Three Essential Exercises to Develop a Jazz Tone for the Concert Saxophonist

by Michael Shults

Date Posted: October 15, 2024

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musician playing the saxophone on stage

Michael's Background in Classical and Jazz Saxophone Styles

One of the elements that has always drawn me to the saxophone is the wide spectrum of tonal palettes it is capable of producing, and thus the eclectic breadth of musical situations in which the instrument can contribute.

High School

As a high school saxophonist I was primarily drawn to jazz players - I loved Charlie Parker, Chris Potter, Bobby Watson, and Branford Marsalis the most - but during my undergraduate studies with Tim Timmons at the University of Missouri-Kansas City I was turned on to Eugene Rousseau, Otis Murphy, Joe Lulloff and others that opened my ears to a different way to approach the instrument.

College

This new curiosity led me to pursuing dual bachelor’s degrees in jazz and classical performance, a masters in jazz studies at the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music, and later returning to UMKC where I completed my DMA in saxophone performance with Zach Shemon.

Post Collegiate Studies

This dual-specialization has been a lifelong artistic and pedagogical pursuit for me, and I have found that a growing number of young saxophonists show interest in being fluent as both “jazz” and “classical” stylists.*

Ideally this motivation is primarily rooted in a desire for different modes of artistic expression, but it may also be informed by a job market - particularly in higher education and in military bands - that seems to be increasingly asking for some modicum of fluency in jazz and classical styles.

*The terms “crossover” or “dual-specialization” sometimes make me cringe, because these are not binary styles and there are all sorts of sonic and stylistic possibilities that blend the value sets of multiple idioms. Further, the term “classical” in regards to saxophone is a bit of a misnomer… but that’s an article for another day. For the sake of simplicity, and for lack of convincingly better alternatives, we’ll go with those for now.

"I have found that a growing number of young saxophonists show interest in being fluent as both “jazz” and “classical” stylists." - Michael Shults

Fundamentals for Concert Saxophonists

My experience in classical studies tells me that the parameters of developing an idiomatic sound are a little more strictly codified than with the jazz idiom. For me and my students, this includes:

  • Playing with a flat chin, with corners of the mouth inward
  • Comfortably producing an A (an octave and a sixth above middle C) on the mouthpiece for alto as a default input pitch (C above that for soprano, G for tenor and D for baritone below)
  • An alignment of top and bottom teeth roughly flush with one another, with the mouthpiece inserted so that the contact point of the bottom lip is roughly at the “takeoff point” (where the reed meets the mouthpiece)
  • Rolling the lower lip over the bottom teeth in a manner that is similar to saying “ffff” as in “fire”.

Of course, there is a broad range of varying approaches to embouchure and oral cavity which allow for concert saxophonists to develop instantly recognizable and personal sounds. But these fundamentals seem to be widely accepted amongst most concert saxophonists.

How To Develop a More Idiomatic Jazz Sound Concept

When assisting a primarily classically-oriented player in developing a more idiomatic jazz sound concept, I find that the directives I give are on more of a spectrum, and that the combination of variables which ultimately pay dividends vary much more from student to student.

Rather than defining a specific optimal mouthpiece input pitch, embouchure shape, teeth alignment, or degree of lower lip roll, I advise students to experiment with a few exercises that increase awareness of possibilities, and decide on the amalgamation that works best for their anatomy and the concept they gravitate towards in their ear.

Here are three of those exercises:

Mouthpiece Input Pitch

In order to experiment with input pitches on the mouthpiece, the student should first have the ability to produce a C (two octaves above middle C on soprano), an A below that for alto, a G below that for tenor, and a D for bari, and be able to bend these pitches using voicing/oral cavity flexibility - while maintaining a steady and consistent embouchure - down at least a fourth in expanding half steps. A diagram can be found in Dr. Matthew Storie’s excellent thesis Developing A Jazz Tonal Concept For The Classical Saxophonist, which I’ve included here:

alto example saxophone
tenor example

From here, I advise the student to play jazz excerpts - or improvise - with different input pitches as their default setting.

Step One

First play an etude, melody, or improvised line with the recommended “classical” input pitch (referenced above) and make note of how this sounds. Generally, this will make the reed sound a little stifled or restricted for a jazz concept, and projection can be compromised on a jazz-appropriate setup.

Step Two

Then, lower the input pitch a half step and repeat - then a whole step, and so forth. It is important to note that as we lower the input pitch, whatever gains we might make in terms of sonority might be more or less canceled out by compromises in intonation.

As we lower the input pitch, we’ll need to make a corresponding move by pushing in the mouthpiece on the cork to account for the pitch center going flat. Often students will confuse bad intonation with a bad sound and reject a lower input pitch immediately.

For me, I find myself playing around a major third lower on my jazz setup vs. my classical setup (an F for alto, and an Eb for tenor), but years of working on this with different students tells me I am a rather outlying case and this is too extreme for most students.

Recommendations

Generally, a major 2nd or minor third lower tends to introduce the more “spread” quality appropriate for jazz without resulting in unwieldy intonation tendencies. This is not a one-size-fits-all approach, however - in fact, some students may even want to experiment with a higher input pitch!

Low G Subtone Exercise

While studying with Rick Van Matre at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, he described subtone to me as a continuum - and put it thusly in Dr. Johan Eriksson’s dissertation Finding Pedagogical Strategies For Combined Classical And Jazz Saxophone At The College Level:

“One end of the spectrum is full straight tone, maybe even exaggerated to an aggressive extent, and I don't say that in a bad way. Sometimes you want to be really powerful, maybe a little strident. At the other end of the spectrum would be the exaggerated ‘woofy’, wispy subtone. I like to teach all gradations in between, and that's one of the hardest things to do, and especially more so on tenor than on alto… Maybe you want to have a 70 – 30, 70 percent straight tone, 30 percent subtone. That would give you a nice warm sound that's really locked in, and it could be soft too. In other cases you're playing a ballad, and then maybe you want to be completely subtone. So, everything to me is just about finding the spot.”

Note on Subtone

It is important to note that subtone is created by horizontal movement of the lower lip and teeth (forward and backward), not vertical movement (significant changes in embouchure pressure or “biting” to a greater or lesser degree).

The oft-repeated axiom “drop your jaw” is bad advice: simply lessening embouchure pressure alone will result in an uncentered and untenable sound.

The degree of subtone that is desirable varies greatly from player to player, but it is my belief that in a jazz setting a certain degree of subtone should almost always be present. This means that the student should have the wherewithal to play with a certain degree of overbite (meaning the lower lip and teeth are closer to the tip of the mouthpiece than the top teeth) at nearly all times - perhaps with the exception of the altissimo register.

"The degree of subtone that is desirable varies greatly from player to player, but it is my belief that in a jazz setting a certain degree of subtone should almost always be present." - Michael Shults

How to Create Subtone With a Student

To find the optimal degree for the student, I have them first play a low G with no subtone - that is, roughly their default setting for classical playing. From there, they gradually pull the lower lip/jaw back towards the tip of the reed, while maintaining the top teeth as anchor, and sustaining the tone. Keep pulling the lip back to its most extreme position near the tip of the reed, where it becomes nigh impossible to produce any sound at all. This is solely to increase awareness of just how laterally mobile the lower lip and teeth can be.

As the student does this, there should be two accompanying reactions: the corners of the mouth flatten slightly (the embouchure becomes less “tall” and more “wide”), and the chin should bunch to a degree (no longer flat). This will likely feel foreign at first, but it’s ok! Somewhere in between these two extremes (no subtone/tone cutting out completely) will be a sort of happy medium, where there is a pleasing degree of subtone but without completely compromising the pitch center. Again, corresponding adjustments will need to be made with the mouthpiece’s placement on the cork.

Myer Bends

The following is one of my favorite exercises, and is part of my “quick change” warmup if I am going between a classical setup and a jazz setup when teaching or performing both styles back to back.

I borrowed this from Dr. Tom Myer, retired Professor of Saxophone at the University of Colorado, so I’ve dubbed them “Myer Bends” as an homage to the source.

Myer Bend Exercise Explained

In this exercise, I give the student four false fingerings, and they are instructed to bend the pitches down a minor third. While I instruct students to make no external (embouchure) adjustments while doing mouthpiece pitch bends, in this exercise they are encouraged to use a combination of tongue position/voicing changes along with moving their lower lip back towards the reed if necessary (subtone, as described above).

I typically use the French fingering system codified by Jean-Marie Londeix, but here am using Dr. Myer’s nomenclature. The fingerings are:

Bis key Bb (with octave key) and add right hand 4,5,6 and RH Eb key.

Low E and vent (open) the left hand palm key F. Bend this pitch from middle E down to middle C#.

Low Eb - vent the left hand palm key Eb. Bend this pitch from middle Eb down to middle C.

Low D - vent left hand palm key D. Bend from middle D down to middle B.

Myer Bend Exercise Applied

Typically as the student moves to the lower fingerings, the pitches become increasingly difficult to bend. In this exercise, the student should strive to make the pitch bend as even and smooth as possible, without a “hitch” in the sound; often early attempts will find them able to produce a pitch a minor third below, but in descending will have a bit of an interval skip. For me, increasing the height of the interior (middle third) of the tongue helps facilitate an even pitch bend. A full-bodied forte dynamic will help, as well.

I have also used the first fingering listed as a reference point for students finding their optimal combination of lowered input pitch and subtone. In some cases if the student lowers that pitch from a Bb to an A or Ab, and sustains a long tone to help remember physically how that feels, they can then use that as a default “home base”, much like with mouthpiece input above. I encourage them to play an excerpt or etude from that embouchure and oral cavity setting and note the results. Once again, a corresponding change may need to be made with the mouthpiece on the cork.

You will note that no specific guidance has been offered as to what the de facto combination of factors should be for a student within these exercises to produce an optimal sound! Anatomy and personal tonal concept - the latter of which should be acquired through hundreds of hours of listening and studying great jazz saxophone artists - play such a large role that it would be futile, in my experience, to strictly codify any further. Students should make these exercises a daily part of their warmup, and it sometimes may take weeks or months to get comfortable enough with them that they are useful.

Key Jazz Concept Cornerstones

For reference, my own key jazz concept cornerstones are:

  • Slight overbite at all times, becoming more extreme in the lower register and less extreme in the higher; bottom lip and teeth typically placed just back from the “take off point” closer to the tip of the reed
  • Mouthpiece input pitch roughly a major third lower than classical
  • Embouchure is wider - corners are not as far in as in classical, and bottom lip thins out
  • Bottom lip contact point on reed is closer to the “wet-dry line” than where my “lip skin” meets my “chin skin”; more like “vvvv” than “ffff”
  • Chin is bunched, not flat

Through exploring these exercises, a student will hopefully gain awareness of some of the variables that contribute to developing a jazz tone concept and through experimentation can arrive on what works best for them - which will most likely be different than what works for me!


Further Research:

Doctoral project theses, Developing A Jazz Tonal Concept For The Classical Saxophonist, Dr. Matthew Storie, University of Illinois-Champaign

Dissertation, Finding Pedagogical Strategies For Combined Classical And Jazz Saxophone At The College Level, Dr. Johan Eriksson, University of Northern Colorado

Dissertation, Approaching The Classical Style: A Resource for Jazz Saxophonists, Dr. Joel Vanderheyden, University of Iowa

From The Inside Out: An In-Depth Resource for the Development of Saxophone Soundby Dr. Mark Watkins

YouTube: Defining Authenticity In Jazz And Classical Saxophone – Saxophone Studio Class, Dr. Michael Shults

Voicing: An Approach to the Saxophone’s Third Registerby Donald Sinta

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