Today, I am reviewing a new BSS custom saxophone reed released by Jack Tyler at the Boston Sax Shop. Jack has been my repairman for the last six years and always gives me the inside scoop on new saxophone gear that is coming out. Besides being a phenomenal repairman and craftsman, Jack is always up […]
Saxophone Stuff
Michael Brecker International Saxophone Competition
I was recently informed about this new competition by Brian Plautz and Susan Brecker and thought I would pass on the information here on the site. If you are an aspiring saxophonist between the ages of 16-30, are a citizen of the world (no extraterrestrials) and can burn it up on the saxophone, then this […]
The Difference a Neck Can Make: Boston Sax Shop Heritage Alto Saxophone Neck Review
I have to admit, I usually stay away from anything to do with trying saxophone necks or different brands of saxophones. So much of my time is already consumed with trying so many different saxophone mouthpieces that adding necks and saxophones to the mix is just too overwhelming for me. The reality is that changing […]
Guardala Mouthpiece Informative Brochures From 1990
A friend of mine on Facebook, Adrian Chia, posted these pictures of hardcopy Guardala mouthpiece brochures that he received from Dave Guardala in the mail back in 1990. Dave was living in Hicksville NY at the time and working out of his garage from what I have heard. If only I had a time machine…………… […]
The Art of Imitation-Michael Brecker on Peep
Someone on SOTW (Sax on the Web) posted a video this morning of Michael Brecker soloing over his tune Peep from the early 90’s. Peep was a Brecker tune from the album “Now You See It… (Now You Don’t) that blew my mind when it was released in 1990. I was a young Brecker head […]
The Secret to Altissimo (no one has ever told you about before) Lesson
I know, you are sick of it! Trying to play overtones past the second or third overtone. Trying to get out an altissmo G or G#. Trying to sound like you know what you are doing and can play any altissimo note with confidence without failing miserably………I have been there and know how you feel. […]
Boston Sax Shop Signature Reed Cases
Today, I am reviewing a beautiful new product I received with a reed order from Jack Tyler at the Boston Sax Shop. Last week, I ordered some new reeds to try from Jack and when the package came, I opened it to discover this added gem inside. This is the Boston Sax Shop signature reed […]
Great Instructional Video on Intonation by Michael Lake
Michael Lake over at altobone.com put out a video on youtube this week on intonation that I think is excellent! Michael is not a sax player, (he plays alto trombone….I know, “How dare you Steve, this is a saxophone site!!“) but his thoughts on intonation in this video are right on. Every note you play on […]
Balam Saxophone Backstrap Comparison and Review
Today, I am reviewing a new saxophone neckstrap that I received from my saxophone repairman Jack Tyler at the Boston Sax Shop. Jack has been my sax repairman since 2013 when my long time repairman Ernie Sola died. The last 3-4 times I went in to see Ernie before he died he told me about […]
Improved Selmer Saxophone Model Chart
Here is a cool chart of the serial numbers and models of Selmer Saxophones through the last 100 years. This chart was researched by Douglas Pipher and shared on SOTW today. The cool aspect of this chart that I have never seen before is that Douglas has included the quantities of each type of sax […]
Finding Sax Mouthpiece Gold Among the Rubble
I’m always amazed when saxophone player’s tell me that they can know within seconds if a sax mouthpiece is right for them or not. The reason that this amazes me, is that my experience has been so different from that. For example, I received a sax mouthpiece a few months ago that is an old […]
Need a Metal Sax Mouthpiece Facelift? Contact Matt Marantz for a Replating
For many years now I have been looking around for someone who replates saxophone mouthpieces. Back in the 90’s, I had a mouthpiece that had the bite plate fall off and then the gold plating was all wearing away. I read about health hazards that could come from playing a raw brass or copper mouthpiece […]
Finding the “Holy Grail” of Sax Mouthpieces
Today, I’m going to write about an important subject that I haven’t addressed very often on my site here. This article is about the elusive search for the “Holy Grail” of saxophone mouthpieces. I have encountered thousands of sax players over the years who have been searching for their “Holy Grail” sax mouthpiece. They might […]
Marc Jean Saxophone Ligature II Model 700 Review
Today, I am reviewing a beautiful new ligature called the Marc Jean Saxophone Ligature II Model 700. I reviewed the original Marc Jean ligatures a little over seven years ago. Original Marc Jean Ligature Review When I heard that Marc was coming out with a new ligature I knew I had to review one. Marc Jean was kind […]
Forestone Saxophone Mouthpiece Patch Review
I have to admit, that I never thought I would do a review of a saxophone mouthpiece patch. What on earth would I write about? It sticks on the mouthpiece. Check! It protects the mouthpiece from my teeth. Check! That’s about it. I’ve actually been asked if I could review some patches by various manufacturers in the […]
A Fight to the Death-Legere Signature Synthetic Reeds Versus Cane Reeds
Ladies and Gentlemen, today we have an epic showdown between two heavyweight champions! In one corner, we have the undisputed heavyweight reed in Steve Neff’s reed drawer. This is the formidable master of disaster the “Rigotti Gold 2 1/2 Strong Reed”. In the other corner, we have a new comer to Steve Neff’s drawer. […]
Just Joe’s Sax Gel Strap Review
I want to start this review out with a big apology to Joe Rohrbacher of Just Joe’s Music in Bend, Oregon. Joe sent me a couple of complimentary Just Joe’s Sax Gel Straps to try out and perhaps review almost 5 YEARS AGO!! This was around the fall of 2011 and at the time I was having a […]
Snake Oil for the Saxophone? The Buzz Oversized Neck Screw by Westcoast Sax
Whether you are into competitive sports, weight loss, golf or the saxophone, you have probably heard claims about products that you didn’t believe. Many times I refer to these claims and products with a term you have probably heard before: “Snake Oil”. The definition of the term is : “Snake oil is an expression that originally […]
Joe Allard Overtone Exercise for Saxophone
I wanted to share this great saxophone Overtone exercise that Dr. David Demsey wrote out a number of years ago. Dr. Demsey studied with Joe Allard from 1977-1980 and is the Coordinator of Jazz Studies and Professor of Music at William Paterson University. There is a great interview with Dr. Demsey about Joe Allard that any of you […]
A Blast from the Past-Chromazone by Mike Stern Cover
This weekend, I was going through my vast computer files and trying to clean out the gigabytes of junk I had on my computer when I discovered this old clip. This is from a recording session I did way back in the early 90’s. I think I was about 25 at the time and in […]
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