Best books about saxophones according to redditors
We found 39 Reddit comments discussing the best books about saxophones. We ranked the 19 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
1. Selected Studies: for Saxophone (Rubank Educational Library)
4 mentions
Used Book in Good Condition
Easy answer: practice overtone exercises such as the classic:
fingering low Bb and changing your throat position to play a Bb up an octave, and then F a 5th above that, and Bb a 4th above that, etc.
Personal experience: what I found while developing my control of the altissimo register was that I often tried to capture higher overtones by biting more in my embouchure and blowing harder, when I needed to be utilizing throat positioning instead to reach higher overtones as well as to develop better control of them.
Check out these books for a much more comprehensive understanding of the altissimo register:
Top-Tones for the Saxophone: https://www.amazon.com/O2964-Top-Tones-Saxophone-Four-Octave-Range/dp/082582642X
Saxophone High Tones: https://www.amazon.com/Saxophone-High-Tones-Eugene-Rousseau/dp/158106005X/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=T61FKP0VVR5H1CHJRB5W
Beginning Studies in the Altissimo Register: https://www.amazon.com/Saxophone-Beginning-studies-altissimo-register/dp/B00072ZF9C/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1505855702&sr=1-1&keywords=rosemary+lang+altissimo
In terms of horns, you should go with which one captivates you the most. For me, the tenor is remarkably close to the human voice and it feels more personal.
Once you get the horn, you'll obviously have to run through fundamentals. There's a good book in our sidebar called The Art of Saxophone Playing which I highly recommend you read through. I also suggest you grab a copy of the Rubank Elementary Method Saxophone to work through to build up some technique and understanding. The Basic Jazz Conception in the sidebar is also a great resource to build technique and work on jazz fundamentals. After you get going, you're going to want to start transcribing (I suggest starting with Young, Hawk, or Webster) as you'll want to begin learning the jazz language.
Also, I highly recommend that you get a good teacher (in your case someone specialized in jazz) who can keep you pointed in the right direction.
Also this book
Jump in the deep end: Search the web for community band your city
Refresh your reading skills and have at it.
But since you're asking, here's a small book of 12 easy songs: https://smile.amazon.com/Kenny-G-Easy-Solos-Saxophone/dp/0793539056
I've been critical of Arban's for a while. It's a great catch all and can be a good place to start getting a bit of fundamentals in all the major food groups.... with guidance.
My biggest complaint is how often it's blindly recommended to people. It's honestly not a very good instructional book and definitely not a book you can learn to work out of without a teacher. Those who recommend it (to people just starting in their 20s with no background) often are taking for granted that they know how to use it. Some are just saying "trumpet bible" like some kind of meme and not actually considering the pedagogical value.
This is the exact same problem with Levine's The Jazz Piano Book in the piano world. It's a resource.... not a guide and not for someone trying to teach themselves.
I think Arban's is particularly lacking in flexibility work which is absolutely core. There are some lip slur bits, but there's virtually no partial skipping.
I think multiple tonguing is also petty weak.
I do think a lot of the arpeggio work, and interval work is particularly solid though.
Ultimately, I think everyone should own one, but it should not be their only go-to book. I think there are a lot of books that do much better jobs in specific areas. The Salvo tonguing book; Bai Lin, Irons, and/or Colin for flexibility; Clarke Technical for much more robust technique. Technique of the Saxophone and this book
are vastly better scale books even though neither is explicitly for trumpet and so they probably get overlooked or even actively ignored by most
Now, anyone can argue that you could milk Arban for more and never master it, but at the end of the day, you should work smarter, not harder. Just because it's in there doesn't mean it's practical. There's also a lack of hierarchy expressed in the book. If you really want to get the most out of Arban's, you need to go off the page. This is particularly true in the scale section which is far from exhaustive. There are great ideas, but you need to go beyond the written ranges both up and down. Many exercise (including the scale ones) need to transposed and not just played in the written keys to be maximally beneficial.
If there is an approach that better attacks a particular problem in a very practical way, you should take that rather than spending all of your time trying to master a less useful exercise in Arban's just to check off a box. You could force yourself to learn every scale exercise in Arban's at tempo with all articulation variations and still not be nearly as fluid as you would working out of either of the two non-trumpet scale books I mentioned above, or even just Clarke Technical.
Humans have an inherent bias toward the old, familiar, and dependable. Musicians are probably even worse and end up being staunchly traditional and not only resistant to change, but progress. If you say there's something better than Arban's, people seem to get defensive like it's a personal think to them. It's considered near blasphemy to even suggest it's not that great. Maybe it's that they feel like since they trained with it, it must be the best and don't want to think that maybe they weren't practicing the best material all these years. I grew up with people (and still know plenty) that hated ideas like cell phones and the internet, etc. because it wasn't what they grew up with. That didn't mean it wasn't better, but they were resistant.
There are honestly better books out there. None as comprehensive that I'm aware of, but there are definitely books that cover almost every category in Arban's and do it better. Just because your teacher or your teacher's teacher thinks nothing can never outperform Arban's doesn't mean it's true.
So own one, but don't feel like it's the be-all-end-all of trumpet pedagogy because it's nowhere near it.
It's obviously going to all come down to personal preferences, but if you're looking for more modern, recognizable stuff (particularly if you're looking at busking), you might take a look at Chromatik -- they've recently rolled out a subscription-based plan, so I'm not sure how "free" it is at this point, I think if you're willing to sit through the advertisements, you can still get at all the sheet music.
I've generally had good luck using Google Image search to lead me to places to find the sheet music I'm looking for, just search for <song name> tenor sheet music, and in general, you're pointed to either a free or low-cost option for finding that song.
I haven't made a serious search into finding duet music, but I have been using the Rubank Saxophone Duets book with my daughter, who plays clarinet, while I play my tenor. I also play in the Horn Players Jazz Jam at my local Sam Ash store on Sundays, that seems to vary by location, but at ours, we use primarily the Hal Leonard or Jamey Aebersold play along books & backing tracks.
Get this book and use the play along CD to imitate different styles. The recordings are of the North Texas Jazz Band so it's top notch. It also talks about jazz history, artists, and improvisation.
https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Elements-Jazz-Ensemble-Comprehensive/dp/0793596211/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?keywords=essential+elements+for+jazz+ensemble+alto+saxophone&amp;qid=1563503857&amp;s=gateway&amp;sprefix=essential+elements+for+jazz&amp;sr=8-1
This by far was the best starter book for songs that I found -
https://www.amazon.com/Easy-Pop-Melodies-Alto-Sax/dp/1480384305
Incredibly well done AND easy to play.
This books works well for learning -
https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Elements-2000-Alto-Saxophone/dp/0634003178/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=alto+essentials&qid=1562175637&s=books&sr=1-1
Gives you the next "challenge" to work on great from a complete beginner's perspective. If you do every exercise in that correctly until at least half way through you'll be playing the previous book easily and the music is written so well for it you could play it on the street if you wanted to. Also lets you log in to hear how it's played and so you can play along.
I would recommend using this random sheet music generator to practice playing playing notes faster the first time you read them -
http://www.randomsheetmusic.com/
An instructor will be needed to make sure you are doing things correctly like getting notes out etc. I would recommend getting also 1.5 reeds because it's almost impossible to not get the note out with them.
There's a great book by Dr Rousseau that goes over some good fingerlings for all saxophones. Also there are some good exercise to get your embouchure like it should be in order to play altissimo. Here's the book - https://www.amazon.com/Saxophone-High-Tones-Eugene-Rousseau/dp/158106005X
Once you get comfortable with using the front fingerlings for E, F, and F#, you'll be able to seamlessly go to G.
Another possible friend: "Saxophone High Tones" by Dr. Eugene Rousseau.
I'd suggest getting a practice book! It doesn't have popular songs or anything, but they're challenging and fun.
Here's one of mine
"Sorry nobody is answering your question..." Kind of discouraging. Here is an answer! I've been experimenting with making my own reeds for about a year now. As far as resources are concerned here's what I've discovered. Obviously the majority of the materials that cover reed making are meant for double reeds and clarinet reeds.
In my experience reed making is kind of expensive to get into as far as getting a good reed knife (around $100) but buying the cane in the form of pre-cut blanks, is relatively cheap (about $1.20 per blank). Getting into making your own blanks would more or less require a small mortgage. Keeping your knife sharp is very important so it's usually good to invest a sharpening stone. I use a water stone which is great for reed knives because they only need very fine honing.
I would also research specifically where reeds and cane from, which is mainly France, South America, and now China/other Asian countries. It's good to know about what reeds are (from the plant Arundo Donax) and how they react to environmental changes and whatnot.
The general process takes some getting used to and a lot of practice but after a bit of work it gets easier to see exactly which areas of the reed need to be adjusted. I'm not at the point where reed making is economic because it does take a lot of time (however gives you 100% control over the reed) and energy. What I have gotten out of learning all of this stuff is how to adjust reeds to my liking when I don't get one that plays well out of the box.
I realize this is a bit of long post, but I could provide some more information if you all would find it useful!
To start off, don't expect yourself to sound like Kenny G right off the bat. You're gonna sound like a broken glass trying to grind itself across the chock board. But that's OK!
So to answer your question...
The number on the reed indicate how stiff it is.
It'll go over some of the basic of reading notes as well identifying the 'rest'. Though granted, this book is written for children so don't be dishearten or disgruntle about the level of music they have.
Between the three instruments, I missed playing the tenor sax the most. Its a "beast" to say the least.
The content of many "jazz" methods can be applied to most styles of music, even though delivery would be different and certain exercises specific to the style. Here are a few books you can check out:
Finally, make sure he checks out this free ebook: "The Scale Omnibus". No chords but it's an incredible resource. From the description:
> The Scale Omnibus is a FREE book that describes as many as 399 distinct scales in all 12 keys,with synonyms,historical notes,chords over which the scale sounds well,summary tables,and more. It took hours of researching,typing,read-proofing,and double-checking and might easily be the most complete book on this topic.
Here's a couple Berklee books that are widely available in music stores since many colleges use them, they cycle thru all the important arpeggios, all 12 keys, major, minor, dom, dim, half-dim, avail in treble and bass clef, I've used these a lot.
https://www.amazon.com/Chord-Studies-Electric-Bass-Technique/dp/0634016466
https://www.amazon.com/Technique-Saxophone-Studies-Woodwind-Method/dp/0793554128/
I know that you may not want to hear this, but Sheet Music is pretty much bread and butter imo. If you don't know how to read notes, try Essential Elements. I know it's a very basic book, but it teaches you the exact fingerings of each note and how it appears on the page. I used that book on my first year of learning Tenor Sax, and it actually helped out a lot. I didn't need this book after my first year, but man is it informative. It also has some very, very basic beginner tunes imo (yet, I'm not sure what your definition of a beginner tune is).
Edit: You can also find a Tenor Sax version on Amazon as well. The link I provided is alto.
The Rubank Method books are a great place to start. Some may suggest Essential Elements and Accent on Achievement books, but for independent study I wouldn't bother.
There are many, many, more.
I also put the sax down and picked it up 17 years later. After the basics of muscle memory for fingerings and embouchure were back I was able to jump straight back into the method books I had from back then.
After about six months of noodling around I enrolled in a jazz ensemble improv intro class. I’m obviously the rustiest one there but I’m out-sight-reading the other saxophonist in the class. (I’m getting my ass kicked in theory and transposition though, so that’s where I’m studying)
You don’t need to start on the basic basics, you got that down almost 2 decades ago. Push yourself a bit, it’ll come back pretty quick! Go get a jazz method book if that’s what you want to learn! I got The Jazz Method for Alto Saxophone (Book & CD) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1902455002/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_tlWCDbQSBFYWH and it’s been a good jumping off point, though I did also find the really early pages suuuuuper remedial.
Probably best to start with something that might be too easy and work up so here's a good book to start with. Be sure that you play all exercises very, very slowly at first with absolute 1000% accuracy, start by tonguing each note very, very short at first. Imagine a hammer and anvil. Then work on other articulations and work up the tempo. Work with a metronome.
To drill on rhythm read the theory in the back of that book.
Set the horn aside to drill and Clap the rhythms out (on all exercises, then play on the horn later) while counting as suggested in the book; being sure to say the syllables for the divisions of the beat. "One, two, three, four'; (quarter notes) One and, two and, three and, four and (eighth notes), etc. Drill on this night and day until you're doing it while brushing your teeth! Get a pair of drum sticks and pound out rhythms on a table top. Keep up the counting and clapping, tapping! It's very important to be able to count and play simultaneously. The counting may drop into the background later but be able to bring it up to the conscious level at a moment's notice
Then play the exercises on the horn and yes, (music directors will hate this) tap the basic beat with your feet. Learn to suppress the foot tapping to maybe moving the big toe inside your shoe.
Can't emphasize the importance of playing slowly enough at first so you have accuracy BEFORE speed. Playing an exercise too fast will drill in wrong fingerings which will be hard to iron out later.
!Thou Shall Practice Every Blessed Day unless sick in bed. At first about 10-15 minutes (stop when you get tired or you'll just start making mistakes) and then work to about 30 minutes. Ok to do the 30 minutes in two sessions.
The band builder book is a bit short on material so you'll want to find supplementary material right away. The Rubank series are excellent, the exercises with simple rhythms will allow you to practice counting while playing.
I'm wondering if some of your technique issues would be resolved by learning the note fingerings-our cognitive processes here are tricky, we may feel we know the sax fingerings but with so much else going on, the mind has issues resolving what needs to be done next. For this, attack the issue of learning fingerings by silently playing without placing the mouthpiece in your mouth and just finger the notes. Then set the horn down and 'play' the exercise by just saying the note names in strict time. That way you work a different part of your brain which will assist it in pulling up the fingering the note quicker.
I'm a sax player myself (also clarinet) and love to teach music. I'm plowing through Deville's Universal Method for Saxophone; it has an excellent set of drills in the first 100 exercises. Bit pricey but worth it if you want to motivate yourself
Here's website that explores rhythm subdivisions-very important to understand this. Again, take your time and allow yourself to approach this across several days so as to give the mind time to absorb it all.
http://www.amazon.com/Technique-Saxophone-Studies-Joseph-Viola/dp/0793554098/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1323452039&amp;sr=8-1
^^ this is a good book. My teacher has me using it.
There are some really nice/challenging etudes in this book: http://www.amazon.com/Selected-Studies-Saxophone-Educational-Library/dp/1423445279
Try Selected Studies. It's the All County and All State book for where I'm from and my teacher uses it as his main classical book. It will last you a long time and it goes through all major and minor keys with a slow and a fast song for each.
5 min: Warm up with long tones and overtone exercises.
40 min: Scales & related exercises.
15 min: Practice upcoming concert/lesson/recital music.
There is nothing that will make you a better player faster than knowing scales and having that muscle memory in your fingers. It's much easier to play when you don't have to think about what notes come next. Those scale exercises are not just straight up and down. Returning scales, scales in 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, arpeggios, etc. Get a good book of exercises (something like this), and just keep working. Go slow enough that you aren't making any mistakes.
It SHOULD go without saying, but in case it needs saying, make sure you're also playing with good tone, solid intonation, and musicality. Just because you're doing technical exercises doesn't mean you get to ignore the rest.
You should be buying Berkley practice method books and DVDs for sax then. They're rather affordable given the wealth of information
and you can always sail the high seas for themTry this on for size: https://www.amazon.com/Improvisation-Saxophone-Scale-Approach-Saophone/dp/0793554268/ref=pd_sim_14_12?_encoding=UTF8&amp;psc=1&amp;refRID=NB18DAFC3EDHS4J1WFW3
And this for good measure: https://www.amazon.com/Saxophone-Sound-Effects-Breathing-Multiphonics/dp/0876391277/ref=pd_sim_14_4?_encoding=UTF8&amp;psc=1&amp;refRID=8A6TMV7QG478CE4PNZZP
These come along with play along CDs: https://www.amazon.com/Hip-Licks-Saxophone-Greg-Fishman/dp/0984349243/ref=pd_sim_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&amp;psc=1&amp;refRID=SSHDZXD8R9BG1547YG6Z
Larry Teal is the best (IMO) place to start. Get The Art of Saxophone Playing, work it diligently, and you will make measurable and immense progress.
Book: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0849759331/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Embouchure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0QTEEQi3g4
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Sorry this took so long to send back!
If you haven't already start doing air placement exercises every time you practice you should open up with long tones, chromatic scale, and then onto your circle of fifths. This book by Paul Deville is great for mid level saxophone techniques. You might also want to end with long tones. Long tones will not only improve your stamina it will also improve your tone, that's assuming you have got air placement correctly. And if you really want to work up your chops, do long tones on your harmonics.