Suck it up??????????

 

But I cant suck it up every 10 seconds especially while im playing a piece of sheet music with my band

 

I would suspect your reeds first, as they are cheaper than my second guess - your mouthpiece isn't sealing.

 

Beginners tend to play very 'wet' but as you mentioned a band, I'm presuming you are not an absolute beginner.

Are you playing on metal or HR? Breath condenses faster on metal, in my experience and also if the reed is either too soft or hard, you may be blowing more than breathing, hence more spit? Just my guess, given the facts at hand.

 

Sometimes the baffle behind the tip rail is too high - this can cause that spitty sound just from normal condensation.

 

I agree. I'm blowing a Lawton 8 Star BB (high baffle) and am having a challenge getting the spit sound under control. Stepping down the reed strength and blowing long tones for a few weeks is making an improvement. I'm blowing Rico Plasticovers, never had a problem with those on my lower baffle MPs.

 

Sometimes the baffle behind the tip rail is too high - this can cause that spitty sound just from normal condensation.

I have this problem too, you can hear it here:

I suppose I do play "wet" but this rattling sound is really annoying. Maybe it is my mic positioning though.

I play on a meyer 6m, but it happens on all my mp's. (vandoren a25, Jodyjazz HR5)

I have tried "sucking up" (not for the first time ) but it does nothing.

I need help too!

 

Try putting more mouthpiece in your mouth. I use to have this problem in my metal Selmer sop mpcs, but (almost) every-time it happened, it coincided with my not having enough of the mpcs in my mouth. Good luck!

 

You are probably not going to ever see this, but I made an account just to reply to this. This helped me so much. immediately i noticed a more clear sound. Thank you so much!

 

Try rubbing the flat part of your reed, with the grain - lengthwise, on a piece of coarse paper - not sandpaper, just regular paper, like the inside of a paper music book cover. Be carefull not to damage the tip.

This can help make your sound cleaner.

 

I sometime develope this problem after playing for a long time. It appears that spit collects just past the mouthpiece in the underslug neck on my Buescher 400. And worse, when I move up the scale and the neck octave vent opens, it blows spit into my face. It seem bad but the cool wet air often helps cool me off. :shock:

For me, the problem is caused by holding the horn out in front of me. The neck angle on the 400 was made the keep the horn cocked to one side. Once I do that, the neck drains. But I still wonder why I generate so much slobber? :dazed:

 

Spitty sound= Not breathing from diaphram

 

I didn't mean to sound so authoritative but a took lessons with a player who was a lead alto player with Stan Kenton in the early 50's and whenever he heard that spit sound he would say I was not playing from the diaphragm and not using warm air....He was right whenever one of my students sound thisway I stop them talk about playing from the diaphragm and pushing the warm air out and the spit sound goes away

 

While a spitty, wetty, sound is a problem that needs to be addressed, I have noticed that it may also contribute to the nice edgy- crsipy, sound (specially when subtoning) of some pro players and masters.

But I am not sure.

 

Spitty sound= Not breathing from diaphram

Humm...

Possibly for some players. But I'm an all-diaphram all-the-time kind of guy; even when talking or singing. The type of crazy person you can hear screaming over the rest of the crowd at football games (especially when my boy tackles the quarterback). But still there is lots of slobber. And that's only a small problem with 90 degree tenor necks if I don't dip now and then. This is no problem with the modern tenor necks. Hot air aside, some folks may just have more juice than others.

Some of the players with this problem might want to note if their horn and mouthpiece can drain with their normal playing posture.

 

you need more air. I agre the spit is getting stuck in the mouthpiece, you need to BLOW!!!

 

Turn yo horn upside down and drain de spit mon !!!

 

Ya gotta fill the horn even when you are playing soft again this is why long tones are so useful the tone has gotta be big even when you are playing quiet

 

Try recording yourself. You'll probably find that you're the only one hearing yourself that way. I'm sure the sound will still be distracting, but at least you'll know you still sound fine to others.
Otherwise, blow harder and work on your breathing, it will go away with practice.

 

I read this in another tread and it actually helps. I think it helps becuase of the mpc issue EZ brought up:

Take a little cork grease or chapstick on your finger and rub it inside the chamber of your piece up close to the tip and baffle (a very thin layer please)...now blow.

 

Spit Rattle: Ditto to Sigmund's cure

I also find that a little cork grease spread on the baffle area--and even a little farther--helps the spit or condensation move past that area. Works very well for me. Think of the water running off a newly waxed car.

This is now standard prep for me to play in public, especially if I will be using a Legere plastic reed. I'll even put a thin coating on the flat of the synthetic reed. Seems to have no effect on the reed's playability, and spit rattle almost never occurs.

-Len

 

Check and make sure your mouthpiece is sealing...you know..do the whole vacuum test with your hand..

 

Part of the problem is that humidity condenses quicker the colder it is, so a cold horn will worsen the problem. Humidity from your expiration air will condense on the cold surface of the neck. Thus, the advice about air is very important since the increased air stream not only "blows away" the fluid, but also heatens up the horn so that there will be less condensation going on in the parts nearest to you (mpc+neck). While, in the long run, it is better to go for the increased-air-flow-strategy, I think, a quick fix for the problem is the following: Just tilt your sax (and body) position a little forward while playing, kind of letting the sax hang by the neckstrap instead of pressing it out and up away from your body. Then , the fluids will drain down through the sax instead of floating back into your mouthpiece. Many serious tenor players are using this position (although, maybe not for the same reason ), among others, I saw Bob Berg in a consert, and he was holding the horn tilted forward that way (and I guarantee, I did not hear any sound of spit, that is for sure... )

Cheers

 

If the "spitty sound" you are talking about sounds kind of like bacon frying in a pan, then most of the sound is being produced by water adhering to the back of the reed. You can check this by playing until you hear the sound and then stop and remove your reed. Draw the back of the reed down against the front of the music stand and see how much moisture scrapes off. If there is a lot, then this is your problem.

If this is the case the solution mentioned by Carl H. is effective in keeping the back of the reed free from retaining the water. Let me expand a bit on what he said. Rub the reed in the direction of the grain on the inside cover of your music book. It is important that the book be on a perfectly flat surface like a formica countertop. It works best if the reed is slightly wet to begin with. Start with a light pressure and slowly increase the pressure as you rub. At one point the reed will make a clicking sound as it goes back and forth---keep going when it does another 50 - 75 strokes pushing even harder. If you have done this correctly the back of the reed will have a smooth glass-like finish.

Do this with the same reed several days in a row after playing. The reason this is effective is that the moisture that hits the "polished" reed will form into tiny beads and just roll off into the horn, just like the water droplets on your newly waxed car. I have also found that polishing the back of the reeds in this fashion seals the pores in the cane and makes the reed last longer and play more consistently.

Swallowing any saliva in your mouth before you play and inhaling through the sax in the rests to put the water back where it came from also helps. I have dealt with this problem on sax and clarinet my entire playing career. I'm kind of like Pavlov's dog in that just thinking of playing my sax makes me salivate. I had a clarinet teacher once who (jokingly?)suggested I relearn how to play the clarinet with one of those dentist suction tubes hanging in the corner of my mouth. Don't give up! You can learn to manage the problem if you work at it.

 

If this is the case the solution mentioned by Carl H. is effective in keeping the back of the reed free from retaining the water. Let me expand a bit on what he said. Rub the reed in the direction of the grain on the inside cover of your music book. It is important that the book be on a perfectly flat surface like a formica countertop. It works best if the reed is slightly wet to begin with. Start with a light pressure and slowly increase the pressure as you rub. At one point the reed will make a clicking sound as it goes back and forth---keep going when it does another 50 - 75 strokes pushing even harder. If you have done this correctly the back of the reed will have a smooth glass-like finish.

I do this before every playing session. I’m a wet player apparently and this advice was game changing a while ago.

 

HEY THXS!!!! it worked i needed the advice cuz i have a adition in a few hours!!

 

I feel like if putting more mouthpiece does the trick then you do need a more consistent air stream. It can still happen every now and then, but if the air column is solid there should be no water which gets to stick on that reed enough to produce that fizzling.

 

For some reason everytime I play my alto sax i keep getting a spitty sound and the sound that comes out sounds very raspy. Even when I play the first note it will become spitty in about 5 seconds and I cant keep blowing air to push it down.

Can anyone please give me advice on how to fix these two problems?

Hi, I noticed this once seriously ehen just having finished some chocolate treat with milk, and as well was squinting forward and down to read the notes…but sitting back in a chair and supporting the butt of the sax between the legs on this chair, brought the posture to an upright stance, and supprise no condensation or anything?