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Which Instrument
Saxophone: Woodwind Family |
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The teacher suggested that I try and blow the saxophone to see if I could get any notes out of it which I found very helpful because I realised how difficult it was and that helped me be more patient with Louise for the initial stages. |
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| Mary Brown, Louise's mother |
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There are different types of saxophone: soprano, alto, sopranino, tenor, baritone, bass, contrabass. The body is normally made of brass and sound is produced by blowing across a reed while fingering the keys that cover the 18-21 holes along its length. The key pads will need to be replaced every couple of years, costing around £50. General repairs can be expensive. Some saxophonists start with the clarinet as it is not normally taken up as a first instrument. Costs begin at around £420 for a starter or student model.
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| An interview with mother and daughter |
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| Mary and Louise Brown |
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It's not the easiest of instruments to play, but once you get into it you will really enjoy it.
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| Louise Brown, age 14 |
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| Top Tips |
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- Go to the first lesson and try it yourself
- The Alto saxophone is recommended for beginners
- A good starter age is ten or eleven when a child's arms become strong enough to support the instrument and hands become big enough to play the keys, and the second set of teeth are through
- A child may find it quite heavy to carry
- Learning recorder first helps as it has similar fingering
- Your child may find it difficult at first as they get used to using their diaphragm
- Listen to: John Coltrane, World Saxophone Quartet, Courtney Pine for inspiration
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Other Woodwind Instruments
Recorder - eight holes, usually made of wood or plastic
Clarinet - a closed cylindrical air column with a bell-shaped opening at one end, played with a single reed
Flute - an open cylinder air column with keys
Piccolo - similar to the flute, pitched an octave above the standard flute
Oboe - soprano-range, double-reed woodwind
Bassoon - double reed woodwind instrument, bass member of the woodwind family
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| Interview Transcript |
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Mary: When we started looking around secondary schools, one particular school had a list in their music room of all the instruments that they would be able to choose from. I asked Louise 'Out of that list which would you be interested in?' and out of that list she picked the saxophone.
Louise: When you first start you will find it difficult, but you have to persevere because it is not the easiest instrument to play but when you get into it you will enjoy it.
Mary: One of the different things with it is that it is quite a heavy instrument and sometimes if she has to take it into school and back she complains.
Mary: For the first lesson that Louise had I stayed with her the whole time. It was a half hour lesson, and I was very pleased that I did, because as a parent you get an idea of the teacher's approach and if they are going to be encouraging. Towards the end of the lesson he suggested that I try and blow the saxophone and get some notes out of it. I found this very helpful because I realised how difficult it was, and that helped me be more patient with Louise. At the beginning stages of learning an instrument, when you get lots of squeaks, I was not expecting her to play it perfectly because I knew how difficult it was.
Louise: Go and have a look at some instruments and if you have an idea of what you would like to play and if you are really enthusiastic about wanting to play it then that is probably a good indicator. The saxophone was the first instrument that I was really enthusiastic about playing and I really enjoy playing it now.
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Further Reading
The Right Instrument for Your Child, Atarah Ben-Tovim, Douglas Boyd (Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 1995; ISBN: 0575058943)
The Rough Guide to the Saxophone (Rough Guides 2000; ISBN: 1858286492)
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