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alto sax

Ken Okutsu Vincent Herring Custom Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece

March 30, 2017 by Steve 19 Comments

Today, I am reviewing another great alto saxophone mouthpiece by Ken Okutsu at Okutsu mouthpieces in Japan.    This is a new custom model called the “Vincent Herring Custom”.  Vincent Herring is a great alto sax player, if you haven’t heard him, do a search on iTunes and check out some of his recordings. I put […]

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews, Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: alto sax, hard rubber, Ken Okutsu, saxophone mouthpiece, Vincent Herring

Now THIS is How You Solo on a Blues! Tim Green Alto Sax Transcription

March 29, 2017 by Steve 7 Comments

Here is another killin’ transcription from a 10th grade student of mine here in Vermont, Jack Egan.  About a month ago, I shared an incredibly hard transcription on the site that Jack had done on Vincent Herring’s solo on “All the Things You Are”. Around that time, I shared another recording with Jack of a Youtube […]

Filed Under: Transcriptions Tagged With: alto sax, Jack Egan, jazz saxophone, solo transcription, the blues, Tim Green

Vincent Herring Alto Sax Transcription-All the Things You Are

January 18, 2017 by Steve 4 Comments

This is a very cool transcription from a 1996 bootleg recording of Vincent Herring soloing over “All the Things You Are” on the alto sax.  I have no further information about the recording except that it is from 1-27-96. This transcription was done by a very talented 10th grade student of mine up here in northern […]

Filed Under: Transcriptions Tagged With: All the Things You Are, alto sax, Jack Egan, jazz saxophone, transcription, Vincent Herring

Johannes Gerber Vintage Alto Mouthpiece Review

October 28, 2016 by Steve 7 Comments

Today, I am reviewing another great mouthpiece by Johannes Gerber in South Africa. Mr. Gerber has been making mouthpieces for many years and I reviewed a great tenor saxophone mouthpiece of his a few years ago, the Gerber Slant model  as well as the Gerber Solo LC soprano saxophone mouthpiece  last year.   Johannes Gerber has […]

Filed Under: Alto Low Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews, Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: alto sax, Alto Saxophone, Johannes Gerber, mouthpiece, vintage model

Morgan Excalibur 7M Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

October 20, 2016 by Steve 7 Comments

Today, I am reviewing a Morgan Excalibur 7M alto saxophone mouthpiece made by the Morgan Mouthpiece Company.  Dave and Teresa Hoskins run MorganMouthpieces.com as well as Junkdude.com and they were kind enough to send me a sample of the Morgan Excalibur 7M alto sax mouthpiece to review on my site. When I first started really getting into […]

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews Tagged With: alto sax, excalibur, hard rubber, Ralph Morgan, saxophone mouthpiece

Retro Revival New Yorker Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

July 16, 2016 by Steve 22 Comments

Today, I am reviewing the new Retro Revival New Yorker alto saxophone mouthpiece made by Joel Peskin (iReedMan) and Bob Sheppard.  Joel  and Bob have started a company called Retro Revival in which he produces exact copies of great vintage mouthpieces from the past.   His first two mouthpiece releases were for this New Yorker alto […]

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: alto sax, Brothers, Joel Peskin, New York Meyer, New Yorker, Retro Revival, review, saxophone mouthpiece

The Dick Oatts Solo Collection Review

December 2, 2015 by Steve 3 Comments

  Today I am reviewing an awesome new transcription book of solos by alto saxophonist Dick Oatts.  Dan Bayliss wrote the transcriptions and did the work of putting this ebook together.  It includes 9 solos from 3 albums and is 68 pages long. The CD’s the solos are from are Dick Oatts “Standard Issue Volume […]

Filed Under: Book Reviews, Jazz Education Tagged With: alto sax, Dan Bayliss, Dick Oatts, jazz saxophone, jazz standards, Transcriptions

Great Lesson Package Deals on Mastering the Blues Scale Vol. 1 Lessons

November 7, 2015 by Steve 2 Comments

I created two more great lesson package deals that compliment my book Mastering the Blues Scale-Vol. 1 One is a 3 lesson deal for alto sax in a smooth jazz style and the other is a 5 lesson deal for tenor sax in the same smooth jazz style.  Here are the details and links to check them out: […]

Filed Under: NeffMusic News Tagged With: alto sax, blues scales, funk, smooth jazz, tenor sax, video lessons

Danny Walsh Transcription of Solo on “One for Rich”

September 24, 2015 by Steve Leave a Comment

Here’s another great solo transcription from a Youtube video that I started working on a few days ago.   My tenor was getting overhauled so I thought I would take a stab at an alto solo while it was in the shop.  This is from the great sax player, Danny Walsh and is a solo he played with the Ball  State […]

Filed Under: Transcriptions Tagged With: alto sax, Danny Walsh, How Deep is the Ocean, One for Rich, saxophone, transcription

Silverstein Saxophone Ligature Review

November 11, 2013 by Steve 29 Comments

Today, I am reviewing a new ligature made by  Silverstein Works.  For years I have heard about the amazing results that musicians would get from string ligatures.   These whispers and rumors were usually heard on different clarinet boards and forums that I would visit.  These posts were  so compelling and convincing that I had […]

Filed Under: Saxophone Stuff Tagged With: alto sax, saxophone ligature, Silverstein, string ligature, tenor sax

Bari Hybrid Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece

February 18, 2013 by Steve 8 Comments

Today, I am reviewing the Bari Hybrid alto saxophone mouthpiece 6 (.077 tip opening).  This mouthpiece has the gold band around it.  It is called a “hybrid” because it is a mix of hard rubber and gold plated brass.  The front part of the mouthpiece is all hard rubber but the shank and bore of […]

Filed Under: Alto Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: alto sax, Bari, Hybrid, review, saxophone mouthpiece

Macsax D Model Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece

March 17, 2012 by Steve 9 Comments

Today, I am reviewing a new MacSax alto saxophone mouthpiece that is made by Eric Falcon. I have reviewed a number of other mouthpieces in the past that were made or refaced by Eric Falcon which I loved.  This mouthpiece is the D model and is made of hard rubber. MacSax D Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece […]

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: alto sax, D model.hard rubber, Eric Falcon, MacSax, saxophone mouthpiece

SaxZ Dave Sanborn Hard Rubber Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece

February 7, 2012 by Steve 21 Comments

This is a SaxZ “Dave Sanborn” hard rubber alto saxophone mouthpiece.  SaxZ is a company in Japan which is run by Mitsu Watanabe.  I have reviewed a metal SAXZ Dave Sanborn model in the past and was curious to try the hard rubber model.   This mouthpiece has an 8 tip opening. SaxZ Dave Sanborn Hard […]

Filed Under: Alto High Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: alto sax, Dave Sanborn, hard rubber, saxophone mouthpiece, SaxZ

Ishimori Woodstone Super Custom Hard Rubber Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece

August 3, 2011 by Steve 53 Comments

I have another Ishimori Woodstone  alto saxophone mouthpiece to review and play today.  This one is the hard rubber “Super Custom” traditional jazz model in a 6 tip opening.  I was very excited to play this alto mouthpiece as I have heard so much about the tenor mouthpieces and knew the alto mouthpiece would be […]

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: alto sax, hard rubber, Ishimori, saxophone mouthpiece, super custom, traditional jazz, Woodstone

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Testimonials

I can’t say enough about my membership at Neff Music. Steve has taken the mystery out of playing the saxophone well and improvising both jazz and rock music. Like most struggling players I have a load of all sorts of books on my shelf just gathering dust. Books that I didn’t understand or know how to put to use…or just have the time to go threw them. Steve’s lessons really simplify things and he puts it in a way that I can understand. They inspire me to keep pushing and having him as my guide or… Read more
Ken
Steve really changed my way of practicing: I got a whole lot of new ideas for my playing the tenor.  His lessons are really helpful, give a lot stuff to practice and give clear answers to complicated stuff.  Steve has a lot of humor and I wish I had laughed so much in my former days with the horn.  All topics, from Blues to Approach note are dealt with clearness that wet ones appetite to play and practice that great ideas.
Uwe

After reading your story I will never feel quite right about complaining about any of my MINOR health issues!!    God bless Steve and I really hope that your health doesn’t stop you from fulfilling your calling.    These books have been such a help to open up my jazz vocabulary…   Thanks so much for sharing your story and for providing these great teaching tools…   John Leclerc   Saxophonist / composer/ EWI player and professional working musician of 35 years….

John Leclerc

I want to thank you for your “Ultimate II-V-I Primer”  which has sent me off on a much better path to improvisation.  The primer and the four bound books I have will keep me busy for a long time.  I like your lessons for two reasons.  The lessons work and THEY ARE FUN.  Thanks again.

Robert

Robert
I have been a member of Neffmusic for more than a year now and have enjoyed every minute of it! I have not only been going thru the Dominant Bebop Scale lessons and book (OUTSTANDING!) but the mouthpiece reviews, solo clips and transcriptions are very interesting. Steve approach to beginning and intermediate improv have given me many new pathways to teach my high school jazz ensemble students. Congratulations Steve, great product!
Craig
Hi Steve, I live in a gorgeous but rural area of Oregon-no music store within 80 miles. Your lessons are my lifeline!  Truly the best there are anywhere online. Love your playing. Love your teaching.  Thanks again. Ed
Ed Woodmansee
Hi Steve, I can’t express just how much I appreciate your teaching. My playing has improved so much over the past year since I have been studying and practicing with your lessons. It is possible to teach an old dog new tricks, these lessons are proof! Thanks, Michael Byington
Michael Byington
Absolutely the best learning experience in my 40 years of playing.These books are awesome!!
Alfred LaBella
I’m an experienced player in the pop/soul/funk areas of music and, previously, classical.  Over the decades I’ve been playing, I’ve always felt that I could do what I needed in those styles of music.  However, recently I began to feel limited by my use of the same old licks. When I discovered Steve Neff’s website, and heard the audio examples based on the exercises in his books, I realized they were what I needed.  I purchased all of them and have been working on them since.  It’s very hard work… Read more
Paul

Never really had lessons before just kinda worked things out on my own. Was in a rut but your lessons are really helpful in opening melodic possibilities. Ur an awesome resource to the saxophone community. Thanks for sharing. 

Anthony

Hello Steve,

I have not received my alto yet but have already gone through 14 lessons. I love your approach, style, knowledge and competence. I now regret so much to have stayed away from playing the sax for the past 45-50 years…(I am 65).  But It is never too late to get back to your first love. After 23 years in compuer sciences and 22 years in finances…I am now back to music for the rest of my life.

Doing some research on the net, I found this:

http://forum.saxontheweb.net/showthread.php?1… Read more

Claude
I just started looking at my lessons and I have to say, dude you are awesome.  I ABSOLUTELY will learn from you!  I started the tenor about 1 ½ yrs ago and have since picked up an alto, and more recently a soprano.  I spend most of the time on the tenor, followed by soprano, and have only gotten to the alto a few times.  I think I’ll be sticking with tenor.  I’m having a great time and hope one day to play well enough to get regular gigs.  I’ve been playing keys for about 35 years (… Read more
Wil
I just joined Neff Music last month. I can’t tell you how excited I’ve been to be able to pick back up on lessons. I’ve been in a rut and you got me out! I’ve especially appreciated the Lesson Path section. It was so clear I knew exactly where to jump in and start. Many many thanks!
Karin
Thank you so much for the great job you are doing to help further our jazz studies. Though I make my living as a repairer of musical instruments I am a student of jazz and have been fortunate enough to be involved with a big band and a combo for the last several years. As my children began to leave “the nest” I had decided to dedicate the next half of my life to a more serious study of the sax but I didn’t know exactly how I would go about doing this until a friend of mine turned me onto your si… Read more
Jon
I’ve been downloading your lessons for 4 months now (20 lesson) and I have noticed tremendous growth in my playing thus far! I’m so happy that I stumbled upon your site!
Bob
Hey Steve! I hope you and your family are well.  I’m just writing to say thank you so much for all the resources you have made available to the saxophone community. I have been using your material for many years and I always come back to it… in fact I just took a break from practicing to write this…( reviewing “CreatingModern II-V-I Lines with simple pentatonics”.) I am, and continue to be, one of your raving fans! Blessings to you and your family this holiday season! Wishing… Read more
Gerry Aylward
I just wanted to write a thank you note to you for this website. I play and teach saxophone, but I have always been intimidated by the gear aspect. Your website has helped me become a lot more knowledgable. Your knowledge is staggering! I’m telling all my students about your website. Pierre
Pierre
Just wanted to send you a quick note to say thank you for being you, your playing, your website and your desire to help others. I’m a professional musician in the US Army and I’ve visited your website almost every day since discovering it a couple of months ago. Your lessons are profound and easy to use. I’ve purchased most of your PDF books and now am starting to delve more into the video and audio lessons.  Thank you for being a great resource!
James
Hey Steve, I’m a 22-year-old from Australia. I thought it would be worth saying. You’re an absolute legend. I can’t thank you enough. You have helped me rekindle my love for the saxophone and music as a whole. All the best for the future, your work doesn’t go unnoticed. PS. I am loving your devastating minor lines pdf.
Sapph
Thanks so much for putting all this great learning material out there. I don’t often have the time to take a lesson with a teacher, so the ability to download lessons is really invaluable. My playing has improved enormously (I think :)) – and the lessons are so varied there’s always something to be inspired by. Incredible value too!
Roger
Your major diatonic patterns book is great. I”m studying the first twenty patterns (first twenty pages) each day with different articulation each day and slowly increasing the tempo each week or so.  There is a noticeable improvement in finger coordination across all keys and its amazing how much more secure I feel on the difficult keys when attempting to play pieces with 5+ flats/sharps. I’m able to sort out the fingerings for these pieces now much more quickly than before, often in one or two … Read more
Geoff

I must say again how much I appreciate all your material. Including the video tutorials. It help keep me focused and knowing what to aim for. And your laid back teaching style appeals to me too. 

Thanks

P

P

Mr. Neff,  I want to thank you for sharing your God-given talents through your on-line lessons.  My husband, Michael, is blind, but he is a great sax player and he has been enjoying your lessons for quite some time now.  It’s not unusual for me to hear “Hey, babe, listen to THIS!” – and he will cut loose on his sax, just thrilled at what he learned during his session with you.  His excitement warms my heart!  You have no idea how much you have poured into my husband.  You have opened musical … Read more

Carole B
Steve’s monthly lessons are entirely valuable. Without brow beating, he tells you all the stuff you deep down know you really should be working on, instead of just relying on the same old patterns. In spite of the fact that you’re taking a video lesson, Steve’s presentation is comfortable and “real”. In a little more than a year, he’s developed a library of lessons that seem to offer any player a lifetime’s worth of practice material. I’m just glad I stumbled upon it.… Read more
Grant

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