Archive for July, 2009

I have a report due in about a month Alto Saxophones and i need help .
PLEASE GIVE ANSWERS ASAP !

There are 3 that I know of. Silver, Black, and the regular goldish color

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I just dropped of 4 saxophones at a local music shop to get appraised and for them to possible buy them from me. There where a yamaha Alto, Yamaha Tenor, Yamaha Baritone, and a Woodwind/Braswind Soprano. When they call me back with a price what is a good price to say "yes keep them" or "no thats not enough"?? Thanks

It all depends on their model number and condition. Are they pro horns (YAS/YTS/82Z, 875EX or YBS 62)? Intermediate (YBS 52,YAS/TYS 475)? Student (YAS/YTS 23)?YAS is Yamaha Alto Sax, YTS it Yamaha tenor and YBS is Yamaha Bari.

This can depend on the condition, but you will usually get somewhere around (usually less than) half of what you bought them for, assuming there is a few years of use on them.

Either way, it's going to be easiest to sell to a music store (or maybe another one near you), I wouldn't expect get a better deal on Ebay, let alone the time it would take. If the deal doesn't sound good, check another store and if they're close enough to the first, just sell to them.

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I just got this saxophone from my cousin. I cannot play anything below a G (concert Bb) or A (concert C) without it going to the higher octave. No i'm not holding the octave key. I've never had this problem. I play clarinet. Is it my emborshure cause the clarinet mouthpiece is smaller? I think it might have a leak too.

Often happens for beginners on the sax. You need to experiment with reed and embouchure. You'll soon get the F, then later the E, then the D, etc.

Or it may be a leak, the most obvious being the G sharp key. It should be held down by the right-hand keys, but do this check: find the pad which is activated by the G sharp key. Hold the right hand keys down, then press that G sharp pad down. If there is any movement because it isn't quite on the hole, it's leaking. It can be regulated with the screw on the key, but I'd leave it with someone who knows.

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When I buy reeds they have these numbers on it like 2, 2 1/2, 3, etc. What is the difference on them? Whenever I ask the person working the counter I don't understand them. Anyone know how it affects the saxophone?

Don't always trust what the sales people tell you because many don't know the difference themselves especially how it affects the tone.

I'll try to lay it out as simple as possible.

1) The number represents the strength (how stiff it is or how bendable it is). The higher the number, the higher the strength.

2) There are many different numbers (strengths) because mouthpieces vary widely in their tip openings (the distance from the tip to the reed).

3) You need to match the tip opening to the number (strength) that creates the best sound and playability for you.

How it affects the saxophone?

Example 1: If you find that your sound is very stuffy or difficult to blow (too much resistance) then your reed is probably to hard and you need to move to a lower number.

Example 2: If you find that you have difficulty playing higher notes in tune (they are too flat) or your sound just cuts off then you probably need to move to higher number.

Which brand to choose?

That's a personal choice. Each brand has a bit of tonal variation in the sound. One brand's strength is not necessarily the same as another. So a little experimenting is needed.

There is no beginner strength or professional strength. The mouthpiece determines that. Michael Brecker played on a 2.5 La Voz reed on a fairly open mouthpiece, so did Benny Goodman.

Hope that helped

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