You should write a book on this with exercises and a CD to play along with. R&B along with the wedding/party bands have gotten very popular these days. The nerdy horn player from high school is in demand!
Absolutely spot on! These few tips are not just good suggestions, it’s a master class on how to be a section player. The inclusion of Basie at the Sands with Sinatra is a great lesson on how to be tight, crisp and make it swing. Basie’s band is so crisp and swings so hard when backing Sinatra that it’s on my roadtrip playlist. I exaggerate more when playing lead tenor than when playing lead alto and find it much more fun to do. I’m forwarding your video to my band mates! Thanks!
Your videos are always jam packed with great information. I love the sound of that tenor sax, too. A tenor is going to be my nex saxophone purchase. I am glad that I can now sit at the computer and watch videos like these again. On the last Friday in February, I suffered a devastating fracture in my left leg that shattered the top of my tibia and drove the bone out of my knee joint. That following Monday, I had reconstructive surgery. I couldn't sit in an office style chair for two months. Now, I'm walking again without crutches but, still need to work my leg strength up to what it once was. I am so grateful to be able to walk on two legs, again. We often don't appreciate what we have until we lose it even if, the loss is temporary.
Love it, I play in a local intermediate woodwind band, I am the platipi, always getting lost and being pulled out for being a beat behind. This can't come soon enough.
Great Video ☺ and hello from Germany I love the "Tower of Power" horn section. Watched them live last year at a concert in Hamburg. That was one the best concerts I visited.
Lots of good stuff here, and I'm glad to hear that intonation isn't just my problem! I'm particularly having trouble with my middle D,Eb, and E after changing back to my old Berg Larsen, though I don't know if it's the horn or the mouthpiece (or me). And as you suggest at the end, dealing with egos is perhaps the trickiest part!
One of your most beneficial lessons I’ve seen so far.. I am actually wondering, why on these aspects isn’t put more emphasis on musical schools (at least within my social bubble), whereas they are (or should be) the very first thing you learn once you set foot in ensemble of any kind, size or genre.. Keep up the great work, you are super-inspiring for me (and I am sure for a ton of others) both as a musician and a teacher. Thank you for sharing your wisdom and love! Take care ❤🎷
Your last tip (tread carefully) was the most important lesson I’ve learned playing in a section. The two others are: 1) keep a sense of humour and 2) bring plenty of coffee to share for rehearsal breaks. Don’t knock bribery.
...we're really schooled and enthusiastic and know at a moments glance when for example" bribery" won't work. And we don't mind... we'll do the work... run ALL the peices down... and have a ball 'cos it's cool as, but it's pretty confronting when you can even emotionally blackmail (bribe) some peckerhead to enjoy themselves (and to stop screwing everyone).
I play in a 2 piece horn section with a trombone player. Because the band does not want to hire another trumpet player, I have to use the alto to cover the trumpet parts. Will this setup ever work? The sound is just not there in my opinion.
I use a Snark contact tuner and like it, but the trouble for me is that the bendable goose-neck that holds up the screen is too short. One gets a little cross-eyed looking at it clamped to the neck of an alto sax. It's even worse on a flute, trying to see it out of the corner of your eye. Does anyone know of a contact tuner that has a long neck? I've had no luck finding one, including emailing Snark--I got no response.
I've never played in a horn section, but most of these points seem to be common sense, but the info about intonation and lower horns in a section are revelatory.
Yeah, this was the one tip that rubbed me the wrong way. In the moment, I'll try my best to follow the lead trumpet's phrasing/articulations, but it's critical to know whether the player is deviating from the chart intentionally, (eg. because the printed markings are wrong or sound naff if played as written - in which case, I'll mark up my part to make matching them on subsequent plays easier), or because they just didn't read it properly in which case, we need to have a discussion as to whether to obey the printed markings or to go with the lead trumpet (then mark up the parts accordingly so that we both play that line consistently).
Hey, why not up your sax game with this free masterclass✅ www.getyoursaxtogether.com/masterclass
You should write a book on this with exercises and a CD to play along with. R&B along with the wedding/party bands have gotten very popular these days. The nerdy horn player from high school is in demand!
Thanks for the suggestion! I do cover it in more detail my Phrase Like A Pro course
Absolutely spot on! These few tips are not just good suggestions, it’s a master class on how to be a section player. The inclusion of Basie at the Sands with Sinatra is a great lesson on how to be tight, crisp and make it swing. Basie’s band is so crisp and swings so hard when backing Sinatra that it’s on my roadtrip playlist. I exaggerate more when playing lead tenor than when playing lead alto and find it much more fun to do. I’m forwarding your video to my band mates! Thanks!
Thanks so much.
Also please add bloopers to everything, they made me chuckle 🤭
They are on pretty much most videos!
Every word of that lesson, is a very important. Thank you very much, Mr Anderson.
You're very welcome!
Great stuff. The world really needs a decent horn section course. Hope you make one some day - I will be the first to buy it.
I do cover it in Phrase Like A Pro
Btw... have you met "The Martin Brothers Horns".. I played trumpet in 4th grade with Andy, and Stan Martin
Nope.
Intonation. Can’t say it enough!
🙏
Your videos are always jam packed with great information. I love the sound of that tenor sax, too. A tenor is going to be my nex saxophone purchase.
I am glad that I can now sit at the computer and watch videos like these again. On the last Friday in February, I suffered a devastating fracture in my left leg that shattered the top of my tibia and drove the bone out of my knee joint. That following Monday, I had reconstructive surgery. I couldn't sit in an office style chair for two months. Now, I'm walking again without crutches but, still need to work my leg strength up to what it once was. I am so grateful to be able to walk on two legs, again. We often don't appreciate what we have until we lose it even if, the loss is temporary.
Amazing, thanks. Hope you heal well soon!
@@GetYourSaxTogether Thank you! I'm getting there.
Love it, I play in a local intermediate woodwind band, I am the platipi, always getting lost and being pulled out for being a beat behind. This can't come soon enough.
👍
I’m a huge fan of Tower of Power. Got to see them live 3 years ago, front row. Awesome.
Awesome!
That horn soli sounded great, but can we also talk about how sick those synth sounds were?
Sure!
right on the money! Should be required viewing for any band member.
Thanks!
Great Video ☺ and hello from Germany
I love the "Tower of Power" horn section. Watched them live last year at a concert in Hamburg. That was one the best concerts I visited.
Amazing!
Great video. In the horn section I play with, my biggest issue has been just hearing all of my section mates over the sound of the rest of the band.
Yeh bit difficult if you can't hear.
Lots of good stuff here, and I'm glad to hear that intonation isn't just my problem! I'm particularly having trouble with my middle D,Eb, and E after changing back to my old Berg Larsen, though I don't know if it's the horn or the mouthpiece (or me). And as you suggest at the end, dealing with egos is perhaps the trickiest part!
Try adding your low Bb key for those notes you mentioned. It’ll bring the pitch down.
@@GetYourSaxTogether thanks!
One of your most beneficial lessons I’ve seen so far.. I am actually wondering, why on these aspects isn’t put more emphasis on musical schools (at least within my social bubble), whereas they are (or should be) the very first thing you learn once you set foot in ensemble of any kind, size or genre.. Keep up the great work, you are super-inspiring for me (and I am sure for a ton of others) both as a musician and a teacher. Thank you for sharing your wisdom and love! Take care ❤🎷
Thanks so much
Your last tip (tread carefully) was the most important lesson I’ve learned playing in a section. The two others are: 1) keep a sense of humour and 2) bring plenty of coffee to share for rehearsal breaks. Don’t knock bribery.
...we're really schooled and enthusiastic and know at a moments glance when for example" bribery" won't work.
And we don't mind... we'll do the work... run ALL the peices down... and have a ball 'cos it's cool as, but it's pretty confronting when you can even emotionally blackmail (bribe) some peckerhead to enjoy themselves (and to stop screwing everyone).
🤣
Can you do a video about being a solo player joining an existing, established gigging band or as a session player please? 😊
Video on solo player here th-cam.com/video/C4U0ijI4sik/w-d-xo.htmlsi=4dK4wA1B2iF73Lm2
I play in a 2 piece horn section with a trombone player. Because the band does not want to hire another trumpet player, I have to use the alto to cover the trumpet parts. Will this setup ever work? The sound is just not there in my opinion.
Well yeah, I mean the average white band had alto and tenor, and the crusaders had trombone and sax.
I use a Snark contact tuner and like it, but the trouble for me is that the bendable goose-neck that holds up the screen is too short. One gets a little cross-eyed looking at it clamped to the neck of an alto sax. It's even worse on a flute, trying to see it out of the corner of your eye. Does anyone know of a contact tuner that has a long neck? I've had no luck finding one, including emailing Snark--I got no response.
Yeah I know what you mean.
I've never played in a horn section, but most of these points seem to be common sense, but the info about intonation and lower horns in a section are revelatory.
Glad you still got something from it!
Was that nigel hitchcock on alto
Well spotted!
why does "we are the borg. we are legion. resistance is futile." suddenly come to mind during Jamie's intro of this week's lesson?
🤷🏻♂️
Круто!
🙏
👍
🙏
4:06 trumpet players get their way too often.
Yeah, this was the one tip that rubbed me the wrong way. In the moment, I'll try my best to follow the lead trumpet's phrasing/articulations, but it's critical to know whether the player is deviating from the chart intentionally, (eg. because the printed markings are wrong or sound naff if played as written - in which case, I'll mark up my part to make matching them on subsequent plays easier), or because they just didn't read it properly in which case, we need to have a discussion as to whether to obey the printed markings or to go with the lead trumpet (then mark up the parts accordingly so that we both play that line consistently).
@@clarinetguyuk I avoid playing in sections, so I have more freedom.
😂