Origins & Types of Saxophones

Series Summary

Down through the ages, both classical and jazz music have featured an instrument that has been popularized in our day by Stan Getz, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, and yes, Kenny G. In case you haven’t guessed, I'm talking about the saxophone. The sax is a woodwind instrument, despite its brassy appearance. It was introduced to the world circa 1840 by a Belgian-born man named Adolphe Sax, perhaps borrowing elements from the clarinet and oboe in its creation. In addition to it's popularity in jazz ensembles and marching bands, the tenor sax is featured prominently in Afro-American, Afro-Caribbean and Latin American music. In these free sax video lessons, our expert will explore the basics of tenor saxophone, from how to hold the instrument, embouchure and choosing reeds, to scales, arpeggios and jazz improvisation. Learn the art of playing the tenor saxophone today.

Video Transcript

"Hi! This is Dave Birkin and I am going to be giving you a little insight on how to play the saxophone and maybe some origins of where it comes from. Saxophone was invented in the mid 19th Century by Adolf Sax, hence the name saxophone and it is basically a hybrid between a woodwind and a brass instrument, whereas woodwind instruments are cylindrical, the saxophone is conical like a horn, and that is why many times it is referred to as a horn. Saxophones like the human voice, come in different sizes, different size people have different voices, different size saxophones have different voices. And there are six different saxophones that are in common use nowadays. The most common ones are the three that I have with me today, which is the B flat tenor saxophone, the B flat soprano saxophone, see there is much difference in size, it is actually, is probably about half the length and you have the E flat alto saxophone and you see how they are compare in size."