• Rules & Regs
• Applications

All-State Middle School Band - 6th through 8th Grades:

• Alto Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Tenor Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Baritone Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Clarinet (Etudes/Scales)
• Bass Clarinet (Etudes/Scales)
• Flute (Etudes/Scales)

All-State Concert Band – 9th & 10th Grades:

• Alto Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Tenor Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Baritone Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Clarinet (Etudes/Scales)
• Bass Clarinet (Etudes/Scales)
• Flute (Etudes/Scales)

All-State Symphonic Band – 11th & 12th Grades:

• Alto Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Tenor Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Baritone Saxophone (Etudes/Scales)
• Clarinet (Etudes/Scales)
• Bass Clarinet (Etudes/Scales)
• Flute (Etudes/Scales)

• Dave Liebman’s, “Developing a Personal Saxophone Sound” – Video & Book
• Sigurd M. Rascher, Top Tones
• Dave Liebman Master Class DVD (Roberto’s Woodwinds)

I wanted to include, or at least make you aware of the video/book set titled Joe Allard: The Master Speaks.  I believe it has been retitled Master Teacher: DVD’s for Music Education presents NBC Artist Joe Allard, Clarinet & Sax Principles – Techniques That Work.  (Jeez!!)  Beware in purchasing this however.  While Joe Allard was (and vicariously still is) the absolute source for production of tone on saxophone, this set was made when Joe was in his last bouts with Alzheimer’s.  Joe’s concepts are incredible, but some don’t really come across in the video.  I suggest pairing it with the other books mentioned here.  (Also, sax gossip: I’m told that the ‘former student’ that filmed the video took with Joe for a short period of time, quit because of personal difficulties with Joe, had some fairly ‘not nice’ things to say about him for a while after that, and then went back when Joe was fairly ill – some might say taking advantage – to film this video.)

The following is some stuff I found from www.DinoGovoni.com, got from my teachers, and some resources I’ve used in the past and present.

Great Books on Altissimo:

• Robert Luckey, Saxophone Altissimo: High Note Development for the Contemporary Player
• Rosemary Lang, Beginning Studies in the Altissimo Register (available here)
  • The blog Bassic Sax talks about it here
• Eugene Rousseau, Saxophone High Tones
• Jean-Marie Londeix, Tablature des doigtes compares harmoniques
• Jean-Marie Londeix, Intonation Exercises
• Ted Nash, Ted Nash’s Studies in High Harmonics
• Donald Sinta & Denise Dabney, Voicing: An Approach to the Saxophone’s Third Register
  
• Daniel Higgins & Rheuben Allen Advanced Concepts for the Altissimo
• the previous book Top Tones also deals somewhat with altissimo

It’s been my experience that these books are really great for a direction in the fingerings.  I’ve worked with the Rosemary Lang book myself, which is fortunately BACK IN PRINT.

While I’m sure each of these books has it’s own individual approach to the matter, be aware that every horn and person’s body type/embouchure/set up is different and so the fingerings they present are not set in stone and change between different saxophones (Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bari, etc.).  I have a range up to what I call “altissimo double D” which would be in the saxophone’s 5th octave basically by taking their suggestions and then making up the last few fingerings.  You can, like most things, do a fairly quick Google search and find any number of altissimo fingerings.  The best thing I did for my altissimo range was to not just do scales and patterns in the altissimo range ONLY.  I took melodies, or bits of melodies (Star Eyes, Softly, Stella, etc.), children’s songs (Frere Jacques, Mary Had a Little Lamb, etc.) and started them low enough so that only the top note was in the altissimo range and then kept working it up chromatically from key to key.  One of the other things I did was take my Ferling 48 Etudes and read down most of the etudes in the altissimo register trying to maintain as much of the written material as I could (dynamics, articulations, tempo, etc.).

The most important thing that each of these books deal with extensively are the subject of over tones.  A more in depth post on that later, but just wanted to throw that out there.

Books on other extended techniques:

Circular Breathing:

• Trent Kynaston, Circular Breathing for the Wind Performer

Multiphonics:

• Daniel Kientzy, Les Sons Multiples aux Saxophones
• Ken Dorn, Saxophone Technique – Volume I, Multiphonics
• John Gross, Multiphonics for the Saxophone

There are tons of online resources on this subject.  Many people have entire sites dedicated to this subject, so if you simply google “multiphonics saxophone” you’ll get a good starting point with fingerings.  Much like altissimo, these fingerings are very subjective.  Even though you’re getting a concrete fingering, it may not work or not work as well on your horn.  When I first went looking for multiphonic info, I actually found some great fingerings out of a book of Michael Brecker transcriptions by Hal Leonard titled “The Michael Brecker Collection”.

Other than that, I’ve used my teachers as resources, YouTube videos of known artists are always helpful, and chatting with fellow musicians.  I know we’re all always looking for a way to get one step closer to ‘our’ tone  so I hope these resources help.  Since these are not the only things out there, if anyone else out there has other resources they’d like to add leave your suggestions in the comment box below.

What Are Your Goals?

First, have a goal in mind of what you want to learn or what you are interested in musically.  Then you want to make sure you have the right goal for a teacher.  You want to find someone who has your musical interests in mind and the pedagogical skill to meet those interests.  Do you want to learn to be the best jazz improviser you can be?  Do you want to study classical repertoire?  Or, do you just want to start playing an instrument and see where things go?  Usually you can find that the best teachers can help no matter what you want to pursue.  You don’t want to do like I did and basically fall into the nearest studio, go through 2 or 3 teachers over about two and a half years, and finally, after lots of time and money spent, you find the best one in town.

Getting Lots of References

Contact at least a handful of people as possibilities or for a list of references to other teachers, especially people that are NOT in your area.  One of the best ways to start your search for the best teacher is to call or e-mail the professors for your instrument at the major colleges in your state, preferably with the best music programs. If you can study with them, great!  But, since these are college professors, many times you can expect that they don’t accept beginners into their studio, their studio is full, or they charge a high lesson fee.  They will however, usually provide you with a great list of references.

Try Out Multiple People

After you’ve contacted all of the colleges with major music programs in your state (this shouldn’t take long – usually only 4 or 5 e-mails), you’ll see certain names pop up multiple times.  Start with these names by doing an internet search, see what they’re qualifications are, check out their playing, etc.  You should always check the person’s musical background no matter what organization they belong too.  KNOW WHAT YOU’RE GETTING YOURSELF INTO.

College Student Teachers, Private Teachers, and the Joy of Teaching

There are some main qualities you want from your private teacher.  First and foremost, you want to make sure that they enjoy teaching.  There are a good number of musicians that are good players but haven’t honed their ability to teach just yet.  Secondly, that they teach in a way that you see, hear, and feel results in your playing.  Some of the people recommended may be current students or recent graduates.  This may seem worrisome when you’ve just started playing, you don’t know who’s out there or who to trust.  Whether they be an experienced veteran or just starting out, what you’re looking for is the same.

Having taught privately while still in school and knowing people that did as well, you’ll find people that are great teachers, are great with kids, have a real love for music, and most importantly a love for teaching.  However, college students may still be getting a handle on their own teaching style, but are usually more of a bargain, can be more laid back, and are sometimes more flexible with when they teach.

Another good way to gauge the kind of teacher they are and the effort they put into the development of their students is to check out how they communicate with their students.  Do they communicate via e-mail, phone, etc.?  Do they answer questions on the practice material in between lessons?  How do they set goals for your playing?  How do they structure lessons and what do they focus on?  Do they allow you to record your lessons or have a way of doing that themselves?  Do they have a website, even a site with extra practice/helper material?

Check With Your Local Band Director

If you’re looking for a teacher for your kid, many times their band director will flat out KNOW who are the best private teachers.  Check with the elementary, middle, AND high school directors just like with the college professors.  Eventually you’ll get names that come up again and again.

Do Your Research

Chances are, unless you do your homework and come into contact with the right people at first, you’ll probably go through at least one teacher before finding the best one for you.  Don’t fret though, the more you research and the more people you talk to the easier it will be.  And don’t forget, most of the time a teacher is just a guide.  You’ll find the more time you spend working, the better you’ll get.

Teachers in the Atlanta and southern Georgia area that I have studied with and would recommend as a good starting point are:

• Randy Hunter (Professor of Saxophone @ Emory University)
• Sam Skelton (Director of Jazz Studies @ Kennesaw University)
• Dr. Scott A. Stewart (Director of Wind Studies @ Emory University, Director of Atlanta Youth Wind Symphony)
• Kevin Bales (Professor of Jazz Piano @ Georiga State University)
• Dr. Cary Brague (Director of Jazz Studies @ Valdosta State University)
• and me