The Most Common Beginner Sax Mistakes & How To Fix Them

[@chrisdyson5513]

Nicely explained and demonstrated. Thank you.

[@ScottPaddock]

You're Welcome!

[@jessehedin7391]

Awesome, thorough video. Thanks!

[@xrgiok]

Your channel is way too underrated!

[@xrgiok]

Thanks!

[@raseshgandhi6702]

Very lovely information

[@user-uw1cj3dj9k]

Hi Scott wow following your method helped me so much .I hired a sax alto .to surprise my daughter to play the song isnt she lovely . I'm so trying I got 5 weeks to go . But it's coming together the tune following your Teaching thank you sir. I'm 56 loved the saxophone started late but I' give it my best ❤.

[@TedescoCarmen]

thanks Scott, great video. the best advice to someone starting to play sax, get a synthetic reed. go for a 2.0 or 2.25. this takes the variable of cane reeds out of the equation of why i sound bad. off and on i go back to my cane reeds and they feel like a 2 x 4 in my mouth. cane reeds all the way, at least at this part of my journey.

[@jontonkin6291]

thanks scott...ive been playing fof 30 years and only use a #2...legere tenor reed...works well...

[@ScottPaddock]

If it works then stick with it! I don't change my gear very often either.

[@Dionysus66]

Watched this to make sure I'm not doing anything wrong so far, I'm self teaching myself Sax and it's going well so far! Love this instrument. Thanks for the video!

[@ScottPaddock]

Best of luck, and glad to hear that you are loving the sax! If you want some guidance, check out my Sax School. It's a reletively low cost to save you A LOT of time of trying to figure what to learn and how to learn it 😁

[@HahnJames]

In January, it'll be 2 years since I picked up playing the soprano saxophone. I played tenor saxophone in hish school but, that was way back in a previous century. I was amazed at how much I could remember, though ...and how much I forgot. One thing I had to really focus on for more than a year was not to bite down on the mouthpiece. Your mouthpiece isn't going to work anymore if you've chewed through it.

[@ScottPaddock]

Yeah, to much pressure on the mp, will mess up your sound, your lip, and your mp.

[@garydrainville3986]

Great post - love how you presented the information. Thanks

[@ScottPaddock]

Thanks Gary!

[@u-isabeats3346]

Thanks

[@josephchackoramanattu1704]

Good. Thanks

[@OGStazzy]

My challenge is the transposing parting. I’m a guitar player and I’ve transposed solos to other keys in guitar… but to me it’s just another key but with sax it’s confusing

[@eddyray666]

I managed to make a mistake before even receiving mine: Getting Thomann to send it with UPS.

[@guillermoarrazola4935]

Scott : Great review . Now I need to get backing tracks to play songs. What type of computer or I pad is best. I believe you have backing tracks . Fly me to the Moon, Solamente Una Vez, La Vie en Rose , Take Five and Cherry Pink and Apple Blossoms. Autumn Leaves. Thanks, your tutorials are great Guillermo Arrazola 77 years old

[@ScottPaddock]

Hey Guillermo! You can use your computer or an iPad, both will work fine. The only thing is that you need speakers that play loud, so you can hear the backing track when you are playing.

[@gangofgreenhorns2672]

Technically the spot where the reed separates from the mouthpiece is referred to as the "break" of the facing curve (ie where the mouthpiece's rails begin to arc away from its table); with the "tip opening" being the distance between the end of the mouthpiece, and reed/that end location of the mouthpiece.

[@ScottPaddock]

🤓🤓

[@FunnyShorties1]

ty u :)

[@Bobba7438]

My biggest problem is being able to hit F and F# right at the get go. I can hit a D and Eb and E pretty consistently. But I often have to hit a D or E and then hit the F or F#. I simply cannot pick up my sax do a warm up and then hit and F or F# right out of the box. I can hit them nicely once I hit a prior note. My low B and Bb are just fine.

[@ScottPaddock]

I'm assuming you are talking about your high F an F#? That's fairly common that those notes are harder to get out without a setup note. A good practice technique is to practice octaves. So play a low F, then a middle F, then a high F. Pay close attention to how your tongue position changes between those 3 notes. That will help you get that high F on demand.

[@Bobba7438]

@@ScottPaddock Thanks, Scott. I will try that!

[@Eliezer_saxofonista]

Valeu brother 👏👏👏🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷

[@mwex8614]

Because you focused on synthetic reeds, you did not mention that cane reads need to be wet. And the problem that I am having as a beginner is understanding the amount of wetness required. It is my understanding that they should be soaked in water for a small period of time. But then my sound is terrible and I am finding water in the neck of the saxophone. So obviously I’m using too much water and I’m struggling to understand the right amount. Can you share any insight into this problem?

[@ScottPaddock]

For cane reeds, you want to put the front half of the reed in your mouth for about 15-20 seconds, then flip it around and put the back part of the reed in your mouth for about 15-20 seconds. That should be enough to get it wet enough to get a good sound without water-logging it. There are some people who store their cane reeds in water, so they are always really wet. It's all a matter of preference. Whether your reed is really wet or not, you will get spit and condensation in your mouthpiece/neck. It's the gross part of playing the sax, but you have to suck it out. This happens fairly often. Unlike trumpet players, saxophones don't have spit valves, so that is the only option. This is one of the many reasons that you always want to keep your mp clean.

[@franciskodankandath210]

❤❤❤

[@Bobba7438]

One other thing, Scott. I have seen other on line teachers, in fact, most of them that teach not to curl your lower lip over your bottom teeth. They teach to keep a nice fat lip and use a "fish" or "V" type shape to the mouth and bring the corner of the lips in. ???

[@ScottPaddock]

We're basically saying the same thing. I say to put your bottom lip over your teeth, but not to "swallow" your lip - and to keep the fat part of the lip over the teeth. That gives you the same fish or V mouth position.

[@Profbriandsmith]

As I advance to more difficult pieces, I find the way I hold the sax and move fingers too far, I am less fluent-any advice on holding and keeping fingers close?

[@ScottPaddock]

Yeah, try practicing scales and songs you have memorized in front of a mirror. It definitey helps when you can see just how much your fingers are moving around.

[@vinhthinh7017]

💐🌸L. 138🌺🌸👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 🌺Have a wonderful day🌸Thank you so much for sharing +🔔🎁🙏🌷🌺🌹💐

[@lolenieloyola8829]

You have online class sir?and how much?

[@ScottPaddock]

Yes, I do! Check it out with the link in this video description www.scottpaddocksaxschool.com

[@lisalowell2545]

I’m interested in your ad-libbbing course but not sure what comes with the package. I see your personal classes are full. Do you send out a video to us to practice and we tape ourselves to send back to you? What is the cost of that? Is that the yearly fee? I’ve taken lessons for 15 months and all the teachers talk about is what they know and who they have played with. It’s great- that is why I want to take lessons- they know their information and all but paying for a class this long I thought more would have been taught to me.

[@ScottPaddock]

@@lisalowell2545 Hey Lisa, the Sax School is All Access, so you get everything in the School which includes several courses. The Sax School is set up in a series of videos that take you step by step through the process of everything you need to work on. There are playing examples, downloadable PDFs, and play alongs. With the Ad Libbing course, you will hear some very big progress in your playing early on. Everything is step-by-step so you'll be constantly leveling up. Please send any other questions you have through the Sax School website. Thanks, and hope to see you inside!

[@lisalowell2545]

@@ScottPaddock Thanks so much Scott- it’s a tad overwhelming- so if I decide to pay a monthly fee it will open up lessons?

[@ScottPaddock]

@@lisalowell2545 Hey Lisa, Yeah, if you sign up, you'll have access to all of the lessons in the Sax School. Everything is really organized and easy to find your way around.

[@arsenalmikebe4]

Embourcher, I get bruises underneath my lower lip due to the lower teeth biting

[@ScottPaddock]

less pressure! Just enough to keep everything in place.

[@lisalowell2545]

I accidentally put my message to the person above this message 😊