I don't play the saxophone myself, but I've just been asked to accompany a G5 exam for an adult tenor sax player. He's playing tenor transpositions of the anonymous Spanish Love Song and Paul Harris's Saxsequential that I've previously played for alto sax players. The accompaniment for SLS in the lower key is really growly - it's going to be a challenge to have it sound like a guitar, which I'm sure is the intention!

Out of curiosity I looked at the syllabuses for ABRSM grades 5-8 for tenor sax, and there's hardly a single piece among the lot of them that was originally written for tenor. I think it's a lovely instrument in its own right. Nearly everything was either written for completely different instruments (e.g. Bach and Handel arrangements, music written before the instrument was invented) or "B flat editions" of pieces written for alto, or pieces that say they are for soprano or tenor as they are conveniently in the same key. I'm very much in sympathy with the idea of making sensitive transcriptions of music by e.g. Bach, Handel or Telemann for other instruments, especially as composers from that period often recycled their own music anyway, but I hate it when it's just arranged for one appropriate instrument and then transposed willy-nilly for higher or lower ones.

Are there any tenor sax players out there who would like to comment on this?

There's not a lot of original classical music for sax in any of it's voices, but what there is tends to be more alto and sop based than tenor. There is a consortium of tenor sax players who are commissioning new works specifically for tenor - there are some details here http://www.andyscott.org.uk/tenor-saxophone.htm

As a primarily tenor player the lack of classical repertoire matters not a jot to me. As a jazz sax player (the genre most associated with sax) tenor is of at least equal significance to alto - personally I can probably name more influential tenor than alto players, but that could be my own bias coming into play. Over the past 6 or 7 years I've been on a number of a) saxophone and b) jazz courses. On the saxophone courses alto is the most common voice. On the jazz courses there tends to be more tenor players, and the alto players are often (although definitely not always) the less experienced players. I always take both alto and tenor to the courses. On the sax courses the alto has barely left the case for the past couple of years because the alto parts are well and truly covered. On the jazz courses I've been asked specifically to play alto in some ensembles because of a lack of alto players with the experience necessary to cover the part.

Yeah, the tenor is somewhat neglected in classical music compared to the alto and soprano. A shame really since it can be a very beautiful, full-sounding instrument.

I think a lot of the student pieces like the ones you mentioned are advertised as being for "alto or tenor" when really they were clearly conceived with alto in mind rather than tenor. Putting "for alto or tenor" on the front is always going to increase your sales potential, even if the piece doesn't really work that well on tenor.

yes, i'd noticed the same thing (lack of original music for tenor) but didn't realsie the situation was quite as bad. It looks like Andy Scott is doing a great job though. Although I don't get on with playing the tenor, I do think the sound is very rich and cello like and also is obviously great in a jazz setting.

Hmmm.....I might make that my next project....a piece written specifically for tenor sax and piano...

Saxgirl.


http://www.keridegg.co.uk

to hear my recent compositions / performances on Saxophone, flute and clarinet, please visit; http://www.reverbnation.com/keridegg

Bit off topic but....

Music to meditate to. wonderful

That's excellent news. Thanks for the interesting link. I expect adults start on alto sax at least partly for reasons of cost unless they have both a very strong desire to play one of the others and the money to gratify it! Is there much elementary / teaching material for beginners on soprano or tenor or could a lack of it be another issue when beginners are choosing which size to start on?

I agree. You just have to hope that people will look at the music and make informed decisions. Unfortunately with the Spanish Love Song as an example I don't think ABRSM music selectors always bother to do that.

I'm old enough to remember a time before James Galway had his No.1 hit with Annie's Song when some solo music used to get publicised as being suitable for Treble Recorder or Flute, e.g. Lennox Berkeley's Sonatina. I think it may only have been Schotts who did that - they had a big recorder catalogue.

It's not usually recommended to start on sop - it's more difficult, but alto or tenor are both fine to start with and the same tutor books, elementary material will work with both. Alto is more usual to start with, it has the advantages of being smaller and easier for children to handle, cheaper and there are probably more student instruments available. Some people (myself included) start with tenor, usually either because the school / music service etc wants a tenor player and picks out a clarinettist to do the job or (more usually for adults, and certainly my reason) because they fall in love with the tenor sound. In that case they're more likely to be interested in jazz, since that's where you hear mostly tenor, so the lack of classical repertoire isn't a problem.