This is a great video of Mark Russo demonstrating different concepts on a Cannonball alto and tenor saxophone. Mark was one of the first professional saxophone players I ever heard in concert. I was in high school and went to the Syracuse Jazz Festival and a group called the Yellowjackets started playing. I had never heard of them but the alto sax player immediately caught my attention. That was Mark Russo. I thought “Wow, this guy is good!” He then went into a solo and my jaw hit the ground. I could not believe what I was hearing. This guy was playing up in the altissimo range like no one I had ever heard before. If you don’t believe me check out this video he made a few days ago………….
Besides the Yellowjackets, Mark Russo has played with Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Steve Winwood, Tower of Power, Huey Lewis and the News, Richard Marx, Dan Fogelberg, Michael Bolton, Lionel Richie, Kenny Loggins and the Doobie Brothers among many others……..Talk about a resume!
Thanks to Mark Russo and Cannonball saxophones for making this great video for us. Now go practice your altissimo range………..
The guy is really good ,he gives to the instrument a higher dimension