How to Play the Range of the Alto Sax

Once you learn how to the hold the saxophone and make sounds with it, you can move onto scales. Learn the range of your instrument by playing all the notes from the lowest to the highest.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Play a chromatic scale. This is the best way to tell the entire range of a saxophone. A chromatic scale plays all major notes, flats and sharps within a range. It is like playing all of the white and black keys on piano.

2. Begin with a low D, which is the lowest note on the chromatic scale. The lowest note that an alto sax can play is actually a B-flat.

3. Continue on with the scale playing an E-flat, an E, then an F-flat, followed by an F. Continue on in the scale with each note and sharp. Know that a sharp note is the same note as the higher note's flat. For example, a D-sharp is the same note as an E-flat.

4. Finish the scale with a high D. Follow the note progression down until you end the scale with the first note, low D.

5. Practice the scale forwards and backwards until it comes it easily. You should be able to play it smoothly with smooth transitions between the notes.