I love how you’re doing something melodic with long tones. That seems so obvious but I’ve never done it before. That’s a perfect way to change something so important but boring into something fun and exciting.
Bob, you’re the only professional of your caliber I’ve seen who shares the same sort of practice habits as myself, and this has always greatly comforted me.
Augh, perfect timing. I've been fretting about this today and here you are; I like to get things done in uninterrupted-hour-bursts, not like things over the course of a month. Probably a bad habit, I have a lot of energy I think but it's often misapplied on poor practice etiquette it seems
I know I’m late to the party on this video, but as always you hit me with the stuff I need to hear right when I hear it. I’ve been having a similar mouthpiece issue with my Link 7* on Bari, it won’t go far enough onto the neck. But I don’t want to switch to something else 😭
Hi Bob. I feel your pain on the metal Link. I have NEVER been able to find a good modern one. All junk. Last year I took the plunge and bought an SK Origin 8. It's basically Stephan Kammerer's take on a vintage metal Link. Tremendous piece and really flexible. A ton brighter than the rubber vintage Link copy I played for a decade, but you can still get the whole dark voo voo thing on it. Highly recommend Stephan's work.
Loved hearing you on the metal Otto, even if you felt uncomfortable tuning-wise, you sound great. Amazing how much like yourself you still sound regardless of the piece. Reverb is great for selling btw
One thing I have noticed is that a lot of what you do in your shared practice times is in the context of something melodic or motif based. I think that is probably important in keeping the musical joy in practicing?
It's been extremely helpful watching your mouthpiece journey, as I've been going through the same thing with my 30 year old go-to piece. I think I found a suitable replacement, finally.. Your videos guided me in the right directions, thanks Bob!!
Another amazing video Bob! Thank you for authentically and genuinely sharing your journey. I always end up practicing after watching! I’m in the market for a tenor if you’re looking to sell!
Great video Bob, I'm wondering about the reflector on your sax. I noticed my practice room kills the sound of my horn as it should but I'm not listening my actual sound if that makes sense. What I do is play in front of a mirror to get a better feedback or just walk outside the room and play.
Yet another mouthpiece suggestion ;-) I was fairly happy with an Otto Link Tone Edge mouthpiece that I was playing on my tenor, but wanted a "little more oomph" for playing funk. My retailer, Twigg Musique in Montréal, suggested that I try a Syos Smoky mouthpiece. It's awesome. The Otto Link is now my backup mouthpiece. Like you, I also bought an Otto Link Super Tone metal mouthpiece, but I didn't care for it either. It was too "thin" or bright - whatever you want to call it. I preferred the Otto Link Tone Edge rubber mouthpiece to the metal Super Tone. Now I prefer the Syos Smoky over both. The Syos gave me more power, but kept that dark smoky sound that I liked from the Otto Link Tone Edge....guessing that's why Syos calls it the Smoky ;-)
What's inspiring for me is to see how you, like many other greats I follow, practice with such a child- like curiosity. It inspires me to practice more because it's fun! BTW, may I ask what the plastic disk thing is on the end of your bell? I'm curious.
Great vid as always thx fer sharin. Vis-a-vis selling on line. I've had no success with either EBay or Reverb, but I did sell one MKVI on Facebook Market Place ( I'm on the west coast and it went back east ) and another ( MKVI ) also on our local Craig's List
The mouthpiece commentary/journey update is something we've all been WAITING for. It's hidden here. Please consider separating it or doing something dedicated to your mouthpiece journey. The gearheads and click counters will love you for it.
Retro revival makes a hard rubber link style piece called the tru-slant that i used to play and it's phenomenal. Boston sax shop also makes the R-series that's based on the reso links you might like. I know a lot of people that love their gear. I thought you sounded phenomenal on that metal link, but I am a big metal link fanboy so maybe I'm biased haha.
Trying to stay consistent with my practice, until life gets in the way. Remodeling the house currently but it won't be long until the next jam session so I have to get some stuff done.
I sold a few horns (mostly to pay my mortgage) through my repairman. People who interface with the public always get questions, pertinent and not about all things musical.
Bob, see if you can get ahold of an Equinox by Phil Engelman. If you'd like I can send you mine to try. It's an 8*. The baffle and floor seem nearly identical to how you describe your old Link.
That really interesting I have 2 Equinox a .105 and .112 both play great. I use them as measuring point for any new pieces I purchase. They typically win😊
just make a campaign of your lessons subscription and do a raffle of the saxes. kinda like scott bass lessons do every year. I bet it would be a success!
Right? I feel like with over 100k subscribers, he already has the audience that’ll want to bid on those horns. eBay, Reverb, heck, even Facebook Marketplace would be a solid place to sell them off. Then again, consigning them with your repairman could generate a lot of good will, too… I’ve been thinking about getting the GS Slant and trying it against a V16 and a D’Addario.
Probably the easiest is to sell the horns through the shop, where you do all your regular business. Then you dont have to spend the time having people coming to your house to try them. I wouldn’t sell them online, too much hassle and too many scams.
Advertise your sax for sale right here on RU-vid 🤔 Share your price to us here and see if you get any hits, for someone who doesn’t actually go fishing 🎣….Its a thought ☮️🎵🎶🎷
It may not be the sound you're looking for, and it may not have felt the way you want it to feel, but that Otto Link sounded awfully good on you to my ears. Just sayin'....
Don't sell those saxes on those sites.! Donate them to a school (or two or three) near you for a tax write off, or offer them to HS students directly at for a super cheap price. I'm sure there are some great students near you playing on crappy instruments that couldn't afford anything better who would be really inspired to play on a great instument.
