You want your saxophone to play in tune and blend with others. But you may notice that you’re sometimes out of tune, possibly only on certain notes and would like to fix that.
The problem
Playing out of tune immediately sticks out in a bad way. Even people who are not musicians often can tell if a singer or musician is quite a bit out of tune.
Because of the way the saxophone is built, tuning one note (even perfectly) does not ensure that all other notes will play in tune.
Low C could be flat, middle C could be in tune, high C could be sharp without adjusting anything on the saxophone.
Different Saxophones
More modern saxophones from reputable brands tend to play much more in tune than vintage saxophones. But it’s still good to know exactly how to get the saxophone in tune across the entire range of notes even if your horn tends to play pretty well in tune.
Every different horn you play is likely to be a bit different.
If you do play a vintage horn, there are tendencies that you need to be aware of to play in tune. Sometimes there are common tendencies. I have learned more about those as I have shifted to playing a vintage horn.
Many Factors!
The position of the mouthpiece on the neck cork is a big factor in intonation since it effectively changes the length of the saxophone, but the mouthpiece itself and reed also affect intonation.
How you move your fingers can affect intonation.
What is this guide?
The main part of this guide is a written guide to tuning. Structured in ten sections.
Part of the guide
Part 1: mouthpiece position
Part 2: how to tune?
Part 3: saxophone tuning tendencies
Part 4: repairs?
Part 5: mouthpiece & reed
Part 6: fingers & tuning
Part 7: comfort level & tuning
Part 8: tone & intonation
Part 9: Examples
Part 10: Recommendations with checklist
Videos:
There is an introductory video about mouthpiece position & the possibilities of how much you can lip up and lip down notes.
A second video takes examples from three people of playing different notes and my recommendations for them to get better tuning.
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