Introduction I’ve been checking out Sam Greenfield’s Instagram account for quite some time, and besides enjoying the creative content he posts, I’ve also been blown away by Sam’s mastery of the instrument. I am excited to share with you my recent interview with Sam, and if you haven’t already been following him on Instagram and [read more…]
Even if you’re a master at improvised solos and composing melodies, chord changes, and lyrics, there’s no doubt it’s difficult to write about yourself as an individual and a musician! Yet when it comes to putting yourself out there, this is a piece of writing you’ll need to get involved in, especially when it comes [read more…]
Bio Highlights Primarily a saxophonist and woodwind specialist, he also performs on vocals, keyboards, percussion and electronic media. Matt holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Composition from New York University, an M.M. in Jazz Performance from New England Conservatory of Music, and a B.A. in Music from Wesleyan University Matt studied performance with Jerry [read more…]
Introduction Every so many years I spot player that really has his/her technique, sound, and rhythm down at such a young age. Ryan Devlin is one of those players. Since being a student of Chad Lefkowitz-Brown and studying at UCF, Ryan has continued to hone his skills both as a saxophonist as well as a [read more…]
Ah, those two infamous words “Woodwind Doubler”. As I’m sitting down to write this article, I realize how funny it is that requests for woodwind doublers are so common, yet requests for say, string doublers, are so rare. But, we’re not trying to reinvent the wheel here… A pit gig is a pit gig. Without [read more…]
Saxophone giant, Jerry Bergonzi is known not only as a highly-influential saxophonist, referred to by Michael Brecker as “the best tenor player in the world”, but also as one of the great saxophone and jazz educators of our time, currently teaching at the New England Conservatory of Music. Establishing himself early in his career with [read more…]
Introduction I have been fortunate enough to speak with many great saxophonists over the years, and recently had the chance to sit down (virtually) and speak with Dayna Stephens. While many saxophonists focus on one or two members of the saxophone family, Dayna’s instrumental arsenal includes soprano, alto, tenor, and his favorite of all the [read more…]
This past March, on Bach’s 336th birthday, I put out a collection of jazz etudes called Bach Shapes: The Etudes. The book collects etudes from my Bach Shapes books, which isolate the beautiful melodic shapes of Bach’s music so you can apply them to tunes or technical practice. There are short analyses for each etude in the book but [read more…]
Introduction I remember when JodyJazz first came out with his HR* line of mouthpieces for alto and tenor and since then, Jody has expanded his product line to include 9 different models that are offered for soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone. In this article, I will be reviewing Jody’s newest addition to the JodyJazz lineup, [read more…]
So you’re a talented saxophone player who’s not quite making ends meet… No, this isn’t the beginning of a cheesy commercial, please hear me out. :) Today I’m going to share with you an alternative way to make a living as a saxophonist. As the post goes on I’ll show you the kind of money [read more…]
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