With everyone stuck at home these days there has been a massive increase in output of recorded content on social media. So many people have been asking me about the different setups I use, so I’m going to compare a few user friendly and inexpensive microphone options for recording audio on your phone or […]
Easy Recording Setup and Tips for Saxophone Read More »
Did you ever want to take a lesson from a master at the Juilliard School? Well, now’s your chance. Back in February, I had the pleasure of sitting down with the legendary Saxophonist Bruce Williams. Who is Bruce Williams? Currently a member of the Jazz faculty at the Juilliard School of Music in New York,
A Saxophone Lesson at Juilliard with Bruce Williams Read More »
The other day, I was browsing the internet, as one does, and I came across this new instrument – The Aerophone Mini by Roland. So naturally, I ordered it right away. I’m going to tell you why this thing may be very interesting to a lot of people. After watching the video let us know
Sax in Your Pocket? Roland Aerophone Mini Review Read More »
Many people often think they’re “too old,” to do something new. Do you know how many people have always wanted to play the saxophone but don’t, or maybe played it back in high school, put it down and now wish they were still playing? A lot… But there’s also tons of people who have started
Too Old to Play the Saxophone? Read More »
“I SUCK!” “I SUCK!” Ever say that to yourself? You’re not the only one. In fact, I don’t think there is a single serious saxophone player alive who hasn’t uttered this exact phrase in frustration. It’s a feeling we can all relate to right? Doesn’t matter if you’ve been playing for a week or 50
“I SUCK” – Turning Frustration Into Musical Growth Read More »
A Simple Strategy for Impressive Results Consistency is key. At the beginning of 2019 I set a simple goal for myself, upload a quality YouTube video each week of the coming year. I had other side goals in mind like reach 100K subscribers on YouTube, but I didn’t realistically expect that to happen this year.
How Consistency in the Practice Room Results in Solid Improvement Read More »
First Notes In this lesson I’m going to show you the saxophone fingerings for a bunch of notes to get you started playing the saxophone. So far we’ve learned how to set up our reed and mouthpiece properly in Lesson 1, How to form a good saxophone embouchure and get our first sounds in lesson
Saxophone Fingerings and First Notes | Beginner/Refresher Course Lesson 4 Read More »
Setup & Ideal Body and Hand Position In this lesson, let’s learn how to put the saxophone together and the correct hand position for your fingers and hands on the keys. So far we’ve learned how to set up our reed and mouthpiece in lesson 1 and get a sound with a good saxophone embouchure
Saxophone Setup, Ideal Body and Hand Position | Beginner/Refresher Course Lesson 3 Read More »
Welcome to lesson 2 of the BetterSax Beginners course where we will discuss the proper saxophone embouchure In lesson 1 we learned how to set up our reed and mouthpiece properly to get the best results. In this lesson I’m going to show you how to get a sound out with a good saxophone embouchure.
Saxophone Embouchure and Producing a Good Sound | Beginner/Refresher Course Lesson 2 Read More »
Welcome to the BetterSax Beginner Saxophone Course. The lessons in this course are entirely free, please enjoy and share. Nowadays, you can get information about almost anything for free on the internet, but it is often jumbled up and scattered around. I created this beginner course to help anyone starting out on the saxophone to
Saxophone Mouthpiece and Reed Setup Tutorial | Beginner/Refresher Course Lesson 1 Read More »
You may have seen some heavy mass screws and gadgets on my saxophones in recent videos and instagram posts. Lots of people ask me what they are, and how they affect the sound of my saxophone. Today, I’m going to tell you how you too can get a massive, explosive saxophone sound (hint, it’s not
The Most MASSIVE Sax Sound Ever | Do Heavy Mass Screws Work? Read More »
I just got back from Rotterdam in the Netherlands where I played at the North Sea Jazz Festival with a band called the California Honeydrops. In a recent YouTube video, I shared with you some of the things I was doing to prepare for that gig: learning, memorizing and writing down the horn lines. Today
How to Get Called Back for Gigs (12 Tips From a Freelance Sax Player) Read More »
Today, I want to talk about saxophone ligatures. You know the little device that holds your reed onto the mouthpiece. There are so many different ones to choose from, and apart from the basic cheapo two screw model, each one claims to improve your sound in a whole range of ways… In this article, I
Why Ligatures Matter? It’s NOT How You Think… Read More »
Like just about everything else, the world of saxophones has it’s share of myths, legends and widely held yet false beliefs. I’m going to try and clear some of these up. At least some of the ones concerning instruments and gear. If you agree or disagree with any of my statements let me know in
Saxophone Myths: Equipment Edition Read More »
Like everything else on saxophone, playing in the altissimo range is really hard until one day it’s not so hard. Today I’m going to show you all of my fingerings from high F-sharp up through high C in the altissimo range for alto saxophone and tenor saxophone. But more importantly, I’m going to show you
Altissimo Fingerings for Tenor and Alto Saxophone Read More »
Let’s take a look at what’s wrong with the way many of us were taught the saxophone. Then we’ll take a look at some solutions to these problems. Click here to watch the video version of the post. How We Learn Saxophone I’ve been studying saxophone for over 30 years, and teaching it for more
6 Reasons You Were Taught the Saxophone Wrong Read More »
Today, let’s talk about a how the melodies you practice on the saxophone or any instrument can help you improve in the areas that matter most, quickly. Click below for the video version of this post. Practicing Technique While Feeling Accomplished Ever feel like you’re practicing for hours and not getting anywhere? Everybody feels like
How You Can Use Melodies to Practice Your Fundamentals on Saxophone Read More »
Calling all saxophonists! It’s time to get into the blues. This video is all about playing the blues on saxophone. We’re going to talk about something that always gets neglected when talking about improvising in the blues, or really any style. If you feel like something important might be missing when you’re improvising, this is
Blues Improvisation Lesson for Saxophone Read More »
Every saxophone player has a need for speed. Here’s how to play faster, cleaner and with more solid rhythm. Click below for the video version of this post. Where Are Your Fingers Now? When you play your saxophone, where are your fingers as they move? Are they resting on or very near the keys most
How to Play Faster on Saxophone and Make Fewer Mistakes Read More »
Do you have trouble getting the low notes to come out on your saxophone sometimes, or ever? You’re not alone, this is something that every sax player struggles with at some point. In this lesson, I’m going to go over the most important things you need to be doing to get the low notes out
How to Play Low Notes on the Saxophone (a breathing tutorial) Read More »
Do you have trouble getting altissimo notes to come out reliably or even at all on your saxophone? Every saxophone player has struggled with this. I’d like to share with you the trick that helped me finally overcome the barriers to playing altissimo. If you practice what I’m about to show you, over time you’ll
How to Play Altissimo on Saxophone Read More »
