There are many theories and personal do's and don'ts about the breathing process. Few musicians have adhered exclusively to one method for their whole musical career. Important aspects of the initial attack include:

1) some teach to breathe in through the nose, possibly because it allows the embouchure more independence from the breathing activity. Often this is not possible while playing a piece, but is worthwhile experimenting with in the practice room.

2) keep shoulders back & down, spine straight. Expand the rib cage, some people concentrate on the expansion in the lower back.

3) a moment of hestitation to a) relax areas that generally are too tense (usually the shoulders, knees, or fingers) and b) set the embouchure including putting the tongue on the reed (for the saxophone) and moving the air forward from its restriction in the throat to immediately behind the tongue;

4) a release of the sound resulting from the release of the pressure. Only the tongue moves, not the jaw, the lips, the throat, or the back of the tongue. One should not think of initiation of sound, but of the sound be a result of the previous silence.

5) The preparation for the next note (stopping the sounding tone) is again exclusively the result of tongue movement. If a student has trouble with either releasing or stopping the tone, practice without the instrument. Some students' airstreams/embouchures aren't focused enough to allow the tongue to stop the airstream. Sometimes analogies will help; for example, the student might imagine blowing through a straw or pick out a point across the room through which to blow.

EMBOUCHURE (tone on the neck) 1. Form a "whistle" position: note that corners are in, and the chin is flat and down. 2. Put the mouthpiece in your mouth: the lips should encircle the mouthpiece approximately where the reed and mouthpiece begin to separate. 3. Top teeth rest on mouthpiece: the weight of the head rests on top of the mouthpiece. Corners in.

4. 1/3 of the red part of bottom lip should be in over the bottom teeth: the chin should be flat, not collapsed. 5. Basic illustration for muscle direction in producing the embouchure: Think of the embouchure as the left hand for a string player, firm but not rigid. The object is to allow as much of the reed as possible to vibrate. Bottom lip should be taught (pull chin muscles down), not bunched up (this inhibits vibrations). Tongue position also has an effect on tone quality. Often the back of the tongue is too high, impeding air flow and also changing the oral cavity. Moving the tongue forward will lower the back of the tongue.

Release the tone on the neck at a medium to soft dynamic. Crescendo on the note and notice if there is any change in the tone quality. On the saxophone, almost invariably it does change, although at least 50% of the students don't notice it. This change can be described as an added "buzz" to the sound. For many saxophonists this is an inherent, accepted quality of that volume. It isn't true. Our ears can train our body to produce any tone quality. When this change is perceived, it becomes a daily challenge to push the dynamic range (and other parameters) as far as possible. The most important factor is the feedback by the ears. Each person will describe the technical, psychological, or physical processes different but the end result is to play the same quality throughout all parameters. The physical sensation can be described as an expansion sideways through the ribcage, an increased diameter of the airstream, and a faster velocity of airstream, or direction of the airstream.

During this crescendo it is necessary to approach and back off the dynamic many times, because sometimes it is difficult to tell exactly when the buzz begins. Visually, it looks like:

Keep the base of the depiction straight. This gives the image of constancy (in airspeed/support). The symbol for crescendo has purposely been avoided so as not to confuse.

2) vibrato As before, aural feedback dictates changes to be made. Some suggestions include monitoring airspeed, or the volume of air through the mouthpiece. Visually looking like:

The vibrato should affect the pitch minimally. To achieve this, vibrate longitudinally along the reed as opposed to moving the jaw perpendicular to the reed. To insure this absence of pitch variation always use a tuner (sounding the same pitch) when teaching vibrato. It is possible to produce jaw vibrato that doesn't change pitch.

3) changing notes Do the same cresc/decresc tone exercises (w/tonguing & vibrato) on the saxophone. Begin with skF (sounds saxo Eb) because it's an extension of the neck air column. Work down by whole step to C#, B, A, G, F.

EQUIPMENT

Reeds

1st 8 days must be consecutive
Never play the same reed twice in a day even after it's broken in
1st 4 days don't play extreme ranges or dynamics
Store on a hard surface
Periodically sand the back of the reed to keep it flat, warpage on the back is the most common problem in "bad" reeds
Day 1: wet reed 10-15 sec, rub pores shut, wet again, rub and play for about 15 sec, rub and store
Day 2: same, increase to 20-30 sec.
Day 3: wet; don't rub; sand paper (wet/dry 600 grit) pressure on butt end of reed, sand top and bottom then rub on paper.
Day 4: wet 20-30 sec., play, rub, store
Day 5: wet, play 30-60 sec., store
Day 6: same as 5
Day 7: wet, rub on paper or sand again, play 30 sec., store
Day 8: play 5 minutes
Day 9: play forever

Further information:
Some people think it is better to soak reeds in water (not saliva, due to enzymes). Some say to rinse in water before storing.
Some people say not to soak the butt end of the reed (but lick it just prior to putting it on the mouthpiece to create a seal).
Some say to polish the reed day one (and only day one) and wait until after five days to adjust (scrape, sand)
Some people use alcohol on old reeds to clean out the pores.
Some reeds (even bad ones) play better after long storage (one year).
Some say use a file instead of sandpaper (takes too much off the reed)
Some say don't play the reed on the first two days, just condition
Some people think coating the inside of the mouthpiece with vaseline helps eliminate a "spitty" sound.
Hard rubber mouthpieces do wear down, you'll need to buy a new one about every 5 years. Periodically lightly sand the facing.

Common Saxophone Repairs

1. G# key opens when playing low Bb, B, or C#
2. left hand C key closes three pads, often not at correct heigth
3. RH, F and F# keys each close 2 pads, often needs adjustment

Suggested Supplies

Instruments, SATB at least mouthpieces and reeds, sax stands
sound system and microphones, tuner, metronome, pitch pipe
music collection (solo, quartet, ensemble, real book, Christmas music)
keyclamps, key corks, mouthpiece patch, leaklight
springhook, screwdriver, glue, felt, cork, reed guard, sandpaper

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