This is a different way of practicing scales.
It’s based on the principles of rhythm outlined in James Thurmond’s “Note Grouping” and David McGill’s “Sound In Motion.” The inner 8th notes of each bar lead to the downbeat of the next measure. It’s fun to play this with piano accompaniment. Teachers can play simple block chords with students to add a tonal and rhythmic context to scale practice. These types of figures are really common in the music of J.S. Bach and Mozart. I hope they add joy to your daily scale practice and unveil new understanding of musical relationships.
Tonguing Exercise
Here is a quick tonguing exercise that I use to stay in shape.
It works for all wind instruments.
The goal is to practice tonguing all notes on the instrument with clarity, rhythmic accuracy, and pitch accuracy.
It can be completed in 2-3 minutes.
Again, I always do this with a tuner and a metronome.
Tonguing.pdf
Saxophone Long Tone Warmup
Here is a quick long tone warm-up that I practice daily.
This is largely borrowed from Steven Stusek and others.
The idea is to play every note on your instrument in tune with a tuner and with a good sound.
It can be expanded into the altissimo range.
The starting note can be varied each day.
Longtones.pdf
Swing Concept
Here are a series of exercises designed to teach swing 8ths and standard jazz articulation.
swingconcept.pdf
Saxophone Video Lessons
I’ve searched the internet for the best saxophone lessons by reputable saxophone teachers. This is what I’ve found:
Dr. Eugene Rousseau – Steps to Excellence Video
Find all of the segments from this video on Rousseau’s website: http://www.eugene-rousseau.com/discussions.htm