Saxophone technique

The saxophone embouchure is the shape and form of the mouth when playing the instrument. Saxophones use a mouthpiece and a single reed to produce sound - much like a clarinet. The reed is cut in a range of strengths (soft, medium-soft, medium, medium-hard, hard) to influence the final tone. Typically a beginner will start with a medium-soft reed.

To produce a sound on any instrument, a vibration must occur. In the case of the saxophone, a reed vibrates against the mouthpiece, opening and closing the brass closed tube to produce a tone. However, the brass tube is in fact a parabolic cone, with the properties of an open tube; so when the saxophone is overblown, it jumps an octave higher.

The Tonal Concept

A player's tone - their "tonal concept" - is influenced by several factors:

• Player's chest cavity: the constant air stream is pressurized by the diaphragm
• Player's trachea
• Player's throat: the throat should be relaxed and open, as when saying "ah"
• Player's oral cavity: the tongue should be flat
• Player's embouchure: all four embrochure styles described in this article
• Saxophone neck strap: this takes the saxophone's weight off the player's lower lip
• Saxophone's mouthpiece and reed: the mouthpiece tip opening and reed strength
• Saxophone's body: the metal body, the mechanism and the pads of the instrument

This article discusses those factors that contribute to a successful saxophone embouchure. There are three considerations: mouth shape, embouchure style and blowing ...

Mouth Shape

Firstly, the mouth shape is formed something like this:

• keep the chin in a relaxed and natural position
• form an "oo" shape with the mouth - as when saying the word "cool"
• now bring the corners of the mouth inwards (imagine a drawstring purse) to seal the mouth
• this forms a firm lower lip to support the reed; keep the chin relaxed
• insert the mouthpiece into the mouth, about half-way up the slope:

File:Embouchure 01.jpg

• keep the tongue flat and off the reed tip
• keep the throat open - as when saying the word "saw"

Embouchure Styles

Four styles of embouchure are possible; we shall describe each in turn. Every player adopts an embouchure style and then adapts it.

Embouchure 1 ("New Saxophone")

Lower Lip: Do not draw the lower lip over the teeth. Instead, support the lower lip against the teeth. Then rest the reed onto the lower lip.

Upper Lip: Do not draw the upper lip over the teeth. Instead, place the upper teeth directly onto the mouthpiece with light pressure.

Notes: This is a clarinet embouchure. It is relatively relaxed and natural. Used by generations of saxophone players. Taught by many current saxophone teachers, this is the preferred embouchure for beginners.

Embouchure 2 ("Old Saxophone")

Lower Lip: Draw the lower lip over the teeth. Then rest the reed onto the lower lip.

Upper Lip: Do not draw the upper lip over the teeth. Instead, place the upper teeth directly onto the mouthpiece with light pressure.

Notes: Can fatigue the face and cause lower lip biting. Taught by past generations of saxophone teachers, it is less popular now.

Embouchure 3 ("Single")

Lower Lip: Do not draw the lower lip over the teeth. Instead, support the lower lip against the teeth. Then rest the reed onto the lower lip.

Upper Lip: Draw the upper lip over the teeth. Lower the upper lip onto the mouthpiece with light pressure.

Notes: Can fatigue the face and cause upper lip biting. Difficult to see the advantages of this embouchure, however Sonny Rollins used it. No teachers recommend this for beginners.

Embouchure 4 ("Double")

Lower Lip: Draw the lower lip over the teeth. Then rest the reed onto the lower lip.

Upper Lip: Draw the upper lip over the teeth. Lower the upper lip onto the mouthpiece with light pressure.

Notes: This is an alternative clarinet embouchure. Can quickly fatigue the face and cause upper and lower lip biting. Difficult to see the advantages of this embouchure for the saxophone, however John Coltrane used it. No teachers recommend this for beginners.

Blowing

Blowing causes the reed to vibrate and a tone to be produced; the player breathes-in through the corners of the mouth (not the nose) and blows out in a controlled manner, using the muscles of the diaphragm to act as a bellows, sustainining a constant but forceful air pressure to the mouthpiece. The cheeks should not puff out.

The tongue is used to start and stop each note as desired, however this is not considered a part of the embouchure - more a playing technique.

Embouchure Problems

• Biting Lip: your lips should not be sore or bleeding. Stop playing until they heal and then try using Embouchure 1.

• Lip Fatigue: if you can no longer sustain your embouchure then you have been playing for too long. "Too long" means about 20 minutes for beginners and about 1 hour for professionals. Take a rest for at least half an hour to allow your face muscles to recover. If your often suffer from lip fatigue then try switching to Embrochure 1.

• Chin Fatigue: If you have a tendency to tighten or scrunch-up your chin, work on keeping it relaxed. Keep the bottom lip flat against the bottom teeth; it can be useful to think of "pointing" the chin. When you touch the tip of the chin it should be hard because you are touching bone and not tensed muscle.

• Low Notes: difficulty getting low notes is caused by:
  • air pressure too low (insufficient diaphragm support),
  • air pressure too high (overblowing the note)
  • a closed throat (open it, as when saying "ah"),
  • hard reed strength (use a softer reed),
  • overtight ligature (can stifle the reed),
  • too little mouthpiece in the mouth (take more in),
  • neckstrap too loose (tighen it to raise the sax and take pressure off lower lip),
  • applying too much lower lip pressure on the reed (slightly lower your chin for notes below low E)
  • saxophone air leaks (ask a saxophone technician to check the mechanism).

• High Notes: difficulty getting high notes is caused by:
  • air pressure too low (insufficient diaphragm support),
  • a closed throat (open it, as when saying "ah"),
  • overtight ligature (can cause harmonics),
  • too much mouthpiece in the mouth (take less in)
  • applying too little lower lip pressure on the reed (slightly raise your chin for notes above high c#).

Saxophone tone and other problems are analysed well in Larry Teal's book.

References

• Teal, Larry, The Art of Saxophone Playing. Miami: Summy-Birchard, 1963. ISBN 0-87487-057-7. Source for "The Tonal Concept".

• Davis, Ben, The Saxophone: A Comprehensive Course. The Selmer Company, 1930. The source for "New" and "Old" embouchures (see External Links).

• O'Neill, John, The Jazz Method for Saxophone. Schott & Co. Ltd, London. 1992. ISBN 0-946535-20-5. An example of the "New" embouchure school.

• Hemke, Dr. Frederick, The Teacher's Guide to the Saxophone. The Selmer Company, 1977. An example of the "Old" embouchure school.

• Kool, Jaap, Das Saxophon. J. J. Weber, Leipzig. 1931. Translated by Lawrence Gwozdz in 1987, this is the source of the saxophone behaving as an "open tube".

• Raschèr, Sigurd, Top-Tones for the Saxophone. Carl Fischer. 1941.

• Rousseau, Eugene, Saxophone High Tones. Etoile Music. 1978.

• Luckey, Robert, Saxophone Altissimo. Advance Music, 1993.

• Fordham, John, Jazz. Dorling Kindersley, 1993. ISBN 0-7513-0050-0. The source for Coltrane's "Double" and Rollins's "Single" embouchures.

See also

• Saxophone
• Embouchure
• List of woodwind instruments

External links

• The Saxophone: A Comprehensive Course by Ben Davis an excerpt on embouchures

• Beginner Saxophone Lesson #2