PM if you still need assistance. I'm a teacher with 4 years experience and longer in performance. Qualified with an ATCL.

Ooo, Baritone!!! Tenor!!! Both also i don't have...

Cool, we should form a sax quartet.

I'm looking to buy a tenor sax.

Any of you played in MPYO before? They don't have saxes, but they do have clarinets.

If any of you are in Bukit Jalil / Sri Petaling, give me a ring, we can jam.

It's hard to get a good mic for less that a lot of money.

I made my own performance clip on mic from a goos quality china condenser, DIY required. So now for performances I have wireless mic system.

Do you have a teacher? it's hard to test these things by yourself. OF course, paying $$$$ for a Yamaha is supposedly buying peace of mind.

As far as reeds and mouthpiece are concerned, again, your tutor will know best.

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Added on April 4, 2011, 12:06 pmCome watch me give a short masterclass / Performance at Yamaha Taipan this Saturday at 11am or 2 pm!


This post has been edited by brien1193: Apr 4 2011, 12:06 PM

If you wipe down your sax with a polishing cloth like once a week, and be careful not to knock it around, the finish will last decades.

It's like your car paint: how well can you take care of it?

For waxing with lacquer polish, do that once every few months, and never rub too hard.

P.S: I have a silver Yamaha YAS-25 for sale.

One of my former students performing!! :-)



This post has been edited by brien1193: Jun 20 2011, 02:38 PM

Taiwan is not bad. But still have to be careful.

What mouthpiece are you using now?

to just try different openings, you can try the Yamaha series. different number on the mouthpiece means different openings.

http://www.jodyjazz.com/facings.altosax.html

Empire is right about the CUSTOM mouthpiece...

There are a lot of mouthpieces on the market though. Try before you buy.

Please note though, of the law of diminishing returns...

the difference between an RM150 and RM500 mouthpiece is perhaps 20%...and beginners most likely will not be able to produce a different sound.

If you want I can help you get a good sax...Personally guaranteed and tested by me.

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?act=ST&f=237&t=1821215

PM me for more details.

The teacher at chambers music I think is Mr. Bohari, and he is a very experienced teacher, been teaching more than 20 years. Not sure if they have a new one though.

However, the rooms there are very small. And Bohari teaches Classical stuff only.

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Added on August 22, 2011, 9:31 amCould invest in a sax mute...but personally I have no experience with those. :-)

The thing about playing solo without backing, is that you have to be supremely confident about your tone. In the end it's all about that beautiful saxophone tone. Only if your tone is perfect can your solo performance sound hauntingly captivating. :-)

To get better tone, you'll have to spend a lot of quality time with your sax, playing only long notes and scales....until you and the saxophone understand each other.

How to know whether you've got it? It's when it feels effortless to get the right tone. :-)


This post has been edited by brien1193: Aug 22 2011, 09:31 AM

Feel free to call me (012-6728900) or email me (brienchia@gmail.com) :-) free demo yeah?


Thanks! we should play together some day!

If any of you are looking for a really cheap and good (tested) saxophone, please let me know.

I have Xing Hai Alto sax for RM1900. Sounds perfectly in tune, action is also precise.

More here:

http://www.saxmalaysia.com/2011/10/saxophone-for-sale.html

[quote=empire,Dec 13 2013, 01:31 PM]
[quote=rasha,Dec 11 2013, 10:45 AM]
Just bought the Neptune. Not been played for a year and I notice on of the flat key is stuck. Got to yank the pad to open it. Some pads got sticky sound when opening. Like pulling a cellophane take. A bit only lah. But the pad opens and closes normally. Is this normal.

Can anyone be my situ?

[/quote

Yes...common probs cos it has not been played regularly. Play it for 7 days non stop... and it should be better after that.
If the pads are sticky....pry them open gently with your fingers...and press the keys over and over again to rid the stickiness.

[/quote]

you can get special paper that cleans the pads so that they don't stick. Pads stick because they have become old or have been closed for too long. if you want a DIY solution, put a bit of baby powder on a cotton bud, and rub the pad and the metal hole the pad sits on.

thanks for the referral! anyways it's been a while since I've been active here.

No problem, see you saturday!

There are certain training that you can do to fix the quality of air. Remember, good quality air = good quality sound.

I'm assuming you play A and G on the lower octave. If you squeak or lose the sound when changing between notes that are next to each other, you're embouchure is unstable and perhaps you're not yet used to the setup of your saxophone. Try practicing long notes and then change only when the first note is "solid".

Saxophone (or any instrument) is like a lady. Treat her well, and she'll do most of the work for you.

Clarinet is one of the toughest instruments to play. It's prone to squeaking because of the position of the thumb octave key and the 4th finger holes are a bit big and often leak air if your finger seal in not tight.

To improve high notes, play long notes, and maybe start practicing from E down or up, because it's the easiest to blow. Respect the high notes and measure the resistance in your mouth to the sound.

So many reasons why it would sound like a trumpet (meaning you got a sound thats more like "peeeeeeet" rather than "duuuuuu" or "piiiiiiiii" right?)

Mouthpiece quality, embouchure quality, reed quality, all may contribute to that trumpet like sound.

Good way to remove it is to try and blow with less air and bite a little bit harder. It's not so simple in real life (there's a reason why good tone takes years to develop), but yeah...can't tell you much else without actually hearing you play.

Good luck!