Gonna Fly Now

[Sheila Simpson]

Practicing 3 – 5 hours a day trying to hit my sax groove. LOL. Feedback is welcome. Thank you in advance.

[john]

yes, Sheila, lots of good things you’re doing there.
your timing is very good, I think you’re even tapping your foot which is great (everyone should do that).
those few times when your intonation is off is in the higher register. This is common for beginner to intermediate level students.
the easiest range on our sax is the middle.
the lowest handful of notes are tougher to hit and hit in tune, similarly, the high end of the horn is easier to hit the notes but the intonation up there can be a bit painfully flat. this is because as we get higher we don’t compensate the air flow (support).
Those highest notes NEED more air to stay in tune to match the middle range.So as your notes get higher, and your air support remains the same you will get noticably flat due to not enough air. it’s as simple as that.
So, to get over this common saxophone hurdle, put more air into your sax as you get up to that high range.

Your A, B, and C were spot on at times and flat other times. Listen to yourself when holding the A for a bar or longer and see if you can hear it drop (getting flatter). That’s your sax telling you it’s not getting enough air!

It’s helpful to work with a tuner. I actually have one to put up on the site soon which I’ll announce but meanwhile you can find all sorts of tuners, apps etc.

Good for you to record yourself…it not only allows you to get constructive critizism but it’s listening back to ourselves that allows us to improve cause all these things I bring up we can’t always hear while performing…our mind is too busy with other things!

[Sheila Simpson]

Thank you for the feedback. Yes I was tapping my foot for timing. I will work on putting more air to the higher notes (I didn’t know how to fix so your feedback was helpful). Playing is now feeling natural to me vs. 3 months ago it was an effort as I was trying to remember how to do everything at once and it was work (including getting my sax working again). LOL If only I could get the tone down now. I am working on harder pieces now vs. 3 months ago and I am encouraged with progress. I am putting in the practice time 3 to 5 hours a day and am enjoying. I want to be good in a bad way…LOL

Just FYI my mother who is 75 is getting very forgetful and lives 10 hours away. But everyday she asks if I have a song to share with her. I only share a song once a week with mom and dad and we play “What is this tune?”. They love the game. When I played 40 years ago mom would always come in when I practiced and I would play some song she wanted. Dad would always tell me to do a toe tapper as everyone like that. It was a bonding family thing back then that has become the same today. Mom tells me everyday how happy she is that I am playing again. It is nice to do something that I enjoy and it brings joy to my mom and dad at their ago is a wonderful thing.

Thanks for your help!

[john]

Great story Sheila thanks! that’s very awesome.
Have you gone thru the entire “How To Play The Saxophone – Complete Beginner’s guides” yet?
If so make sure part of your daily time is spent on the “Daily Practice Routine”
A solid hour on those exercises everyday will help a lot.

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