Manual

he overblown sounds (the very high sounds, which are sometimes

made unintentionally at the beginning) can be reached by placing the

mouthpiece somewhat farther into the mouth and increasing the lip

pressure. The instruments – if you want to try it – can be overblown twice.

Lip Pressure

he lip pressure allows you to correct the pitch and attain the drawing

and gliding into the sounds, which are typical for the instruments.

This forming of the individual notes and phrases gives the reed

instruments their special charm. This is the source of the great art of allowing

these instruments to "come alive".

These instruments are so constructed that the pressure of the lower lip on the

tenor saxophone reed is higher, the higher the note played. This makes the

transition to the overblown notes rounder.

For clarinet and saxophone players, it is important to press the reed signifi-

cantly less than normal.

Pitch Adjustment

he pitch can be influenced by changing the lip pressure. The sounds

can be made a half note higher or lower in this way. The stronger the

pressure on the tenor saxophone reed, the higher the audible sound.

Since hitting the exact pitch requires a bit of feeling for the use of the mouth-

piece, this should not play a big role at the beginning.

The tone quality can also be changed by vibrating the tongue or other varia-

tions.

Now place the index finger and the thumb of the left hand on the upper

holes. Blow into the instrument again. This is middle C. If you continue to

cover the holes from the top to the bottom finger by finger, you will get one

note lower each time until you reach low C. The low sounds can only be

produced if all the holes above this note are well-covered.

First play only with the left hand, even if the lower

sounds are naturally more impressive.

Later, when your fingers cover the holes well, you

will notice that the lower octave or the lower one-

and-a-half are the easiest to play.

The left hand grips the instrument and covers

the holes diagonally from above. The index fin-

ger and the middle finger of the left hand lie flat

on the holes. The tips of the fingers extend some-

what beyond the holes so that about the middle of

the front member of the finger is on the hole. This

allows you to reduce the distance between both fin-

gers.

Since the beginner must first develop blowing

strength and mouth muscles to be able to play for

longer periods of time, it is recommended that you

play more often for shorter periods at the begin-

ning.

Overblowing, Lip Pressure, Pitch Adjustment Playing Instructions