For Alto Sax, add three sharps (#). I like to play music written for bass instruments (cello, trombone), because after you add three sharps (or substract three flats), you can just read notes as if it's normal clef on bass clef.
I'm enjoying all your videos! One thing I've noticed is this: Say, I'm playing my baritone saxophone (which is Eb)... I can then switch to my soprano (which is Bb) and it'll sound pretty great if I do the fingerings that I was using on the baritone... because I've gone up a fifth. This would work going from Alto to Tenor as well.
Hi! Thanks again 😊 I would bee so happy if you would do a video about how to do a 12bar blues on some of the sessions app. This is something I really want to do. I think i know how to do, but your sound and rhythm is something else 😊 Thank you for all your sharing ❤
Another good post Lynden but saxophones were invented by Adolphe Sax as you know some time after the clarinet established itself as a single reed wind instrument. The clarinet was also a transposing instrument- think the famous Mozart clarinet concerto which uses a A clarinet to permit the soloist to play in C major while the orchestra plays in A, a beautiful key for strings. Remember there is no keyboard instrument in the concerto so the tuning is just intonation so a beautiful sound (albeit much lower than A 440 hz). Since saxophones were initially orchestral instruments it made sense to follow the clarinet which has Bb and Eb as the primary transposition pitches so sax players could use music written for clarinet- in those days all music was hand written so this is a major factor. As a matter of interest, the guitar is also a transposing instrument, it is just that it transposes at the octave! This means that a written middle C on music for the guitar sounds an octave lower than the written middle C on piano. Since the pitch is not the same it is transposed though it is still a note C. This is why the key signature remains the same for guitar.
Good video, thanks, Lynden. C mels were designed as quiet playing 'parlour' instruments, and they all came with close tipped mpcs and soft squishy pads. They sounded stuffy and ducklike. With decent pads, resonators and a modern Cmel mpc, they are a different animal. Still a unique sound, but not so much like a duck! A decent C mel horn is a joy to play. 😀
Very well presented Lynden. It can be a bit head wrecking. Another way of looking at it is that a given pitch has different names depending on what instrument you play.
I have always played by ear, but lately I have had to read music, which I’m not very good at. However, all the sheet music I have are in concert C, because all my fellow musicians in my quartet, are playing instruments tuned to convert C. So why not let the tenor be as it is and simply call the tenor D for C. I know where all the concert notes are on my tenor. Why do I need to know the tenors “internal” scale?
Hello Lynden. I agree with all you said. C melody is hard to have in tune and to have a good sound it is again more difficult because you can't find a good mouthpiece today. And also for acoustic reasons, it is not optimized you are true. But for learning the first years, for someone who already can read/hear/play notes in C you can focus on playing. A friend who is saxophone tenor pro played my 2 C sax. His song is usually perfect on his tenor, with mine it was just correct. I played his tenor and my sound was definitly better. I will buy a tenor 😂. Thx for your video
Great explanation. I struggle with knowing what key to play in, to a backing track. So if yhe backing track is in concert Bb, would I have to play in C major on the Tenor? And G major on the Alto? If wanted to play a melody/song in C on my tenor I would need to find a backing track in Bb?
But if you are only going to play one type of sax, for example alto sax (never tenor or soprano) then would it be better to learn the fingerings that match the piano?
@@lyndenblades It all depends on who you're playing with, and what sheet music they give you. If you're in a marching band, they will give you music written for the sax. But otherwise, it will be written in concert pitch for piano and guitar.
Ok I still am confused. At the top of the chart we see the concert pitch instruments showing C, alto is called E flat and tenor is B flat. I understood concert C is E flat on alto and B flat on tenor but... Right underneath C is A on alto and D on tenor. Now it would make sense to call the alto an A instrument and tenor a D?
Hi Jeff. Concert C is not Eb on alto, it’s the other way around, C on an alto is Concert Eb. Concert C is an A on an alto. When you play C on an alto it sounds like concert Eb 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎 When you play C on a tenor it sounds like Bb 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
Hang on, why not use tabs instead of changing the names of the notes, if the problem is keeping the same fingering? That's what guitars do, you don't keep calling it the E string if it's tuned down to C, for example.
@@lyndenbladesPer what you said, C on a saxophone is a different note but labeled the same as C on other instruments. And one of your arguments as to why was so that the fingering was the same on saxophones that are in different keys. What I suggested was using tabs, that is, notation specifically for using with one instrument, in this case a saxophone. Using tabs would keep the fingerings the same between the differently keyed saxophones, and you wouldn't need to transpose at all, reading the sheet music the same as if it was any other instrument, without the pitch of the notes being different between the same note played on different instruments, and without having to worry about fingering. I hope that made sense.
For Alto Sax, add three sharps (#). I like to play music written for bass instruments (cello, trombone), because after you add three sharps (or substract three flats), you can just read notes as if it's normal clef on bass clef.
@@AndrewParkK awesome 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
Yes! It's very useful , I wish that if you teach us how to play the "I will always love you" song on tenor sax step-by-step 🙌🙌
I’ll definitely bare that in mind 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
I'm enjoying all your videos! One thing I've noticed is this: Say, I'm playing my baritone saxophone (which is Eb)... I can then switch to my soprano (which is Bb) and it'll sound pretty great if I do the fingerings that I was using on the baritone... because I've gone up a fifth. This would work going from Alto to Tenor as well.
Well, if it sounds great then go for it 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
Hi! Thanks again 😊 I would bee so happy if you would do a video about how to do a 12bar blues on some of the sessions app.
This is something I really want to do. I think i know how to do, but your sound and rhythm is something else 😊
Thank you for all your sharing ❤
Hi Jimmy, thanks for your feedback and your suggestions. Both of these topics are on my list 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
Great explanation
Thank you so much 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
Very very good video Thank you for sharing
@@garytrent1 thank you Gary 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
It's fabulous information 🎉
So nice of you 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
Another good post Lynden but saxophones were invented by Adolphe Sax as you know some time after the clarinet established itself as a single reed wind instrument. The clarinet was also a transposing instrument- think the famous Mozart clarinet concerto which uses a A clarinet to permit the soloist to play in C major while the orchestra plays in A, a beautiful key for strings. Remember there is no keyboard instrument in the concerto so the tuning is just intonation so a beautiful sound (albeit much lower than A 440 hz). Since saxophones were initially orchestral instruments it made sense to follow the clarinet which has Bb and Eb as the primary transposition pitches so sax players could use music written for clarinet- in those days all music was hand written so this is a major factor. As a matter of interest, the guitar is also a transposing instrument, it is just that it transposes at the octave! This means that a written middle C on music for the guitar sounds an octave lower than the written middle C on piano. Since the pitch is not the same it is transposed though it is still a note C. This is why the key signature remains the same for guitar.
@@billjazznblues awesome information thank you 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
As far as I know, saxophones were never in a classical orchestra but only in military bands, until jazz and Big Bands came along.
@@codetech5598 thanks for this 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
Good video, thanks, Lynden. C mels were designed as quiet playing 'parlour' instruments, and they all came with close tipped mpcs and soft squishy pads. They sounded stuffy and ducklike. With decent pads, resonators and a modern Cmel mpc, they are a different animal. Still a unique sound, but not so much like a duck! A decent C mel horn is a joy to play. 😀
Cool, thanks! 🤝🤝🎷🎷👍😎
Very well presented Lynden. It can be a bit head wrecking. Another way of looking at it is that a given pitch has different names depending on what instrument you play.
You’re absolutely right and thank you for your feedback 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
Super explanatory video, thanks Lynden
Thank you Jan 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
Great post Lynden & congratulations for hitting 5k 🎉
Thank you Brian 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
Really well deserved & this is through just work and so very helpful cheers
@@BrianBurgess-jg6bs aw thank you Brian
I have always played by ear, but lately I have had to read music, which I’m not very good at. However, all the sheet music I have are in concert C, because all my fellow musicians in my quartet, are playing instruments tuned to convert C.
So why not let the tenor be as it is and simply call the tenor D for C. I know where all the concert notes are on my tenor. Why do I need to know the tenors “internal” scale?
Because if you decided ever to switch to alto none of the notes would be the same 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
Thank you... That was invaluable ....
Glad it was helpful! 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
With the Tenor please
Absolutely 👍
Hello Lynden. I agree with all you said. C melody is hard to have in tune and to have a good sound it is again more difficult because you can't find a good mouthpiece today. And also for acoustic reasons, it is not optimized you are true. But for learning the first years, for someone who already can read/hear/play notes in C you can focus on playing. A friend who is saxophone tenor pro played my 2 C sax. His song is usually perfect on his tenor, with mine it was just correct. I played his tenor and my sound was definitly better. I will buy a tenor 😂. Thx for your video
Thank you for this Kooky 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
Grazie for the cheat sheet 😀
You’re welcome Andy 🎷🎷😎😎🤝🤝
This is a nightmare for some people with perfect pitch, so they just learn the "real" fingerings.
@@gedeonducloitre-delavarenn8106 absolutely 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
Great explanation. I struggle with knowing what key to play in, to a backing track. So if yhe backing track is in concert Bb, would I have to play in C major on the Tenor? And G major on the Alto? If wanted to play a melody/song in C on my tenor I would need to find a backing track in Bb?
@@Stefsax yes, that’s exactly right. If you download the free sheet then that might help you feel more confident about transposing 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
But if you are only going to play one type of sax, for example alto sax (never tenor or soprano) then would it be better to learn the fingerings that match the piano?
I think most sax players would say they’d prefer to have the option to play the other saxophones, but you never know! 🤝🤝😎😎🎷🎷
@@lyndenblades It all depends on who you're playing with, and what sheet music they give you. If you're in a marching band, they will give you music written for the sax.
But otherwise, it will be written in concert pitch for piano and guitar.
@@codetech5598 👍👍👍
Ok I still am confused.
At the top of the chart we see the concert pitch instruments showing C, alto is called E flat and tenor is B flat. I understood concert C is E flat on alto and B flat on tenor but...
Right underneath C is A on alto and D on tenor.
Now it would make sense to call the alto an A instrument and tenor a D?
Hi Jeff. Concert C is not Eb on alto, it’s the other way around, C on an alto is Concert Eb. Concert C is an A on an alto.
When you play C on an alto it sounds like concert Eb 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
When you play C on a tenor it sounds like Bb 🤝🤝🎷🎷😎😎
@@lyndenblades Thanks. It's all so clear now.
Excellent 👍👍🎷🎷
Hang on, why not use tabs instead of changing the names of the notes, if the problem is keeping the same fingering? That's what guitars do, you don't keep calling it the E string if it's tuned down to C, for example.
Im not 100% sure I understand what you’re saying here dizzy…🧐
@@lyndenbladesPer what you said, C on a saxophone is a different note but labeled the same as C on other instruments. And one of your arguments as to why was so that the fingering was the same on saxophones that are in different keys. What I suggested was using tabs, that is, notation specifically for using with one instrument, in this case a saxophone. Using tabs would keep the fingerings the same between the differently keyed saxophones, and you wouldn't need to transpose at all, reading the sheet music the same as if it was any other instrument, without the pitch of the notes being different between the same note played on different instruments, and without having to worry about fingering. I hope that made sense.
@@dizzydaisy909 🤝🤝