[musicman76]

Hi. I've been playing tenor for about 3 weeks and I am having a little trouble with a certain range. Middle g-a. Pads are sealing ok, I feel I have to pull the mp out a bit to keep these notes from jumping down an octave, or with the g, skipping up a fifth also. My Rico Royal 2's are all getting warped at the edge after drying - Is there a trick to keeping them flat? Also does anyone use palm d alot in the middle reg instead of all six keys and octave? It sounds pretty well in tune, and keeps the tone from open C# on my King 615. thanks:?

 

[Dave Dolson]

G2 and A2 is the point where the upper and lower octave vents change over. I always suspect something is amiss in the octave mechanism when those two notes are at issue.

Another problem area could be the G# not fully closing. Look closely at those mechanisms to ensure they are working properly.

I've never used palm D for D2 but I suppose it could be done.

All used reeds warp when they dry out - even those placed in a tight reed holder. It should not be a problem - just wet the reed in your mouth or soak it in a glass of water before playing. When re-wetted, the reed will flatten out. DAVE

 

[SoulMate]

"playing tenor for about 3 weeks"...and you expect to nail those notes perfectly?
It took me some years (long tones) to play them from ppp to FFF and with controlled articulation. That G2 and even G#2 are tricky ones. It acquires a certain tongue position. I do it unconsciously now, but in the beginning you need to experiment with your oral cavity to explore the boundaries of creating beautiful tone. It takes a while, but it's all worth it.

Palm key D can be used for fast passages or as a trill key.

 

[Guest]

"playing tenor for about 3 weeks"...and you expect to nail those notes perfectly? [...] That G2 and even G#2 are tricky ones. It acquires a certain tongue position. I do it unconsciously now, but in the beginning you need to experiment with your oral cavity to explore the boundaries of creating beautiful tone.

I'm a (new) sax teacher and I've noticed that many of my beginner students that play tenor have a problem with those notes space5. I have a feeling that a younger player, who obviously has a smaller oral cavity, will not be able to manipulate the tone with tongue positions and such.

Is there anyone who knows if my theory has any substance to it? I'd also like some techniques, excercises or tricks to help small kids (10-12 years old) who play tenor.

Currently I'm experimenting with having them play with mouthpiece alone, forming different vowels with the tounge while playing etc. but haven't found a real solution yet. (One student however, discovered that if he did a "yawn" with his mouth closed the tone got more stable.)

 

[jbtsax]

What your students are experiencing is common especially on tenor. In addition on some makes of instruments the high G goes very easily to the high D overtone.

Here are some of the techniques that have worked with my students:
-Sing "AHH" on the lowest note they can sing and play with that feeling in the mouth and throat
-Make sure the mouthpiece goes straight into the mouth, not down (check neckstrap)
-Direct the airstream as though they are blowing at the R.H. thumb
-Make sure that the pitch on the mouthpiece and neck alone is no higher than D concert
-Practice going back and forth from high G to high D with G's fingering shaping the tongue as if saying AHH-EE-AHH-EE to learn to control the overtone.

If the problem is that high G drops to low G or plays both octaves (multiphonics) with the octave key open, try using faster air and check the mouthpiece+neck pitch. Sometimes in teaching I found the best technique was to demonstrate the note(s) for the student on my sax, and tell them to "make it sound like that". Often times they will figure out what to do inside the mouth without needing a detailed explanation.

Hope some of this helps. Good luck in your teaching.

John

 

[Guest]

What your students are experiencing is common especially on tenor. In addition on some makes of instruments the high G goes very easily to the high D overtone.

Here are some of the techniques that have worked with my students:
-Sing "AHH" on the lowest note they can sing and play with that feeling in the mouth and throat
-Make sure the mouthpiece goes straight into the mouth, not down (check neckstrap)
-Direct the airstream as though they are blowing at the R.H. thumb
-Make sure that the pitch on the mouthpiece and neck alone is no higher than D concert
-Practice going back and forth from high G to high D with G's fingering shaping the tongue as if saying AHH-EE-AHH-EE to learn to control the overtone.

Thank you for the tips! I have tried a couple of those methods, but it will be very interesting to test all of them.

I think you always need several ways to address a problem like this, because every student will react a little differently to the same instruction.