That's terrific Paul! Sign up for my free weekly newsletter and you'll get my free video (3 Tips to Fatten Up Your Saxophone Tone) that will help you even more: donnaschwartzmusic.com/fst

Hi Paul. The technique of singing the note into your horn is covered by master saxophonist John Harle in his two-volume book "The Saxophone - the art and science of playing and performing" available from Amazon. In his book John draws attention to the similarities between singing and playing the saxophone and describes his method of directing air to different parts of the reed depending on which register and note you're playing. I've been working through this book for the last couple of years and it has made a great improvement in my playing and understanding, allowing me to play better with less effort. Thoroughly recommend this book to everyone. Happy playing and best wishes.

Not necessarily - depends on the brand of horn... Standard F# on tenor (w/o F# key) is front F + R1 and Side Bb. Alto is front F + side Bb

That's great to hear - do the hard work now and it gets easier later on...

Great - good to hear...

Thank you! Check out my website for more videos like this: www.DonnaSchwartzMusic.com

You should check out some of my other videos on my site: www.donnaschwartzmusic.com. Go to the Free Stuff tab and you'll see lots there. You can also sign up for my weekly newsletter and get my free video: 3 Tips to Fatten Up Your Saxophone Tone.

Thank you, and I'm really glad it helped :)

WOW! Thank you. I really appreciate that! 😊

Dona you are so beautiful like tenor saxophone...

Good to hear, thank you....

Felix G unless you have played another woodwind instrument for awhile I would recommend staying away from altissimo for awhile.

Same I tried playing an altissimo G and ended up playing Altissimo C#

Yes, I saw your post - great news Michael! Thanks, I'm glad you liked the video 😊

That's awesome!

@@DonnaSchwartz Any videos for the low notes? from low C to Bb? I can get it but not on demand as i would like. If I start from mid Bb and go down, can get the Low Bb but i struggle to start from Low Bb on demand

Yes - just search my KZfaq channel and check my site

Yes!

Thank you! 😃

Thanks Christine - check out my website for other free video lessons, and subscribe to get 3 Tips to Fatten Up Your Saxophone Tone... www.DonnaSchwartzMusic.com

Will do! Thank you for your generous teaching!

👍

That's great - glad the video helped clarify some things for you...

Donna Schwartz please, I have been having problems with my lips hurting whine playing SAX for about 5yrs now. What advice do you have for me to reduce the pain. It sometimes makes me wanna quit playing. thank you

Check out my site for more videos that will help you , and sign up for free weekly newsletters for more practical tips at DonnaSchwartzMusic.com. I just finished registration for my new course on Getting a Killer Sax Tone. You can get on the waitlist for the next time the course becomes available here: donnaschwartzmusic.com/join-killer-saxophone-tone/

Hey, 3 notes for the price of one! Love it! Seriously though, this takes time and is not meant to be a quick fix. Keep at it, and the note you intend will always come out.

Yes!

That's correct!

Donna Schwartz Thanx!!

Too funny!!! I love Ellen too! Glad you liked the video...

Thanks, It's a Theo Wanne Gaia 7....

That is the original Gaia

Wow - thanks! Check out my website for more videos... www.DonnaSchwartzMusic.com What specifically in the video helped you get Altissimo G?

For me, the second fingering worked waaay better than the first, my intended note jumped right out! I got a few other notes as well, but as they say, "today's squeaks are tomorrow's notes!", so I'll save those spots on my lips and embouchure for later reference. With a bit of practice, I'll get that note (and others) on command, thank you!

That's great to hear! Keep it up!

That is not the reason. It is how the sound is produced. On brass, it is with the lips (in coordination with the air and tongue). On the sax, and clarinet it is with the lips and reed - the reed vibrates which along with the air and tongue, make the sound.

Donna Schwartz Flute belongs to the woodwind family and doesn't use reed.

Two reasons - Flutes used to be made of wood, and tone is produced by blowing air against a tone hole. Again, Brass instruments can produce tone without the aid of a reed or other part of the instrument.

I mostly use Legere Signatures now, and sometimes cane

That just comes with listening to a lot of music, and asking people at first.

I just use the octave and front fork key (which presses down LH 1)

You generally play those solos an octave lower. Once you get your embouchure solid, along with your altissimo range, then you can learn those solos in the original octave. I have a course, Master Your Favorite Sax Solos, where I teach each solo for tenor and alto. I only offer it once or twice a year, so sign up for my mailing list to know when it will be offered.

Oh cool thanks. Where can I sign up for your mailing list (and out of curiosity, do you have a list of the sax solos that you teach in that course )?

All the info is here: donnaschwartzmusic.com/store/master-sax-solos/

Thanks for your reply, Bill - there are many variations of fingerings for altissimo notes based on the horn brand and model. In my video, I am showing you how to actually get the note to come out reliably. Too many people think it's all about just fingerings.

Theo Wanne Gaia 7*

For that video, I was probably on a Theo Wanne Gaia

What an awesome question!!! I will answer that on my next Facebook Live session. Attend this Thursday 10/15 at 10amPST. Go to my page (like it please!) facebook.com/DonnaSchwartzMusic at 10am and I'll answer it live.

Follow exactly what I say in the video and do not expect it to come out right away. Have patience and follow the process.

Theo Wanne Gaia 7

Not an easy pitch to play - it takes a lot of hard work and focus

Donna Schwartz okay do you suggest blowing a little bit softer

No, just follow the method in the video or wait until I open my Get a Killer Saxophone Tone course, which builds the foundation for getting altissimo

G takes a while, especially on the tenor. If you follow the process in the video, that will help the most. Equipment only enhances your tone and technique; you have to start with and use a solid foundation first.

Thanks I will keep singing get it 😎

Depends on the horn

I didn't...

Theo Wanne Gaia 7, Mark VI tenor, Rigotti Gold 2 1/2

Nice, thank you. I find it very difficult to follow the altissimo scale, since I learned to play in the piano pitch scale.

I am not sure what you mean by altissimo scale or piano pitch scale? Can you explain?

When you select concert F in the tune, you play G on the sax. But for me, your G is still F. I don't transpose.

Okay. You can think of the Tenor Sax G as an F, but in some ways that can mess you up. Transposing, like any skill, takes time to work on. After a while, you can do it on the fly. Since you understand that Tenor Sax pitches are written a 9th higher (octave plus 2nd), you already are on your way. Practice transposing with simple songs first.

Just try it for a week and you will see and hear the results

Depends on the situation. If I'm outdoors (extreme heat or cold), it makes sense to use synthetic. For some studio situations, a cane reed may be preferred because it may give a warmer sound.

Yes, it would be the same for all notes ... Keep listening to your favorite players, and as you get more control over your sound, you will be able to get that same expression you hear in theirs... Check out my site for more free video lessons... www.DonnaSchwartzMusic.com

Altissimo range takes time and patience, and honestly, you shouldn't be attempting altissimo until the full written range of the horn is in tune and you are able to play all the notes efficiently. We ALWAYS work in our embouchure, doesn't matter what age you are... If the palm key notes are sounding thin, you should start looking into another mouthpiece. Stock mouthpieces have tip openings that are too small.

Donna Schwartz Alright, thank you!

Donna Schwartz Actually, I just picked up a Yamaha Custom mouthpiece today. I can do altissimo much easier, and my G fingering doesn't sound like the C above it. I just needed a larger tip opening.

I'm a middle aged recreational sax/clarinet player, but I have the money to play with equipment. There is absolutely no way my Yamaha YTS-23 with Prestini kangaroo pads will play altissimo G, but it will play everything below and above that. This is with professional mouthpieces and very high quality reeds. The stock mouthpiece is useless for anything beyond the middle ranges of the instrument. My Beaugnier tenor will play altissimo G like it's a Sunday walk in the park - again professional mouthpieces and very high quality reeds. I do have a Rico M9 Metalite mouthpiece that will play all over the range of the instrument - it is a great budget choice for something to take to school and not worry about damaging. My pro mouthpieces are nearly all CE Winds or RSR (Richard Sax Ross) obtained on eBay auctions. Now I'll let you in on a little secret - the easiest way to play altissimo G and everything around it, above and below, with fantastic tone is to use a soprano saxophone. I have a Yanagisawa S-6 that I use a Rico Royal B5 Graftonite and Vandoren V16 S8 on. The reason we have baritone, tenor, alto and soprano saxophones is so that the proper instrument can be selected to play where the music fits in the heart of the instrument's range. There are pieces of music I learned on the tenor sax and then transposed to alto sax for grins to find it sounds much better on the alto. I've also had things go the other way. Fingerings can get sporty. I have one piece of recorded music that took me a long time to figure out how the sax player was getting such good tone: he started out on a soprano sax and then switched to an alto. Do learn to play the clarinet; do learn to play altissimo on the clarinet - then playing high notes on the sax will be easy. Learn to play up one octave on the saxophone without using the octave key.

It's not about the equipment, it's about developing your embouchure and breath support.

Just follow what I said in the video...I wouldn't mind having that Mark VI though ;)

@@DonnaSchwartz I have no issues with G altissimo on my other horns..Reference 36 tenor, Reference 54 alto, altissimo is easy for me but for some odd reason this MK VI is driving me nuts, I just got it overhauled by Randy Jones and it plays like a dream except for that stubborn alt G LOL.

@@DonnaSchwartz I will definitely take your exercise advice for sure, I never thought of singing into the mouthpiece, thank you!

@@DonnaSchwartz I got it, thank you..keeping my Mark VI now LOL

Good to hear for you, not for me -LOL!

Sing in the highest range for those notes that you can

That can be one of the reasons you're having difficulty playing it

Sing the pitch down the octave

@@DonnaSchwartz okay thanks

Patience is really important - you can't expect to get the altissimo overnight. Just keep working on the concepts and in time it will get consistent...

+Donna Schwartz I definitely will keep at it. haven't been able to sleep. I finally have the drive to keep playing.

That's awesome that you got your motivation back - shoot for 1% progress each session...

Although I teach some brass concepts on the saxophone because they help to expand the limits of the instrument and the player ( I also have been playing trumpet for over 37 years), I don't agree with your comment. A saxophone is still a woodwind because of the cane reed. You wouldn't consider a clarinet a brass instrument (made of grenadilla wood) even though you can play overtones and harmonics on it. You woldn;'t consider a guitar instrument a brass instrument even though harmonics are played all the time on it.

Rant Gant Pretty sure she understood that, she was saying that you have to hear the note to play it. On saxophone we often times just use fingerings to get whatever note we are playing. The difference is that on brass you have to hear the note, much like the altissimo range where you have to hear it to play in the right partial and in tune.