To play salsa on sax, you need to understand the rhythm of the music.
It starts with the clave and builds from there- you need to know whether you’re in 3-2, 2-3, or rumba. Then there is the cascara pattern on timbales, montunos on the piano, the timbao on bass, and much more.
Check out the music of Tito Puente, Hector Lavoe, Paquito D’Rivera, and listen a lot.
The chords, generally, are more simple than jazz.
Being able to dance salsa can help.
Check out Salsa Latin Jazz to try it out!
[…] Salsa on Sax […]
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You’ll learn fundamental saxophone skills, building past the basics. Master rhythms. Learn about phrasing, tone, and more. Here you will get feedback which is crucial to developing good habits.
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hmm, I never considered that the chords were simpler in Salsa. Can you explain?
And definitely, if you can dance you can feel the music so much easier. Salsa rhythms can get crazy. Lol.
Hey Jasmine,
In salsa, the piano plays a ‘montuno’ pattern that basically just uses 3 chords. It has a certain rhythm to it that locks in with the drums and other instruments. The bass also just plays the same few chords with another rhythmic pattern. Since they lock in, that helps create the groove that people dance to. When you solo in salsa, most of the time it’s over a section with just a few chords (but not always).
-Neal