The Science And Art Of Saxophone Teaching

The Science and Art of Saxophone Teaching will become a standard resource for saxophone teachers the world over. Perhaps no other book has brought so many practical ideas and approaches for the saxophonist and the pedagogue under one cover. This book can be equally valuable for the serious intermediate to advanced saxophone student. The video demonstrations that are paired with the book will be invaluable to all saxophonists.

According to Larry Teal, the best method of learning to play the saxophone is to study with a competent teacher. Teal's studies were mostly of instruments other than the saxophone, but as a student at a Chautauqua summer session, he came under the influence of Georges Barrère, the eminent French flutist. He played bass clarinet with the Detroit Symphony, but he continued to be absorbed by the saxophone. As a result of his acquired expertise and growing reputation, he was appointed to a full-time faculty position as a saxophone teacher by the University of Michigan -- the first ever to receive such an appointment from a major university. During his 21-year tenure, he attracted students from all over, thus exerting an ever widening influence on saxophone teaching and performing.

Dann Zinn's magnum opus for teaching of technique. It encompasses more than forty years of study and training, and is the backbone of his and his student's virtuosity.

The purpose in compiling this method is to give the student a thorough, interesting and progressive approach to the fundamentals of good playing. The author has intentionally tried not to cover too much ground; but rather to concentrate on the acquisition of a thorough musical background as a solid foundation in the basic fundamentals.

Teachers and students of the saxophone will become better instructors and players as a result of following A Practical Guide for Teaching the Saxophone to Beginners. A storehouse of valuable information, gleaned from professional study and over thirty years of teaching, this book has been endorsed by one of the world’s foremost teachers and performers of the saxophone, Dr. Frederick L. Hemke. Written with future teachers in mind, this book describes the many facets of the technical side of playing the saxophone, guiding teachers and players of the saxophone to good tone quality and proper technique so that the beautiful capacity of this instrument can be shared with everyone who listens. Intended for students in a university woodwind techniques class, band directors, and saxophonists or musicians from any background who find themselves teaching the saxophone, this guide should also be helpful to anyone who plays the saxophone, at any level or in any style; the points addressed are universal to the instrument. Covering areas such as, proper embouchure formation and how to approach tonguing to achieve various articulations, the book also discusses such topics as reed selection and adjustment, understanding and controlling the innate tuning tendencies and mastering the upper and lower registers. It also covers common problems arising with the mechanism and how to perform repairs, as well as proper routine care and maintenance. The book details dealing with the saxophone in a school band setting, as well as doing remedial work with experienced players and teaching the ever-growing adult student market. A Practical Guide for Teaching the Saxophone to Beginners is comprehensive in addressing all major areas of learning the saxophone. Written by someone with such high music credentials and experience, and appropriate for both saxophone students and teachers, it should be a required reading for any woodwind techniques class in a university music program, and in the library of every student of the saxophone.

Playing & Teaching the Saxophone: A Modern Approach provides a method for teaching the saxophone that is specific enough to use as a textbook in a collegiate saxophone methods class, simple enough for a band director to use in guiding their saxophone sections, clear enough for adult beginners to teach themselves the instrument, and deep enough for professionals to use as a resource in teaching private lessons at any level. The first sections of this book, Getting Started and Learning the Notes, take a student in a collegiate methods class or other adult beginner through the fundamental concepts of playing the saxophone. The In-Depth section then lays out critical concepts that are essential to the further development of any saxophonist. As a contemporary guide for teaching the musicians and music educators of the 21st century, this method addresses the pedagogy of not only the instrument, but of the whole student. It includes a diverse array of musical examples that celebrate communities and cultures around the globe, and a "Wellness for the Young Musician" chapter offers an overview of practices that will help students navigate performance anxiety and avoid injury while playing. Designed to be a lifelong reference for band directors and private instructors, the book includes "Hand-It-Over" sections that can be used as student instructional sheets. These materials, along with video performances and teaching demonstrations, are also available in the book's companion website.

Modeled on the brilliant approach first formulated by distinguished professor music and master clarinetist Michele Gingras in her Clarinet Secrets and More Clarinet Secrets (both available from Scarecrow Press), Tracy Heavner's Saxophone Secrets provides advanced saxophonists with 60 performance secrets that will assist in their musical development. This work is the result of 30 years of personal teaching and performance experience. Heavner offers both intermediate players and advanced professionals a wide variety of techniques, which will greatly improve any saxophonist's performance ability. Designed to be the go-to hands-on guide for practitioners, Heavner's strategies consider a vast array of issues for the saxophonist who needs to take that next big step up. Beginning chapters consider various brands of saxophones, mouthpieces, ligatures, reeds, and maintenance techniques that reflect the standard practices and expectations of the advanced performer. The secrets that follow develop and improve embouchure, tone, articulation, and finger technique, allowing saxophonists to analyze their own playing and adjust accordingly. Heavner pulls back the curtain further to introduce those secrets for developing the altissimo register and extended saxophone techniques, from circular breathing and multiphonics to slap and flutter tonguing--all absolute necessities for saxophonists seeking to play contemporary classical, jazz, or commercial music. Finally, Heavner concludes by letting musicians in on those little-revealed secrets for taking their saxophones on the road. Saxophone Secrets is the ideal work for saxophonists, saxophone instructors, band teachers, and anyone looking to improve their saxophone performance skills or those of their students.