Saxophone course Beginners 

Hi. A dot above or below a note head is to indicate staccato. This means play the note short, so instead of playing the note for its full length duration, you put your tongue on the reed to stop the note short. How short depends on the tempo of the music and the note duration. But think about playing the note about half its normal length. Hope this helps. Thanks

Hi. The note with the ledger line through it is low C played with the fingers 123,123, and the right hand pinky finger on the low C key (the lower of the 2 keys). It is the first note shown in the video on the section playing the C major scale. Notes above and below the musical staff are written with ledger lines regardless of what key the music is in. I hope this answers the question. There are lots of videos on my channel about reading sheet music which goes into more detail about ledger lines. Thanks

@@Saxcomprehensive Appreciate your response. I've written out E,F,G,A,B,C,D,E,F across the staff and trying to line them up with twinkle lil star. In the first sheet it seems to line up except for the ledger line notes, then it goes out of whack in the second sheet of twinkle (obviously noobie me problem). I've watched nearly all of your reading sheet music, which is awesome and pretty straight fwd, its just this one part lining up notes to the staff seems to escape me.

@@hooch3668 Hi. You are correct that the notes you have written are for the notes of the 5 lines of the staff but there are notes below and above these notes. In order to include those notes we have to write in extra ledger lines. So in addition to what you have have lined up, the note below E which is the first line, is D and is written below the first line. the note below that is low C and we have to extend the 5 lines by drawing in an extra line called a ledger line. The note below low C is low B and that note is written below the ledger line. So line up the notes as you have done but remember we add in additional lines for notes below E. So twinkle star in the key of C starts with a ledger line which is low C. The notes are therefore C,C,G,G,A,A,G,F,F,E,E,D,D,C. then G,G,F,F,E,E,D,G,G,F,F,E,E,D, then C,C,G,G,A,A,G,F,F,E,E,D,D,C. The song in the key of F should not be a problem as all notes are within the 5 lines. Just remember to play all Bs as Bb because there is a Bb in the key signature. The song in the key of D, remember to play all Fs and Cs as F# and C#. So you have lined up the notes correctly starting at the first of the 5 lines but there are notes below the notes you have lined up. There is a B,C,D below your first E and since there are only 5 lines we add ledger lines to show notes below E. Hope this helps to with the misunderstanding. Thanks

@@Saxcomprehensive ahhh I see, I just didn't line up the notes well enough. I can see the spacing between the E, D goes between the lines and then low C cross's through the next line - (low c), making twinkle lil star in the key of c. Thank you so much for your help. You have been pivotal in my early journey as a sax player.

HI. This is common for people starting to learn the saxophone. When playing the low notes of low C and below most of the tone holes of the horn are closed off which means more air is needed. Also we may change our embouchure when playing low notes to get them out correctly. It is just a matter of practising the low notes. Open your throat as if yawning or singing a low note. Blow warm air instead of cold air. Blow a good amount of air through the horn. Place your tongue in a low position as if singing a low note. If low C sounds fine going down then there is nothing wrong with your horn or reed. It is just a matter of keep on practising your scales and it will soon start sounding correct. Remember moving from D to C as a slur the reed is already vibrating. Starting with C you have to start the reed vibrating which needs a lot of air and correct embouchure. Alternatively play with a softer reed. When I started playing I used Hemke filed reeds strength 2 as these reeds are filed and make playing low notes easier. But as said before keep practising starting on low notes and adjusting your embouchure until you find the correct position of your embouchure for these notes to come out when starting. Thanks

@@Saxcomprehensive Thank you!

Hi. If the notes do not get higher when you press the octave key then you either have a leak or something is wrong with the octave mechanism. There are 2 octave pips or holes, one on the neck and one on the side of the body which control different notes. I would check to see if they are opening. Play A and see whether the octave pin moves to open the octave key on the neck when the octave key is pressed. Usually the key on the neck needs a little bending into place so that the octave pin moves it. There are lots of videos on how to bend the octave key into the correct position. Sometimes the pip gets blocked and needs cleaning with a pipe cleaner. Now play G and see when the octave key is pressed, the octave key on the neck should not move and the side pip should open. If the neck and side octave pips open normally and your neck is correctly lined up with the octave pin, then you probably have a leak and will need a technician to fix it. Thanks.

OHi thnx so much! After making only plans to start again learning to play: I am on the right track now ! Thnx for you inspiration and sharing your experience and knowledge with us in your “ concentrated” course. So much to learn from ! Greetings from Holland !

Thank you for your support. Glad you found it informative. There are a lot more videos like this on my channel that might help. Thanks again.