Awesome! seeing you two-MY FAV INSTRUCTORS - together!!! Omgs🎉I love it and thanks for putting this tone tutorial together! Cheers and happy playing! 🎉
Hi doctor Wally, I look to the book I cannot find the long tones exercises. I would like to felicitate you for your great work to teaches people how to play better the saxophone. Thank you!
THank you Wally! This is so awesome and supprising to see right now.I also watch and save alot of Jamie's videos as well as yours so to have him on with you really blows my mind. Love you both!
20:05 - oh my god, yes!!! There's heaps of stigma, with looking pregnant, when you're a male, playing the saxophone. That's why I had such a hard time playing standing up in my first 8 or so months. Now I push out my stomach on purpose at the start of the session. Let it hang! Do I look attractive? No! Do I feel like I'm playing better? Yes! Such an amazing video guys! Packed to the brim with useful tips! Going to be rewatching it a number of times for sure! I definitely do agree that lots of teachers don't teach this stuff well at all and I believe that I learnt much more from your channel than I have from my two teachers, at least as far as embouchure, breathing, voicing - basically all of the core and most important skills. I find that teachers seem to kind of just skip that. I keep getting told that I'm overthinking it and that it "will come naturally". I could not disagree more. I feel waiting for something to come naturally is a waste of time. I think we need to self reflect and be thoughtful in our practice, in order to make efficient improvement! It is only after I started practicing the "Exercise Zero" every single day for 4 weeks (not going to stop either) that my low Bb started coming out, at least most of the time. Before that, anything below low E was an issue. Fantastic channel! Fantastic videos! Thanks fo much!!
Amazing comment, wow. Interesting points as well. We didn’t evolve on the African Savannah 200,000 years ago playing saxophone, so there’s no reason to assume it should come naturally 🤣
Very cool. I constantly search for useful teaching content being self-taught and around 99% of the really useful stuff comes from just these two channels. My daily practice routine/warmup is a combination of Dr Wally's Fundamentals course and Jamie's exercises including that overtone matching. Thanks guys!
That. Was. Wonderful!. Seriously, that has to have been one of the most entertaining sax videos I've ever seen... And really, really useful too! Thanks guys - a great lesson!
Excellent stuff. I've been following both of you for quite some time. I'd been a pro player in the distant past, but not at a very high level (in any sense), and I wish things like this had been available when I was younger. I've learnt more and become a better player in the last 10 years than in the previous 50 years. Thank you once again.
An absolute gem of a lesson, and all for free! What a hilarious double-act presentation of that ‘holy grail’ quest for perfect tone production. Two lovely, hugely talented guys on a mission to transform all us hesitant mortals into …Sax Gods?🤔mm, maybe not….but certainly committed improvers and confident, sonorous players (Yes Jamie, sonority is THE word!). Thanks so much, guys.👏👏👏Hope to see you teaming up again soon!
I think it's time to acknowledge that Jamie Anderson deserves an honorary doctorate in saxophone from the Saxophone Academy or at least a Blazer or Jacket... Great collaboration guys! The real bonus came when Jamie clearly demonstrates at 31:26 where all this foundational stuff leads. While the scene at 10:35 demonstrates the big fear most young saxophonists visualize as their sound, the big ah-ha moment starting at 11:20 and when Dr. Wally acknowledges at 13:10 the amount of pressure that leads to his little buzz fail at 13:30 that most others will also do. You guys packed so much good stuff into just under 40 minutes! Kudos? Cheers? I think you get my drift. Every band teacher and even sax teacher needs to make this the #1 video for all their sax students. I'm certainly paying this one forward with my students.
Dude, the tone matching....so simple why haven't I heard this before? What a fantastic practice technique! For ear training, developing alternate fingerings, and of course breadth control. I've spent TOO many years of long tones helping sustain bad technique. I mean I've done overtones for years but not the tone matching. It's one of those simple techniques that lit up the bulb in my brain which is important because the lights are off most of the time lol Also great way to introduce new students into loosening embouchure.
Thanks for the tone tips! I taught myself how to play sax and bit through 2 mouthpieces before discovering mouthpiece pads and learning to loosen my embouchure. Now a mouthpiece pad lasts for at least a year. Also, watching clips of myself helped me realize how tense my shoulders get, so I made a conscious effort to relax. Great to see you both, my favorite sax teachers, together!
Dr. Wally, Jamie, that was by far the best tutorial since ages ! I watch both of your channels and it helped a lot to come to a good level on Alto within 2 years. For sure I have a pro as teacher but it is even more efficient to listen to you guys. Thanks and … Go teaching !
Duo perfection for all saxophonists and errrr….. Saxophone-ists (?) You two are my favourite go-to instructors. Well done, great data, fun and hilarity. I’ll second many of the previous comments - can we have more of you together please?
Oh wow. As a former brass player, I was told the embouchure between sax and trumpet would be totally different, but I never fully understood that until now, and I'm seeing why I tend to struggle with playing too tensely. This was an incredible video! (Yes, I'm 8 months late, but better late than never :D)
That's only the mailman at the door with a big fat paycheck for you in leu of this great video. You deserve it and Jamie too. Thanks for the detailed info guys.. It was very helpful! and inspiring for sure.
So great Dr. Wally and Jamie...Yes, great pairing. On tone, one would have had to hear him live, and that's Paul Desmond. We were lucky as teens to hear him in three performances, the best one at NTSU. Paul's real tone, from even thirty feet away, was so all encompassing, warm and cool at the same time I still cannot get over it. It filled the entire auditorium. The LP's of course show his tone as what we all loved, but to hear his tone live was the living end. And the way it carried through the air was magical.. Peace out.
Jamie honestly is a genius at teaching this stuff. His one video literally unlocked all of altissimo for me. 19:26 I bet a lot of us actually have "two-packs" though lol
Neat ideas! Embouchure relaxation can also be achieved through playing appropriate pitches with the mouthpiece alone. It’s the kazoo/party-favor from hell!
Great video. I learned a lot. I started playing soprano sax early in January. People said it was going to be hard. I refuse to accept that. Not hard, it's challenging. It's also been a lot of fun. I use the Tonal Energy app and practice long tones with a drone. At first, I was watching the app to make sure I hit the tone. I want to train my ear, so now I close my eyes and use my hearing to match the drone. I hope to one day, be able to train myself to the point that hitting the right tone will be automatic. I'll probably always do long tones this way as a start of practicing. I find it meditative.
You just nailed an issue I had on my alto. I got a new sax and use the original 56 mouthpiece and wanted to try the mouthpiece that came with the sax to see the difference. It played well, but pinched a ton and I had no idea why. I thought I was doing something wrong. I went back to the 56 and had no problems. Now I get what the tip opening actually is (it's probably common sense, but i never had it explained until now).
Been playing sax for just a month, besides trumpet for a few years. So on trumpet you pretty much need to know the overtones or harmonic series because thats just how it works with 3 buttons. Now I understand why sometimes a high note comes out on the sax lol its all about air speed probably! What you guys say about voicing sounds so familiar and alike to the garden hose analogy. Time to start practicing this as the tone Jamie demonstrated clearly has a nice quality and would be so cool to be able to do something like bugle calls on the sax, maybe even economize on finger movement
You guys are a scream. And the techniques really work!!! As a converted Altissimo Trumpet player I have the chops to bite with the best around, however using the slack jaw and easing my lower lip into contact with the reed the tone is so much richer. Almost like gently kissing the reed and poof solid tone. It is a little strange to touch the body your Sax while playing and feel it vibrating, but the tone is dead one.
both of you veryyyy cool guys; and the embochure drill reminds me of golf: when you try to change your swing for the better, you feel like you have changed a lot and then on video it looks absolutely the same again, so you have to do actually the very opposite and completely overdo it to get better results.. (first time ever I understood of the concept of loose embochure with your drill ;-))))
guys this is an amazing video thank you very much! Starting from the exercise with the neck and mouthpiece alone taught me that they use way too much pressure. It feels like I need to relearn how to play. Also the voicing exercises taught me a lot and I manged to get my Larings down 🎉 I have two questions: 1. Should I always lower the larings ? It seems that I'm flat on the higher register (especially palm keys) 2. I noticed that when I use my tongue to articulate, the lower jaw rises involuntarily, and I feel more tense. I actually need to rely on how to articulate can you please guide me to a video that focuses on both keeping the lower jaw relaxed and articulating with the tongue. Cheers!
Apologies for double commenting, but I just want to make a comment on overtones and voicing. 10 months into playing I'm still struggling with that. Both teachers of mine seemed unable to explain how to so it "right" and both seemed to indicate that using jaw pressure is A OK. What I found through experimenting (and thanks to Sax Academy overtone videos) is that, for me what works to play overtones and generally clearer and crisper higher notes is to: * Low Bb - breathe as if you are fogging up a mirror with as much steam as possible. Slow, hot, moist air. Alternatively imaging yawning. That seems to so the trick for me. I actually end up yawning infrequently when playing low Bb lol... * 1st overtone or 2nd Bb - hardest overtone for me, compared to 2nd or 3rd overtone. Breather normally, but imagine circle of condensation that you created with your breath for the low Bb on the mirror and try to breathe (not dog up) an area around 50% of that as well as giving it a bit more air pressure * 2nd overtone or F - focus the air on an even smaller spot on the mirror. Add more air as well. Actually imagine this. This helps me a lot. * 3rd overtone or 3rd Bb (this is where I start to question my methods as I can't go higher). Imagine shooting a blow-dart or attempting to blow I to a small hole from 10 cm away. Actually do this without the mouthpiece. You will notice that you produce a much more pointed, targeted and faster airstream. Now try that on the mouthpiece. If it doesn't work - give it more air, even more air, but be careful not to bite down on the reed as it is counter productive. Anyways.. long rant. Sorry! Curious to see if anyone has any feedback or other useful tips. Am I doing it right? Am I doing it wrong? How do I go to 4th and 5th overtones? I feel like I'm unable to produce even more air and focus it even further
Sheesh! That was a free PDF download right there! Thanks for the long comment. Hey, if it works, it works! The altissimo OTs are harder and you need to create extra resonance by closing your glottis, but that’s another story. I haven’t worked out a jungle blowpipe analogy for that yet. Wally??
Great lesson from my two most watched instructors. I like the loose embouchure approach Jamie! Tone is an elusive skill/quality to attain because it is so subjective. My biggest issue is identifying "good" tone while I practice in a 12'x12' room. I don't know when I achieve it, although I know when I'm not! When I record myself, it sounds different than what I hear live. How do I assess the quality of my tone objectively? I also have to practice rather quietly which makes it even more difficult. Any good advice for me to work on getting there? Thanks to you both for putting in the time to get this video together. It was great!
Have you tried recording yourself and seeing how it sounds every month or whatever? I agree that’s it’s hard to assess it, but you know Sonny Rollins sounds good and you know Johnny age 8 who just had one lesson doesn’t, so there must be SOME sort of criteria.
I was taught in anatomy that the diaphragm is a dome shaped muscle. Inhalation is the contraction and flattens the dome. This pulls the lungs down through surface tension. Exhalation relaxes the muscle recreating the dome and pushing air out. Beyond the neutral point stomach,rib and chest muscles combine to get the last bit out.
Very me... I imagine for everyone. In my case I was lucky enough to buy a 7 Ottolink (not metal) and I HAD TO put a lot more air through it, and THAT probably put me in the right direction. I still need to check myself now with all of what you have exposed today.
I teach Pilates, which has inadvertently helped with playing sax, and other wind instruments--- or is it the other way around? =D Thanks for such a great video. I love you guys.
You're both great teachers and players, and I'm happy to see that you're pals. Nice to see Wally's normally reserved demeanor looser and having fun. FWIW, I'm a pro player. I think that another key element of good tone is the ability to truly hear what good players are doing. I think that if we truly listen, we can mimic that sound in an almost autonomic way. What 'blows me away' is how many technically accomplished players I hear, even with altissimo command, that have really poor tone!
Such a cool video. I did not understand though how I am supposed to play less loud, if not by pushing less air into the instrument? Doesn't pushing more air into the instrument means playing louder usually? What am I missing here?
As to the diaphragm point at about 19:00, the way I talk about it to people is to punch yourself in the stomach, or at least almost do it. You feel the muscles tighten to brace, and that’s the muscles to use. I personally don’t really work out, but I do crunches or planks regularly to keep those muscles strong
Thanks for the vid but one thing : the Moment i switched from Yamaha 4c to vandoren v16 on alto - it definitly FIXED my sound. Of course it was Not Perfect but it was day and Night right away
