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Phil Woods

Phil-Tone Topaz Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

March 4, 2025 by Steve 13 Comments

Today I am reviewing another great alto saxophone mouthpiece made by Phil Engleman at Phil-Tone Mouthpieces.  I have reviewed quite a few Phil-Tone saxophone mouthpieces on this site already and am always interested when Phil announces a new Phil-Tone saxophone mouthpiece model.  Phil Engleman’s mouthpiece work is always top notch and he has created some phenomenal mouthpieces […]

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews, Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Alto Saxophone, Cannonball Adderley, jazz sax, medium small chamber, Meyer, mouthpiece, Phil Engleman, Phil Woods, Phil-tone, review, Topaz

Drake Phil Woods Master Series Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

September 25, 2019 by Steve 26 Comments

Today, I am reviewing a Drake Master Series Phil Woods alto saxophone mouthpiece made by Aaron Drake at Drake mouthpieces.  This alto mouthpiece is advertised as  “a near identical replica of the mouthpiece that Phil Woods played for over 40 years.”  Don’t worry about the wording of “near identical”, this does not mean it is […]

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews, Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: aaron drake, alto sax, Alto Saxophone, Meyer, mouthpiece, Phil Woods, review

Swingin’ Phil Woods Stolen Moments Alto Sax Solo Transcription

September 9, 2019 by Steve 13 Comments

Here is a swingin’ alto saxophone solo by the great alto sax player Phil Woods.  Someone posted this recording on Facebook earlier this month and I was blown away when I heard it as I had never heard this Phil Woods recording before. I have been playing a Drake Phil Woods model alto saxophone mouthpiece […]

Filed Under: Transcriptions Tagged With: alto sax, jazz saxophone, Phil Woods, solo transcription, Stolen Moments

10mFan Showboat Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

June 14, 2018 by Steve 34 Comments

Mark Sepinuck, 10mFan as he is known in the saxophone world, has been producing a line of tenor saxophone mouthpieces for the last five years that have been very popular with saxophone players around the world.  I have reviewed some of 10mFan’s tenor sax mouthpiece models in the past such as the Robusto, the Black […]

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews, Alto Mouthpiece Reviews, Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: 10mFan, Alto Saxophone, jazz sax, mouthpiece, Phil Woods, review, Showboat

Kanee M5 Custom Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece

November 29, 2010 by Steve 1 Comment

This is another hard rubber custom mouthpiece from Kanee mouthpieces in China.  As I said in an earlier review, I received 7 mouthpieces from Kanee Music to try out. This model is the alto mouthpiece with the lowest baffle. It is called the M5 model for the alto saxophone.   Here is what is written […]

Filed Under: Alto Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Alto Saxophone, Kanee mouthpieces, M5 mouthpiece, Meyer, Phil Woods

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NEFFMUSIC PRINTED BOOKS

Testimonials

I am a music book junkie and I have to say that your books are the most clear, user friendly, and helpful books I own.  They are my absolute favorites and I only wish I had them years ago.  I wouldn’t change a thing about the experience I had in acquiring my degree at Berklee, but my playing has perhaps grown more in the time I’ve spent buried in your books and lessons.  Keep up the great work!!! Thanks, John
John

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 bought Steve’s dominant bebop book and took a couple of online lesson from him. I really appreciated Steve’s careful listening of what I wanted to get done in a lesson and his clear, concise ideas on next steps to improve my playing and musical interpretation.  His mastering  the Dominant Bebop Scale has lots of exercises to use a scale that addresses the largest percentage of chords I come across in pop/blues music. The dominant V7.  Needless say it has improved my playing.  I teach and a… Read more
Keith

I am enjoying your style of teaching, and you’ve done a great job with the videos….good sound quality and well constructed lessons.  Balances the more guitaristic material found on the majority of guitar based programs.  Jazz vocab is what I’m all about at this point in the journey.  I especially dig the fact that you’ve studied with Bergonzi…helps me see his voluminous output in a more bite sized way.

Milton
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
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

Hello Steve, I’m getting so much out of your lessons and books, amazing how much one may think one knows, there is always a new frontier or new way to view something you think you had somewhat down. You have taken it all to a new level and am so grateful. Your lessons are so down to earth and understandable and clear!  Thanks so much Steve! Cheers, Eddie

Eddie Parente
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

Steve,

I have played for many years and have enjoyed going “back to the basics” in some of your lessons!  You have such a gift for explaining concepts.  As I have gotten older, some of the basic things have gotten muddled because I just play, not knowing why.  As I refresh myself with “why”, it increases my confidence and expands my playing.  Thank you so much for using your gift!  You are a blessing!

Julia
I want to let you know that your instructional material is transforming my playing.  It is an immense pleasure to learn and play now, and I can’t tell you how grateful I am. The instructional material I got from you is by far the best of any I own (and I have over 100 books, DVDs, and what not). I literally can’t thank you enough! Deric
Deric
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

Thank You Steve. I think that I will be busy for years. Thank You for your great contribution to jazz music. Your books, more than teaching “how to play jazz”, actually teach “how to speak jazz”. I wish I found your methods years ago.  

Jean-Eric

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

I want to thank you again, because, not only are you an inspiration to listen to, you are a fine teacher!

I have been teaching sax and other winds for over 20 years, and you give me that “push” to give my students more!

Mark Peotter

Mark Peotter
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
Hey Steve, My name is Jason Freese and I play keyboards and sax in the band Green Day.  I grew up taking sax lessons from Eric Marienthal when I was a kid and got out of it for a long time. I ran into you on youtube while searching for sax stuff. I bought a whole bunch of your lessons and have been loving it! Thanks! Here is my wikipedia so you can see the albums I’ve played on….Thanks again. It’s sparked my interest in practicing again.   Jason
Jason Freese (sax player for Green Day)
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
Hi Steve, I have been shedding your materials for quite a while now and I love them! They are extremely well organized and presented and there are tons of ’em! I really appreciate your methodical approach and find myself referring students to your resources often.  Thanks so much!  
Kenyon Carter

Love your lessons!  I have been using your lesson packages for many months now, and am learning a lot.  It is so perfect for me with a very busy adult schedule and difficulty in taking jazz/improv music lessons from reputable instructors who live and hour or more away from me.

Lenore

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
I’ve been having ‘ online’  lessons with Steve for a few months now. Being a teacher myself I had had some reservations with the idea at first and the practicalities of it .  Let me just say that my playing has taken a huge leaps forward while studying with Steve and continues to do so.Steve studied with some renowned player/teachers such as Bergonzi and Garzone– this in itself is invaluable but Steve teaches from his own books, which cover a a vast amount of  jazz language. Steve h… Read more
David

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
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
Just a brief note to compliment you on your teaching skills and in particular for the honesty of your lessons.  I am a returning alto sax player in my 50’s and I was looking for a no nonsense, straight to the point kind of guidance. I had intended to email you with a few questions regarding the use of the bis key but then I noticed that there was a lesson on that specific topic and after viewing it,  all my questions were answered. I once took a group lesson with a well known professional sax … Read more
Patrick

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