I have the latest version of Band In a Box.
I can use it as a backing for my guitar.

I have just acquired an Alto Saxophone and had it checked out by a repairer and it is good to go.

Where do I start with baby steps in Band in a Box?

I have a little (and I mean a little) idea of reading music.
I used to play the piano when I was a kid but that was a long time ago.
I could WILL pick up the notation again.

All help gratefully welcome.

George

First, you will need a sax method book with fingering chart and setup tips.

To play along with BIAB, you will need to transpose everything down a minor third because a sax is a transposing instrument (alto sax is pitched in Eb). BIAB has a setting to do this easily. I'm not at a BIAB computer now, but it's something like Opt., Preferences, Notation and then select Alto Sax in the pull-down menu. Don't forget to set it back to Concert pitch to play along with your guitar.

I have been doing exactly what you want to do with my EWI-USB wind controller. Although I can read music and did play trumpet the wind controller trumpet fingerings and playing techniques are quite different than a real trumpet.

What I did was to purchase a couple of Norton’s fake book disks to the fake books I had. That way I just brought up a song from the disk and played along with the book. This saves a lot of time, as you do not have to put the chords in yourself. Plus you can start with slow songs and work you way up to faster one. I am not at the faster ones yet! If you go this route be sure to buy a fake book in Eb.

Good luck and have fun.

(edit) An after thought: The absolute best way to get started on the alto sax is to find a good instructor. That way you will learn the correct playing techniques from the git-go. It is much harder to correct bad techniques than it is to learn them correctly right from the start.

George, if you are at all serious about the endeavor, I heartily recommend that you also find a good teacher and invest the time and small amount of money required in order to get the basics of fingering, breath control, embouchure etc. correct the first time, which will eliminate the kind of bad habits that can happen when we don't know that which we don't know.

It is usually far more difficult to break a bad habit than it is to get started off on the riht foot in the first place.

Along with those lessons, of course Band in a Box represents a great addition to any practice regimen and it too, can be used to get there much faster, provided that you get those all-important basic things from that teacher as you work with the sax.

Because one of the biggest keys to success is efficiency when the subject is musical instrument practice.


--Mac

Hi Matt,


Can you give me any idea about which book?

As to BIAB I use the Bb>C Icon to transpose.

George

Hi MarioD,

Which songs or tunes did you start with?

I will use the many many song and tunes I already have for BIAB.

As to finding a good instructor - I am drawing a blank so far.
As I live in a rural area they are as hard to find as hen's teeth.

I have contacted the music schools in my area but they don't do private tuition.

George

Hi Mac,

I am deadly serious about learning the Alto Saxophone.
I understand that to practice and practice - if you have not been taught the rudiments - only reinforces the bad habits.

I am having a hard time sourcing a teacher, but will not give up.



I wholeheartedly agree.

George

Try contacting the local school systems and ask for Band Director. If they can't do the lessons themselves, likely one or more of them can give you a lead on who can.


There also may be online or computer-based courses available as well, a quick Bing search brought this site up, rudimentary, but there are likely good sites and such online for just about every level these days.

http://www.saxophone-players.com/learn-to-play-saxophone.html


--Mac

Hi George,

I don’t remember the names of the songs but start with something simple like the Beatles "Nowhere Man". In other words start with songs that use mostly all quarter, half and whole notes or in your talk crotchet, minim and semibreve notes. Thank God for the Internet

You might also google/bing major scales for the alto sax or as Mac has indicated search for instructional material for the alto sax.

As Mac said check with local high schools and see if the music teacher teaches privately, here in upper western New York state that is quite common. If he doesn’t tutor then maybe one of his high school alto players may be able to teach you the basics.

Good luck.

There are plenty of fingering charts on the Internet, but here is one: http://www.lightandmatter.com/music/saxfingeringsbasic.pdf

You will want to find a teacher and a method book to help make sense of this. Good luck!

Hi Mac,

Thank you for your help.
The link you supplied was very helpful.

No joy with finding a local tutor at present.

I will try the internet.

I have had some success at making a toot on my sax.

Bought some Vandoren reeds and purchased a Yamaha Mouthpiece.

I was surprised at how easy it was to use the Yamaha mouthpiece as opposed to the student mouthpiece ( no name ).


George

Hi MarioD,


Thanks for the info you provided. I will start with baby steps and then try to increase my knowledge by practicing hard.


I have done that and there are oodles and oodles of Sax sites

George

Hi Matt,

Thank you for finding that finger chart.
I have also downloaded many others and feel that they will help.

As I have said there are no local teachers available.

I have heard there is a jazz group (with Sax players) that play in a social club relatively close to me (around 30 miles) so I will visit and ask them if they know anyone who might help.

George

That is sounding more promising.

Which Yamaha mouthpiece? 4?

Don't be hasty to judge the original mothpiece as being inferior, it was likely designed to fit the embouchure of a preteen through teen mouth. And for them, it may be an easier blow than your new Yammny mouthpiece, which may be easier for you to obtain sound with simply because the Yammy better suits the size and shape of your embouchure. We ain't no spring chickens anymore, George me laddy...


so don't throw the old mouthpiece out.


--Mac

The Yamaha 4C is their student mouthpiece. It's an excellent place to start.

Hi Matt,

Yamaha 4C

George

Whoops Matt beat me to it.

Hi Mac,

Don't you know I'm Scottish.... throw away just doesn't compute

George

To answer your original question, no. Nothing can teach you how to play. It can give you music to play along with, but only you and practice will teach you how to play.

No shortcuts available to learn a skill. You can't learn to weld by watching welders do their craft. You can't learn to cook by watching cooking shows. You can't learn to use a router from watching woodworkers. You need to burn a lot of metal, ruin a lot of wood, and make some really bad food on your way to learning. In this case, you will make a lot of squeaks.

A good teacher will show you basic fingering and give you some scales to play that will build your speed and muscle memory. I did a lot of Hanon scales on my sax, just like I did on piano and guitar. Mainly it's about investing time and repetition.

Hi Eddie1261,



Yes I hear what you are saying. Perhaps the original question should have read " Can BIAB help when I am learning the Saxophone".



How right you are. At the moment all I am trying to do is use the mouthpiece and the neck to make a consistent tone ( I believe it should be a G# ) but as you say I am making lots of squeaks



Wow! I remember now that that was how I was taught when I was a kid. Never knew how useful they would be.

Thanks

George

Hi George, Whereabouts in Scotland are you based? I may be able to help locate a pro to teach you. Regards, Joe G.

You will grow through different reed strengths and mouthpieces as your lips (embouchure) mature.
Its a matter of time, playing too much at the beginning can make lips sore and put you back a little. Thinner reeds (1. 1.5) give a brassier tone, as reeds get thicker they get harder to blow but give a warmer tone. Many players start with a thin reed as it gets you going.
There are three types of mouthpieces, plastic, ebonite, and metal. Plastic is more or less student, it will work, but the other two are favoured. Ebonite gives a warmer more old school tone metal is a larger type of sound.
The lay - that is the curve of the mouthpiece is also important. If there is little room between the reed and the curvature (when resting) then the read can clam up and its difficult to play, on the other hand if the lay is too great it takes a lot of lip muscle (unecessarily) to get the sound.
At present just getting a sound out of the instrument is an acheivement, but once your lips have muscletone - perhaps a year, or even more, then reviewing mouthpiece choice is wise.
Another factor is the condition of the reed. How wet it is. Some people put their reeds in a glass of water - I dont bother these days. There are 'good' reeds, and 'bad' reeds, but you can get too religious about this. Same with mouthpieces, I have met some way to fussy players. Some people pay very silly money, for a lot of hype (IMO).

Hi Joe,

PM sent

Thanks

George

Hi ZeroZero,

Thanks for that very helpful information.

At present I am using a Vandoren reed 1 1/2 strength with which I can just about get a toot out of.

I am also using BIAB with the tuner to see if I can hold the same note for a period (small at the moment) of time.

I did look at the price of a mouthpiece and settled on a Yamaha 4C as the prices of mouthpieces go off the scale (well, my scale anyway).
I never knew that prices for mouthpieces went up to 250$ and higher.
The mouthpiece I settled on (the Yamaha 4C) seemed to be the one most recommended for a beginner.

Thanks

George

that all sounds fine. I say stick with what you have for a while some months perhaps. When you get comfortable in the second octave you are beginning to get an embrouchure. An embrouchure is a lifetime thing. It also fades quickly if you don't practice.
Yes practising steady tones is good. There is also vibrato which is a wavering tone. The idea is to have control and deliver what you need. Practice playing softly, then gradually loudly - on the same note.
As far as fingering is concerned start with three notes of a simple scale, when the fingers find them automatically, then add another note, dropping one from the other end.
Notes beyond D lower register are harder to blow, esp at first. If they are near impossible, then you may have a leak somewhere (anywhere) on the horn. Make sure you don't try to fix this yourself as its a black art and can take years to get the touch.

Hi George, I'm sendimg a PM with contact details of several sax tutors fairly near to you. Hope this helps. Regards, Joe G.

Mac, you took the words write out of my mouth. I tell everyone the same thing when it comes to learning a new instrument. I don't care if you've been playing for 30 years there is nothing like a good teacher to get you started correctly.