EDUCATION

THE TWO MINUTE SAXOPHONE LESSON
by Paul Wainwright
Written for Canadian Musician Magazine April 5, 1996

I guess we all have well intentioned friends that may not be players themselves. Sometimes after listening to you play, they become overwhelmed with desire to play saxophone too. After all, you make it look so damned easy why not let them have a turn? Now some of us just don't do that. This is my horn and nobody but me gets to play it till you pry my cold dead fingers off it. Fair enough. Concerns over catching a disease aside, the instrument is an extension of the player and not everyone is comfortable with someone else pawing it. 

Should you decide to acquiese to your friend's wishes may I suggest the Two Minute Saxophone Method. This simple little mini course covers all the basics in a nutshell. It is, in fact a good starting point for beginner students. And when applied succefully, it can impart to the lucky recipient a brief moment of saxophone ecstacy that can last a lifetime. Ensure that the candidate is aware that what is about to unfold is not something to be taken lightly - you are about to bestow upon them an experience with far reaching physical and spiritual dimensions.

First have the student stand upright with feet at shoulder width and have them take a few diaphragm breaths. If they don't get it, have them place a hand on your own diaphragm as you demonstrate. be sure to really flex the muscle and press their fingers firmly into your diaphram until they get a sense of how much strength must be employed. Have them hold their palm facing themself at arm's length. Then take a quick breath in and slowly release the air attempting to direct the windstream at the fingertips. Excellent breath control practice even for non-beginners.

Now comes the moment when you turn over the coveted neck-strap. This is the badge of distinction in the saxophone club and wearing it will begin to arouse giddy anticipation in the student. Next you actually hand over the instrument making sure that it's hooked on securely and they're just about beside themselves. This is good time to reflect and appreciate that goofy sense of bravado that occurs at rare moments in our lives. Your first bicycle. Your first lover. The first time behind the wheel of a Jag.  Now you must try and get the fingers in proximity of the correct position. It probably won't happen, but don't worry about it, we won't get that far in two minutes. Just get right thumb in the hook and the left thumb on the black button and everything should be OK. 

Adjust the neck strap so they don't have to reach down for the mouthpiece - very important. I'm a little fanatical about posture so please make sure that the individual is standing in erect in a position of accomplishment and pride.

Now you must explain to the candidate that you are about to place your fingers in their mouth to demonstrate the feel of the mouthpiece when properly employed. Have the person drop the jaw to a slack position, then place two of your fingers (nails up) under the top teeth with about the same amount of pressure you would expect a beginner to require. Make sure that this experience is fully absorbed, then roll a portion of the lower lip over the lower teeth. Press down so they get an idea of how much pressure to apply. d is a hands on experience and will require physical contact between yourself and the student. You may need to explain that the teeth don't actually have contact with the reed.

Let's see - we've covered breath, posture, finger position, mouthiece deployment - I guess we're ready for the glory moment. Instruct the student to place the mouthpiece between the lips, make a sphincter of the embouchure, and blow like Gabriel. This may remind you of the primal moment when you first did this yourself all those years (or months) ago.  You might want to mention a few words about tonguing, but hey, the clock is ticking and your two minutes should be up. Collect your fifty bucks and retreive your horn.