Jamie I just now spent 10 minutes practicing only on the palm keys. I could only bend down from the D to the C sharp, which was okay. But what was truly amazing to me was how the rest of the saxophone sounded when I then started playing in the lower registers. I could absolutely NOT believe the change in the fullness and richness and power of the tones in those keys that ensued just from practicing on the palm keys and hitting them clearly. I really sounded like a different player. Still a work in progress though. Thank you so much!
Great lesson Jamie. I now take my mouthpiece with me wherever I go and do the mouthpiece exercise without annoying the neighbours. Great exercise and has really helped improve my tone AND my tuning.
I can assure you that you can or you’d probably die and wouldn’t be able to speak 🤣 Try putting your finger there then swallowing to get the feel for it.
Great post! These exercises have helped me so much some 25 years ago (got them from Jasper Blom, great dutch tenorsaxophonist) and it surprises me that apparently it still seems to be not belonging to the general basics (like you put it so nicely 'the dna' ) every saxophone player should practice in order to get a good tone on the horn, especially in the higher and upper register.
Hi Jamie, does this apply to the soprano sax also? I can get my palm keys thick on the alto but for some reason I'm having issues getting them out on soprano. I havent played the soprano for very long now, just a few weeks. I have no issues in the middle and lower register but the high notes from palm key D upwards, and front E/F/F# are proving to be a bit of a problem..
As a learner you see pro’s screwing their face when playing high notes and assume they must be biting the mouthpiece. You also find biting is the only way to get the higher notes out. The opposite is the truth though, it’s surprising how relaxed the embouchure has to be to get a good tone on the palm keys just as Jamie shows here. All the manic happens in your mouth and throat.
You shouldn’t have to bite to get the high notes out .. for altissimo, optimal venting (in other words, the fingerings) facilitates the pitches.. when the high notes are drawn out in a relaxed fashion they will sound much sweeter. It’s all in the embouchure, tongue placement, the throat, the air cavity, and the air support.
The noise I make sounds more like Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock, but not the good bits. Like a conglomeration of distorted frequencies and feedback. I am a beginner sax player and those darn palm keys have become a roadblock preventing me from progressing any further. I'll sort it out eventually, but right now I sound horrible. It scares my dog and frustrates me to no end. Also, did anyone else yawn when Jamie pretended to?
@@GetYourSaxTogether My wife and I both yawned when you did. BTW, thanks to this awesome video, I made a sound reminiscent of saxophone with a palm key! I can hardly wait to have another go at it. Thank you so much for all of your wonderful videos. As a beginner, they are an invaluable resource, and make learning a new instrument fun!
I'd like to practice with just the mouthpiece, but it's way too loud. Even in when I'm by myself in the car, my ears hurt from how loud the mouthpiece is.
I finally have been hitting my palm keys and not understanding what I was doing correct. This confirmed me to pay attention when I practice later. Thank you!
Jamie, this is why I always drop an octave with Total Tone Mastery PDF 5.8 Round The Bend although I can do an octave with Low As You Go. I believe I need to be far more conscious of what I am doing with the mp on the saxophone? I have 5.8 printed off at home but I can't find it in TTM, just PDF 5.6, is it still there. A sincere plug for Total Tone Mastery and Jamie Anderson, everything he does is excellent value and worth every penny!
