Altissimo on Saxophone | PRACTICE WITH ME Ep. 9

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Hi friends, thank you for dropping by! Check out Circle of 5th exercises here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m2Gxo2x_atqcl5o&ab_channel=ScarletGouk Happy Practicing! :) Your Friend, Scarlet G.

[@richardmcgregor5652]

Best organized altissimo lesson ever!,

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Thank you:)

[@teletele62]

Thank you so much Scarlet :)

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Thank you for watching:)

[@ffdrk90]

Thanks for the lesson, Scarlet! I am being taught the same thing as well. Master the low Bb overtone and apply the overtone embouchure on the altissimo keys. However, it was really hard, lots of squeaking, hoarsing sound, and the notes doesn't come out as easy as you demonstrated. Thus, if I spent my time practising altisimo, I can't practise the other stuff, the lips is already overworked and tired. And once in a while my neighbour will come and knock my door 😂 asked me to not play so loud. So yea, the struggle is real.

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Thanks Felix for your sharing! I feel pity for my neighbours as well🤣🤭 Create a strategic practice plan and remember rest in between intense workout! Happy Practicing:)

[@jamescps8799]

Great lesson. Please do more videos 😊

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Thanks James!:)

[@chamindamusic]

Thank you ❤

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Thank you:)

[@sotskova_viktoriia]

Good day! Great lesson, thanks! I have two questions: 1) what fingering B should I play in the main form? Because I know 3-4 types, but I don’t know which one to memorize for sight reading. 2) tell us in more detail about the gaitans (suspensions), which ones you use yourself, what are the pros and cons of which. It would be interesting to hear more about this. You are wonderful, thank you)❤ P.S. I’ll also add that the presence of subtitles in the video allows you to be understood better, so please don’t remove them.

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Hi Victoria! Thank you for your comment and turning on the subtitles! :) 1.) The one for me is (3, c1, Tc). It’s easy to speak, smooth fingering transitions and I’m able to produce a round, clear tone on this fingering. (Play few different scales that has B, to find which one works for you) 2.) Do you mean alternate fingerings? If yes, I would say to choose alternative fingerings depending on the musical context. And as we understand the altissimo is the overblown of harmonics, the fingerings you see in method books are more or less like a guideline. You’ll have to experiment on your instrument. Some keys when you press down, the key holes OPEN. And some when you press, the key holes CLOSE. This explains why we have so many fingerings choices, because as the key holes OPEN, let say for the palm keys, the pitch gets higher, because the tube of the saxophone gets shorter. As air passes through a shorter tube, there’s smaller air volume, resulting in shorter wavelength, faster vibrations, and higher pitch. And vice versa. Physics of sound waves = a. Longer pipes/tubes have a larger volume of air, resulting in slower vibrations and lower frequencies. b. Shorter pipes/tubes have a smaller volume of air, resulting in faster vibrations and higher frequencies. Hence, if you compare soprano saxophone and baritone saxophone, you’ll see they are very different sizes of instrument. But with the ability of voicing the pitch, we can adjust the intonation accordingly. It’s like playing the B, but bending the pitch to Bb using the oral cavity. So no matter which fingerings you are using, go for the one that you are comfortable and confident with. If it’s difficult in terms of running passages, you either have to practice till you make it, or find an alternative one that is close to what you want. The pros and cons depending on the passages and your execution on tone, connection of fingerings, dynamics etc.) There are 3 things I would look into when I pick altissimo fingerings: 1. If it’s a Fast Running Passage, I’ll go for Smooth transition of fingering. 2. If it’s a Sustained Long Note, I’ll go for Tone, dynamics and intonation. 3. If it’s an Articulate Passage, I’ll go for the easy speaking fingering. Of course, the best is if you can get it all..! haha I like the idea of “physical-acoustic memory” by Marcus Weiss, which is the playing and hearing memory. Everyone has a different approach for each fingering, it works for me, but it might not work for you. So, experiment with it, find which one works best for you, and play until it comes naturally! And as we are practicing the voicing each time, it strengthens our oral cavity muscle, hence your tone color will improve slowly. Don’t worry if you cannot get the tone you want at first, try getting the pitch first, then slowly develop your tone. For further reading of Saxophone Acoustics: newt.phys.unsw.edu.au/jw/saxacoustics.html A bit long to read…but I hope it helps! Wishing you the best, Happy Practicing! :)

[@sotskova_viktoriia]

@@ScarletGoukSaxophonist Thank you very much for your answer!!!!!!!! I'll definitely start reading) What about B flat (Bb/Hb) first/second octave? Is their fingering also selected according to convenience? ❤

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Bb I usually use (3 and Tc), so when it goes to B is only adding (c1), and removing (2) only to A. If you still can't decide which is better, try to do Trill. The faster you can trill, the higher chance of getting it through, because you can adjust your air pressure later to help you enhance and produce the sound. It can be challenging, but worth trying! :)@@sotskova_viktoriia

[@sotskova_viktoriia]

@@ScarletGoukSaxophonist thank you!!! ❤❤❤

[@victormanuelgarciagracida6677]

Amazing practice... Really good 👍🏻😊 You sing beautiful I wonder How do you reach the sax low Bb singing 😂😂😂?

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

Pardon my singing 🤣.. thanks Victor!:)

[@TheRealDrJoey]

I wonder if this is how Lenny Pickett learned...

[@ScarletGoukSaxophonist]

I wonder how to 🤣🤣