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Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 40 general entries. We are selecting 30 for display.
Special Topics
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 Saxophone
| Which politician has been known to play the saxophone? | The Saxophone
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Bill Clinton. Playing the saxophone is an enjoyable hobby for many people.
| What is the name of the piece of wood attached to a saxophone mouthpiece? | The Saxophone
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Reed. Reeds are made of bamboo - not technically a wood, perhaps, as bamboo is a grass, but the source of the term "woodwind".
Germany. Keilwerth saxophones are handmade in Germany.
To protect the instrument from corrosion. There is much debate over what effects different types of lacquers have on the sound.
| Which saxophone manufacturer produces the 'Super Action 80' series? | The Saxophone
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Selmer. Selmer has produced the Super Action 80 Series 1, 2, and 3.
E flat. Not all saxophones are in the same key.
Adolph Sax. The saxophone is named after its inventor.
32. As aforementioned, Adolphe Sax invented the saxophone. He also perfected the bass clarinet.
| What is the term used for playing a note which is higher than "F"? | Saxophone Quiz
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Altissimo. The playing of altissimo notes is a skill that takes a lot of practice and familiarity with your saxophone. Different saxophones have different keyings for these notes. To learn more about altissimo notes go to http://www.geocities.com/pierresaxpage/playing.htm
| Yes or No: Is it possible to have a saxophone in an orchestra? | Saxophone Quiz
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Yes. Of course it is, the C and F saxophones are primarily made for an orchestra. Mainly saxophones were found in orchestras in the late 1800s and early 1900s, but it is not so often nowadays. Some of the orchestras that have had saxophones in them were "Rhapsody in Blue" and "An American in Paris" by George Gershwin.
15. The types are, Bb Sopranissimo (Soprillo), Eb Soprano, Bb Soprano, Eb Alto, Bb Tenor, Eb Baritone, Bb Bass, Eb Contrabass in the key of Eb and Bb. In the key of F and C there are the F sopranino, C Soprano, F Alto (mezzosoprano), C Tenor (C-melody), F Baritone, C Bass, and the F Contrabass. All of these but the Bb Sopranissimo were invented by Adolphe Sax. There is also a sax which is said to be a subcontrabass. If you would like to see the site where I found this information and a picture of the subcontrabass go to http://www1.tip.nl/~t875094/saxgb/typesax.html
| What musician is famous for playing his soprano saxophone, and is probably the most well known saxophonist in pop music? | Saxophone Quiz
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Kenny G. Kenny G has made many albums. He is most famous for playing his soprano saxophone. If you have heard the song "What a Wonderful World" you have heard one of the works of Kenny G.
| What is the only type of saxophone which has a spit valve? | Saxophone Quiz
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Baritone. The baritone sax has a spit valve on the bottom part of the neckpiece to let out any spit which gets into the horn. Contrabass saxes also have spit valves.
| How many reeds does a normal (alto, tenor etc.) saxophone use? | Saxophone Quiz
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1. All normal saxophones use one reed held onto the mouthpiece by a metal ring called a ligature. Some of the newer prototypes of saxophones are starting to use two reeds. Some of these newer prototypes are adding double reeds to soprano saxophones. They are also starting to pull the bell out at 90 degree angles on tenor and alto saxes.
| It's easy, but what was the name of the person who invented the saxophone? | Saxophone Quiz
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Adolphe Sax. This was a gimme. Sax first got the patent for his instrument in 1849. Be was born in Belgium and invented the saxophone at the age of 29.
Elise Hall. Hall was an amateur saxophonist from Boston who took up the instrument at the urging of her doctor. Yves Mayeur was given the premiere of the piece in 1919,
Laura Hunter. The piece was written for Sinta, Wytko, and Hunter. Hunter however was given the premiere in 1985.
Frederick Hemke. Harvey Pittel spent most of his career teaching at the University of Texas. Larry Teal taught at the University of Michigan, establishing America's first doctoral saxophone program. Lawrence Gwozd taught most of his career at the University of Southern Mississippi.
| One of the very first composers to include saxophone in an orchestral work was Georges Bizet. Which of his compositions features saxophone? | Orchestral Saxophone
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L'Arlesienne. Bizet's incidental music for the play "L'Arlesienne" (The Woman of Arles) by Alphonse Daudet includes a very prominent part for alto saxophone, featuring several solos. Bizet assembled a suite from the incidental music and a second suite was arranged by Ernest Guiraud. Both suites are regularly performed and recorded.
| Sergei Rachmaninov NEVER included a saxophone in one of his orchestral compositions. True or False? | Orchestral Saxophone
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False. Rachmaninov gave an alto saxophone a prominent solo in his "Symphonic Dances" of 1940. Interestingly, it has been speculated (by musicologist David Brown) that this was as a tribute to his former friend Glazunov who had passed away in 1936. Glazunov had been responsible for the disastrous premiere of Rachmaninov's first symphony; he apparently conducted the work drunk. Glazunov's last major work was his "Saxophone Concerto" of 1934. Perhaps Rachmaninov included a saxophone in his own last major work as a posthumous peace-offering to his former friend.
| British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams included saxophone(s) in two of his symphonies. Which ones? | Orchestral Saxophone
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nos. 6 & 9. Ralph Vaughan Williams is probably best known for works such as his "Fantasia on Greensleeves", "The Lark Ascending", and "Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis". He was also a wonderful symphonist. Of his nine symphonies, numbers 6 and 9 include saxophone(s). Symphony no.6 includes a demanding part for tenor saxophone and Symphony no.9 includes three saxophones (two altos and a tenor). He also included an alto saxophone in his "Job: A Masque for Dancing".
| Not surprisingly, the saxophone has been included in many orchestral works precisely due to its association with jazz. One seminal jazz-influenced work by Darius Milhaud features the saxophone very prominently. What is the name of this piece? | Orchestral Saxophone
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The Creation of the World. Milhaud's "La Creation du monde" of 1923 is one of the very first major works by a classical composer to be directly inspired by jazz. Milhaud features the saxophone in an almost concertante role throughout the work. In its original instrumentation, the saxophone replaces the viola as part of a 'string quartet'. The piece is sometimes performed with augmented strings, but still without violas. "Krazy Kat" is an early jazz-inspired piece by John Alden Carpenter. "Uirapuru" is an early ballet by Heitor Villa-Lobos that includes a soprano saxophone. "Machines agricoles" is another work by Milhaud.
| Richard Strauss used saxophone(s) in one of his orchestral pieces. True or False? | Orchestral Saxophone
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True. Richard Strauss' "Symphonia Domestica" includes parts for four saxophones (soprano in C, alto in F, baritone in F and bass in C!). However, there is an interesting mix-up behind their inclusion. Strauss had intended the parts to be for saxhorns but he made a mistake with the name of the instrument. At a rehearsal before the premiere of the work Strauss quizzed the conductor about the strange-looking instruments sitting in the orchestra. The conductor answered that they were the saxophones he had called for. Strauss realized his mistake and allowed them to stay, but designated their use as 'ad libitum'. He himself never used them when he conducted the piece.
| One of the most famous saxophone parts in the orchestral repertoire is the solo in "The Old Castle" movement of Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition". Whose orchestration of this work includes saxophone? | Orchestral Saxophone
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Maurice Ravel. One of his greatest works, Mussorgsky's suite of ten movements for piano has been orchestrated many times. The work was written as a memorial to his friend Viktor Hartmann and represents the composer wandering through an exhibition of Hartmann's paintings and designs. The first person to orchestrate it in its entirety was the Slovenian violinist and arranger, Leo Funtek (1885-1965) in 1922. That same year, Ravel made his famous orchestration. Ravel's version has proven to be by far the most popular. While he has been accused of taking certain liberties with Mussorgsky's original, Ravel's indisputable mastery of orchestration is everywhere evident in his orchestral version. The other options given above have each produced orchestrations of the piece also.
Woodwind. As it is a woodwind instrument, the saxophone joins that section of the orchestra when required. It usually sits beside the bass clarinet, in front of the horns. Unfortunately, the saxophone has never managed to become a regular member of the orchestra but modern composers are using it with more and more frequency.
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