Klarinet Archive - Posting 000033.txt from 2000/02

From: Neil Leupold <leupold_1@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] How DID you learn saxophone
Date: Tue, 1 Feb 2000 16:20:03 -0500

--- "Daniel A. Paprocki" <danbascl@-----.com> wrote:

> Here's a new topic. Most clarinetist play saxophone. How did you learn
> sax? Look at a fingering chart and go? sax lessons? read a book? Also how
> long did it take you to feel comfortable on the sax? What was the most
> difficult area? palm keys, low register? middle C? Ready, Set, GO!

I was on a quest in high school to involve myself in every aspect of the
music program -- principal clarinet, oboe, drum major, even flag team. Our
jazz ensemble had a remarkable record of 1st place ratings in competitions
with other California high schools, and it was my final frontier. The band
director suggested I pick up sax rather than waiting around for that rare
clarinet part to appear on an upcoming jazz ensemble concert.

He handed me a Conn tenor sax on Friday afternoon, along with the charts
for the group's next scheduled performance. I squeaked, squawked, and ex-
perimented for 2.5 days (I probably had a fingering chart for reference),
and was timidly playing along with the jazz ensemble in rehearsal the fol-
lowing Monday morning. I found the tenor sax entirely intuitive, so sim-
ilar to clarinet that it took very little time to make the adjustments in
embouchure and fingerings. Within a week I was confident. Within a year
I was lead tenor on Four Brothers, along with the other respective lead
sax players in our ensemble. Much like others' comments, the low register
lingered the longest in the beginning with respect to gaining control and
facility. There were no lessons involved ~ mom simply could not afford
such a luxury, not even for the clarinet, which I'd been playing for 7
years (on the worst piece of garbage Artley in the world) before touching
the sax. I left the sax behind when I went to college to focus on clarinet,
but what a wonderful contribution it made to my music-making experience for
three years in high school.

-- Neil
Do You Yahoo!?
Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger.
http://im.yahoo.com

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Unsubscribe from Klarinet, e-mail: klarinet-unsubscribe@-----.org
Subscribe to the Digest: klarinet-digest-subscribe@-----.org
Additional commands: klarinet-help@-----.org
Other problems: klarinet-owner@-----.org