax (especially tenor) while trying to hum at the same time. Just a matter of coordination. But if they can produce the effect on the m/p, then the neck and m/p it can help. Just a suggestion.
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Thats a good one John
I'll remember that!
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John that's my problem. I'm no beginner but for the likes of me I can't seem to hum and blow the sax at the same time. I can hum and I can blow, obviously, but hen I start to blow the humming stops. I can walk and chew gum at the same time and I can walk around while I play the sax but I can't seem to hum and play. I wonder if the fact that I can't whistle or trill my R's when speaking Spanish has anything to do with it. I can gargle and grunt and play harmonics on either octave but no growling except for a growling G2 which in fact might just be a G on the verge of switching to a harmonic because I can overblow D3 on it at will. This "growly" G2 is between normal G2 and D3. Any ideas about this and other suggestions, or is it just a matter of practicing with the mpc alone as you have already suggested?
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Sure. A friend who plays tenor had a difficult time at first with this technique.
I told him to forget the sax mouthpiece and form his mouth to hum/sing as if he is going to sing the word "you" but leave off the "y" so that he got the ooooooo hum sound. For an example, it would be similar to the same sound as the "Ooh" from "Ooh baby baby" by Linda Ronstadt (listen to the recording on Youtube). The mouth is formed a little like the it would be with the m/p but do not use the m/p.
After you get the "ooooo" sound then add air (exhale). The "oooo" volume will diminish with the addition of the exhaled air which is fine. Your throat area under your chin will rise, or tighten slightly which is normal. The combination of the hum and exhale will produce a rough sound which is nomal.
After a few minutes of trying this approach it just might happen. Can't promise success but I have found out over the years that if we deal with an issue by going about it in many different ways it will usually work one way or the other.
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Well described John.
Like the previous correspondent, I too have been playing the saxophone for many many years....I can roll my Rs (please forgive the expression) and growl....but only, effectively, up to about middle D. Above that point, when attempting to growl I sound squeaky clean, no matter how much I try....most irritating when I attempt to sound like Gary Wiggins.
Rolling Rs and growling are totally different sounds.
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Superb....thanks for that. Something to aim at.
Surely that's not just humming.....can anyone explain what else is going on to get that sound.
It's humming alright. With an open throat, making an 'aah' vowel, if that makes any sense. I can do it, and use it regularly.
Keep in mind that Eddie used a Selmer mouthpiece or similar.
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I envy your ability.
Although I have a couple of rubber Selmers, I really dislike the sound of them & I find the tip opening far too small.
Would you mind checking with some of your more middle of the road mouthpieces....perhaps a medium baffle piece, as I cannot believe that the sound is peculiar to Selmer type pieces.
If you can get that sound then I will wager that you can get it on pretty well any mouthpiece.
Many thanks.
Oh I didn't mean to say it's only possible with a Selmer piece. I can do it on all my mouthpieces (HSM, Link, Strathon, Brilhart, and Selmer) and I'm sure it's possible on any piece. I just meant that to get the sound Eddie has, one has to keep in mind he played a Selmer.
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Ahhhhh, is the key for me. I sometimes do it without thinking. Hit a note that sounds great. Ahhhh. I had an instructor tell me "stop that" when playing the head. What, it's only for solos?
Growling is too crude of a term. That may apply to some types of playing, but a soft contented ahhhh fits other situations, especially since a contented ahhhh tends to drop in pitch, thereby varying the understated effect.
Mark
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It sounds like he is singing and not just humming. Rahsaan used to sing into his horns too, didn't he?
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Both work actually. Singing into your horn just creates a more subtle type of growl. Candy Dulfer is a player who continually sings into her horn for example.
This gives her sound this rough edge.
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