Saxophone

The saxophone (referred to colloquially as the sax) is a

Saxophone
woodwind instrument. Saxophones are usually made of brass and
played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the
clarinet.[2] Although most saxophones are made from brass, they
are categorized as woodwind instruments, because sound is
produced by an oscillating reed, traditionally made out of woody
cane, rather than lips vibrating in a mouthpiece cup as with the
brass instrument family. As with the other woodwind instruments,
the pitch of the note being played is controlled by covering holes
in the body tube to control the resonant frequency of the air
column by changing the effective length of the tube.[3]

The saxophone is used in classical music (such as concert bands,

chamber music, solo repertoire, and, occasionally, orchestras),
military bands, marching bands, jazz (such as big bands and jazz
combos), and contemporary music. The saxophone is also used as
a solo and melody instrument or as a member of a horn section in
some styles of rock and roll and popular music. Saxophone
players are called saxophonists.[2]

Since the first saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument

maker Adolphe Sax in the early 1840s,[4] saxophones have been
produced in a variety of series distinguished by transpositions
within instrument sets and tuning standard. Sax patented the
saxophone on 28 June 1846, in two groups of seven instruments
each. Each series consisted of instruments ranked by pitch, in
alternating transposition. The series pitched in B♭ and E ♭ soon An alto saxophone
became dominant and most saxophones encountered today are Woodwind instrument
from this series. Instruments from the series pitched in C and F
Classification Wind,
never gained a foothold and constituted only a small percentage
of instruments made by Sax. High Pitch (also marked "H" or woodwind,
"HP") saxophones tuned sharper than the (concert) A = 440 Hz aerophone
standard were produced into the early twentieth century for sonic
Hornbostel– 422.212-71
qualities suited for outdoor uses, but are not playable to modern
Sachs (Single-reeded
tuning and are considered obsolete. Low Pitch (also marked "L"
classification aerophone with
or "LP") saxophones are equivalent in tuning to modern
keys)
instruments. C soprano and C melody saxophones were produced
Inventor(s) Adolphe Sax
for the casual market as parlor instruments during the early
twentieth century. Saxophones in F were introduced during the Developed 28 June 1846[1]
late 1920s but never gained acceptance. The modern saxophone Playing range
family consists entirely of instruments in the B ♭ – E ♭ series,
historical and experimental instruments notwithstanding. The
saxophones with widest use and availability are the soprano, alto,
tenor, and baritone saxophones.

Sounds an Sounds an
# Saxophone Key octave lower octave higher
than than Related instruments
1 Sopranissimo B♭ ## Soprano Military band family:
2 Sopranino E♭ ## Alto
Sopranino saxophone
3 Soprano B♭ Sopranissimo Tenor
Soprano saxophone
4 Alto E♭ Sopranino Baritone
Alto saxophone
5 Tenor B♭ Soprano Bass
Tenor saxophone
6 Baritone E♭ Alto Contrabass
Baritone saxophone
7 Bass B♭ Tenor Subcontrabass
Bass saxophone
8 Contrabass E♭ Baritone ## Contrabass saxophone
9 Subcontrabass B♭ Bass ## Subcontrabass saxophone

Orchestral family:

Contents C soprano saxophone

Description Mezzo-soprano saxophone
Pitch and range C melody saxophone
Design features
Materials Other saxophones:
Surface finishes
Mouthpiece and reed Sopranissimo saxophone
('Soprillo')
History
Tubax
Early development and adoption
Early twentieth-century growth and development Musicians
The modern saxophone emerges
List of saxophonists
Uses
In military bands and classical music
Selected works of the repertoire
Selected saxophone quartets
Selected chamber-music pieces with
saxophone
Selected orchestral pieces with saxophones
Selected operas and musicals with saxophones
In jazz and popular music
Unusual variants
Related instruments
Image gallery
See also
 Notes
References
Further reading
External links

Description

Pitch and range

Play media
A man practices the saxophone in
Yoyogi park

In the keyed (below overtone-produced altissimo)

ranges of the various saxophones, the pitch is
controlled by keys with shallow cups in which are
fastened leather pads that seal toneholes,
controlling the resonant length, and thereby The traditional keyed range in C major of the soprano,
frequency, of the air column within the bore. alto, tenor and baritone when playing a B♭ major
Small holes called vents, located between the scale.
toneholes and the mouthpiece, are opened by an
octave key to raise the pitch by eliminating the
fundamental frequency, leaving the first harmonic as the frequency defining the pitch. Most modern
saxophones are keyed to produce a low B ♭ (relative to the instrument's transposition) with all keys
closed; modern baritone saxophones commonly play a low A and altos keyed to low A have been
produced in the past. The highest keyed note has traditionally been F two and a half octaves above low
B♭, while the keyed range is extended to F♯ on most recent performance-class instruments. A high G key
is most common on modern soprano saxophones. Notes above F are considered part of the altissimo
register of any saxophone, and can be produced using advanced embouchure techniques and fingering
combinations. Keywork facilitating altissimo playing is a feature of modern saxophones. Modern
saxophone players have extended the range to over four octaves on tenor and alto. Music for most
saxophones is usually notated using treble clef.

Because all saxophones use the same key arrangement and fingering to produce a given notated pitch, it
is not difficult for a competent player to switch among the various sizes when the music has been suitably
transposed, and many do so. Since the baritone and alto are pitched in E♭, players can read concert pitch
music notated in the bass clef by reading it as if it were treble clef and adding three sharps to the key
signature. This process, referred to as clef substitution, makes it possible for the Eb instruments to play
from parts written for baritone horn, bassoon, euphonium, string bass, trombone, or tuba. This can be
useful if a band or orchestra lacks one of those instruments.
Design features
The straight soprano and sopranino saxophones consist of a straight conical tube with a flared bell at the
end opposite the mouthpiece. Alto and larger saxophones include a detachable curved neck above the
highest tone hole, directing the mouthpiece to the player's mouth and, with rare exceptions, a U-shaped
bow that directs the bore upward and a curve in the throat of the bell directing it forward. The set of
curves near the bell has become a distinctive feature of the saxophone family, to the extent that soprano
and even sopranino saxes are sometimes made in the curved style. The baritone, bass, and contrabass
saxophones accommodate the length of the bore with extra bows and right-angle bends between the main
body and the mouthpiece.

The left hand operates keys from the upper part of the body tube while the right hand operates keys from
the lower part. The right thumb sits under a thumb hook and left thumb is placed on a thumb rest to
stabilize and balance the saxophone, while the weight of most saxophones is shared by the right thumb
and a neckstrap attached to a strap ring on the rear of the body of the instrument. With the smaller
instruments, relatively more of the weight is supported by the thumb. The left thumb operates the octave
key.

Keys consist of the cups, levers, and pivots that control the position of the pads over the toneholes. At
rest, some keys are open and some are closed, held in position by springs that are overridden by finger or
hand (palm keys) pressure. The keys are activated by pressure on key touches, either directly on the pad
cup or connected to it with levers, either directly or with joints called linkages. The levers between the
key cups and the pivots are called key arms.

The fingering for the saxophone is a combination of that of the oboe with the Boehm system[5] and is
similar to the flute or upper register of the clarinet. The stack keys are operated by the first, second, and
third fingers on each hand with slightly concave button-style key touches (key buttons) operating with the
same motion as the pad cups that they control. The stack keys are linked to higher stack keys with
regulation bar and bridge arm linkages. Key buttons are advantageous for operating keys with direct
downward finger pressure but provide disadvantages operating keys with other finger and hand motions,
hence, their use on keys operated with such motions has diminished with the evolution of saxophone
designs.

Palm keys and the front F key operated by the left hand, and the high F, high F ♯ and high G keys
operated by the right hand, control the upper end of the keyed range and are used to vent altissimo notes.
Chromatic keys operated by the right hand provide alternate fingerings for F♯, B♭, and C within the stack
range. The fourth fingers of the right and left hands open keys to raise pitch by a semitone as well as
close keys towards the lower range of the instrument, with the lowest pitch bell keys operated by the left
hand. The keys operated by the fourth fingers are referred to as table keys. Instruments that play to low A
have a left thumb key for that note.

On saxophones produced since the early 1920s the G♯ key operated from the left hand table is closed by
closing keys on the lower stack regardless of pressure on the G ♯ actuating mechanism (F-linked, or
stack-linked, G♯ mechanism). That feature vastly increases the speed and playability of certain intervals
to the point that saxophones with direct G ♯ action, in which the key stays open when the lower stack
keys are depressed, are considered obsolete. Modern left hand tables also articulate the G♯ key with the
low C♯, B, and B♭ keys to open it when any of those keys are depressed and the right hand stack keys are
not. That also provides significant advantages for playing certain intervals near the lower range of the
instrument. Some players willingly forego the benefits of the articulated G♯ to play vintage instruments,
but a front F key and a stack-linked G♯ key are regarded as critical features by serious players.[6]

Materials
From the earliest days of the saxophone the body and key cups have been made from sheet brass stock,
owing to its workability in forming complex shapes. Mechanical keywork is assembled from components
either hand-tooled or machined from other forms of brass stock. King introduced saxophones with necks
and bells of sterling silver during the 1930s and continued that "silversonic" scheme into the early 1960s.
Yanagisawa revived the scheme during the 1980s and later introduced entire instruments of sterling
silver.[7] Keilwerth and P. Mauriat have used nickel silver, a copper-nickel-zinc alloy more commonly
used for flutes, for the bodies of some saxophone models.[8] For visual and tonal effect, higher copper
variants of brass are sometimes substituted for the more common "yellow brass" and "cartridge brass."
Yanagisawa made its 902 and 992 series saxophones with the high copper alloy phosphor bronze to
achieve a darker, more "vintage" tone than the brass 901 and 991 models.[9] Other saxophones made of
high copper alloys are sold under various brands.

Other materials are used for some mechanical parts and keywork. Since 1920, most saxophones have
replaceable key buttons operating the stack keys, usually made from either plastic or mother of pearl.
Some saxophones are made with abalone, stone, or wood key buttons. On some premium models, the key
button material is used to form the convex key touches for other keys. The rods and screw pins that the
keywork's hinges pivot on, and the needle and leaf springs that hold keys in their rest position, are
usually made of blued or stainless steel. Mechanical buffers of felt, cork, leather, and various synthetic
materials are used to reduce friction, to minimize mechanical noise from movement of keys, and to
optimize the action of the keywork for positive pad sealing, intonation, speed, and "feel." Nickel silver is
sometimes used for hinges for its advantages of mechanical durability, although the most common
material for such applications has remained brass. Saxophones with high copper bodies still have brass
keywork owing to its more suitable mechanical properties relative to those alloys.

Surface finishes
Before final assembly, manufacturers usually apply a finish to the surface of the horn. The most common
finish is a thin coating of clear or colored acrylic lacquer. The lacquer serves to protect the brass from
oxidation and maintains its shiny appearance. Silver or gold plating are offered as premium options on
some models. Some silver plated saxophones are also lacquered. Plating saxophones with gold is an
expensive process because an underplating of silver is required for the gold to adhere to.[10] Nickel
plating has been used on the bodies of early budget model saxophones and is commonly used on
keywork when a more durable finish than lacquer is desired, mostly with student model saxophones.
Chemical surface treatment of the base metal has come into use as an alternative to the lacquer and
plating finishes in recent years. Some saxophonists, retailers, and repair technicians argue that the type of
lacquer or plating (or absence of lacquer)[11] may be a factor affecting the instrument's tone quality.

Mouthpiece and reed

The saxophone uses a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. Each size of saxophone (alto,
tenor, etc.) uses a different size of reed and mouthpiece.
Most saxophonists use reeds made from Arundo donax cane, but
since middle of the twentieth century some have also been made of
fiberglass and other composite materials. Saxophone reeds are
proportioned slightly differently from clarinet reeds, being wider for
the same length. Reeds are commercially available in a vast array of
brands, styles, and strengths. Saxophonists experiment with reeds of
different strength (hardnesses) and material to find which strength
and cut suits their mouthpiece, embouchure, physiology, and playing Tenor saxophone mouthpieces,
style. ligatures, reed, and cap

Mouthpiece design has a profound impact on tone.[12] Different

mouthpiece design characteristics and features tend to be favored for different styles. Early mouthpieces
were designed to produce a "warm" and "round" sound for classical playing. Among classical
mouthpieces, those with a concave ("excavated") chamber are more true to Adolphe Sax's original
design; these provide a softer or less piercing tone favored by the Raschèr school of classical playing.
Saxophonists who follow the French school of classical playing, influenced by Marcel Mule, generally
use mouthpieces with smaller chambers for a somewhat "brighter" sound with relatively more upper
harmonics. The use of the saxophone in dance orchestras and jazz ensembles from the 1920s onward
placed emphasis on dynamic range and projection, leading to innovation in mouthpiece chamber shapes
and tip designs, as well as metal construction. At the opposite extreme from the classical mouthpieces are
those with a small chamber and a low clearance above the reed between the tip and the chamber, called
high baffle. These produce a bright sound with maximum projection, suitable for having a sound stand
out among amplified instruments and are commonly used in modern pop and smooth jazz.

Mouthpieces come in a wide variety of materials, including vulcanized rubber (sometimes called hard
rubber or ebonite), plastic, and metals such as bronze or surgical steel. Less common materials that have
been used include wood, glass, crystal, porcelain, and bone. Recently, Delrin has been added to the stock
of mouthpiece materials.

The effect of mouthpiece materials on tone of the saxophone has been the subject of much debate.
According to Larry Teal, the mouthpiece material has little, if any, effect on the sound, and the physical
dimensions give a mouthpiece its tone color.[13] There are examples of "dark" sounding metal pieces and
"bright" sounding hard rubber pieces. The lower rigidity of hard rubber relative to metal restricts some
design characteristics affecting tone and response more than with metal. The extra bulk required near the
tip with hard rubber affects mouth position and airflow characteristics. Recently, increased mass of the
mouthpiece over the shank, which fits over the neck cork, has become a design feature to enhance the
integrity of the harmonic series by stabilizing the mouthpiece/neck connection. Shank weights (large
rings of brass over the shank) are used with some Delrin mouthpieces to increase "resonance and
projection."[14] Other "hybrid" designs with a hard rubber body and a substantial metal shank have a
similar mass distribution, although its contribution to sound characteristics is not highlighted in product
descriptions.[15]

History

Early development and adoption

The saxophone was designed around 1840 by Adolphe Sax, a
Belgian instrument maker, flautist, and clarinetist.[4] Born in
Dinant and originally based in Brussels, he moved to Paris in
1842 to establish his musical instrument business. Before
working on the saxophone, he made several improvements to the
bass clarinet by improving its keywork and acoustics and
extending its lower range. Sax was also a maker of the
ophicleide, a large conical brass instrument in the bass register
with keys similar to a woodwind instrument. His experience with
these two instruments allowed him to develop the skills and
technologies needed to make the first saxophones.

As an outgrowth of his work improving the bass clarinet, Sax

began developing an instrument with the projection of a brass
instrument and the agility of a woodwind. He wanted it to
overblow at the octave, unlike the clarinet, which rises in pitch by
a twelfth when overblown. An instrument that overblows at the
octave has identical fingering for both registers.
Adolphe Sax, the inventor of the
saxophone
Sax created an instrument with a single-reed mouthpiece and
conical brass body. Having constructed saxophones in several
sizes in the early 1840s, Sax applied for, and received, a 15-year patent for the instrument on 28 June
1846.[16] The patent encompassed 14 versions of the fundamental design, split into two categories of
seven instruments each, and ranging from sopranino to contrabass. A limited number of instruments in
the series pitched in F and C were produced by Sax, but the series pitched in E♭ and B♭ quickly became
the standard. All the instruments were given an initial written range from the B below the treble staff to
the E♭ one half-step below the third ledger line above staff, giving each saxophone a range of two and a
half octaves. Sax's patent expired in 1866.[17] Thereafter, numerous other instrument manufacturers
implemented their own improvements to the design and keywork.

Sax's original keywork, which was based on the Triebert system 3 oboe for the left hand and the Boehm
clarinet for the right, was simplistic and made certain legato passages and wide intervals extremely
difficult to finger; that system would later evolve with extra keys, linkage mechanisms, and alternate
fingerings to make some intervals less difficult.

Early in the development of the saxophone the upper keyed range was extended to E, then F above the
staff; 1880s era sheet music for saxophone was written for the range of low B to F. In 1887 the Buffet-
Crampon company obtained a patent for extending the bell and adding an extra key to extend the range
downwards by one semitone to B♭.[18] This extension is currently standard in most modern designs, with
the notable exception of baritone saxophones further extended and keyed to low A. The upper range to F
would remain the standard for nearly a century until the altissimo F♯ key became common on modern
saxophones.

In the 1840s and 1850s, Sax's invention gained use in small classical ensembles (both all-saxophone and
mixed), as a solo instrument, and in French and British military bands. Saxophone method books were
published and saxophone instruction was offered at conservatories in France, Switzerland, Belgium,
Spain, and Italy. By 1856 the French Garde Republicaine band included eight saxophones, making it the
large ensemble that featured the instrument most prominently. The saxophone was used experimentally in
orchestral scores, but never came into widespread use as an orchestral instrument. In 1853-54 the
orchestra of Louis Antoine Jullien featured a soprano saxophone on a concert tour of the United
States.[19]

After an early period of interest and support from classical music communities in Europe, their interest in
the instrument waned in the late nineteenth century. Saxophone teaching at the Paris Conservatory was
suspended from 1870 to 1900 and classical saxophone repertoire stagnated during that period.[16] But it
was during this same period that the saxophone began to be promoted in the United States, largely
through the efforts of Patrick Gilmore, leader of the 22nd Regiment band, and Edward A. Lefebre, a
Dutch emigre and saxophonist with family business associations with Sax. Lefebre settled in New York
in early 1872 after he arrived as a clarinetist with a British opera company. Gilmore organized the World
Peace Jubilee and International Music Festival taking place in Boston that summer. The Garde
Republicaine band performed and Lefebre was a clarinetist with the Great Festival Orchestra for that
event.[20] In the fall of 1873 Gilmore was reorganizing the 22nd Regiment band under the influence of
the Garde Republicaine band and recruited Lefebre, who had established a reputation in New York as a
saxophonist over the previous year. Gilmore's band soon featured a soprano-alto-tenor-baritone
saxophone section, which also performed as a quartet. The Gilmore-Lefebre association lasted until
Gilmore's death in 1892, during which time Lefebre also performed in smaller ensembles of various sizes
and instrumentation, and worked with composers to increase light classical and popular repertoire for
saxophone.[21]

Lefebre's later promotional efforts were extremely significant in broadening adoption of the saxophone.
Starting towards the end of the 1880s he consulted with the brass instrument manufacturer C.G. Conn to
develop and start production of improved saxophones to replace the costly, scantly available, and
mechanically unreliable European instruments in the American market. The early 1890s saw regular
production of saxophones commence at Conn and its offshoot Buescher Manufacturing Company, which
dramatically increased availability of saxophones in the US. Lefebre worked with the music publisher
Carl Fischer to distribute his transcriptions, arrangements, and original works for saxophone, and worked
with the Conn Conservatory to further saxophone pedagogy in the US. Lefebre's associations with Conn
and Fischer lasted into the first decade of the twentieth century and Fischer continued to publish new
arrangements of Lefebre's works posthumously.[22]

Early twentieth-century growth and development

While the saxophone remained marginal and regarded mainly as a novelty instrument in the classical
music world, many new musical niches were established for it during the early decades of the twentieth
century. Its early use in Vaudeville and ragtime bands around the turn of the century laid the groundwork
for its use in dance orchestras and eventually jazz. As the market for saxophones grew in the US, the
manufacturing industry grew; the Martin Band Instrument Company started producing saxophones
between 1905 and 1912, and the Cleveland Band Instrument Company started producing saxophones
under contract to the H. N. White Company in 1916. The saxophone was promoted for the casual market
with introduction of the C-soprano and C-melody (between alto and tenor) saxophones to play in key
with pianos from the same sheet music. Production of such instruments stopped during the Great
Depression. During the 1920s the saxophone came into use as a jazz instrument, fostered by the
influences of the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra and the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Starting in the late
1920s and early 1930s, the modern era of classical saxophone was launched largely through the efforts of
Marcel Mule and Sigurd Raschèr, and classical repertoire for the instrument expanded rapidly.
The use of the saxophone for more dynamic and more technically demanding styles of playing added
incentive for improvements in keywork and acoustic design. Early saxophones had two separate octave
keys operated by the left thumb to control the two octave vents required on alto and larger saxophones. A
substantial advance in keywork around the turn of the century was the development of mechanisms by
which the left thumb operates the two octave vents with a single octave key. Ergonomic design of
keywork evolved rapidly during the 1920s and 1930s. The front F mechanism supporting alternate
fingerings for high E and F, and stack-linked G♯ key action, became standard during the 1920s, followed
by improvements to the left hand table key mechanisms controlling the G ♯ and bell keys. New bore
designs during the 1920s and 1930s resulted from the quest for improved intonation, dynamic response,
and tonal qualities. The 1920s were also the era of design experiments such as the Buescher straight altos
and tenors, the King Saxello soprano, the C.G. Conn mezzo-soprano saxophone keyed in F, and the
Conn-O-Sax saxophone – English horn hybrid.

The modern saxophone emerges

The modern layout of the saxophone emerged during the 1930s and 1940s, first with right-side bell keys
introduced by C. G. Conn on baritones, then by King on altos and tenors. The mechanics of the left hand
table were revolutionized by Selmer with their Balanced Action instruments in 1936, capitalizing on the
right-side bell key layout. In 1948 Selmer introduced their Super Action saxophones with offset left and
right hand stack keys. Between 30 and 40 years after Selmer devised their final layout it had been
adopted for virtually every saxophone being produced, from student to professional models.

The high F♯ key was also first introduced as an option on the Balanced Action model, although it took
several decades for it to gain acceptance because of perceived deleterious effects on intonation in its early
implementations.[23]

Uses

In military bands and classical music

The saxophone first gained popularity in military bands.
Although the instrument was initially ignored in Germany,
French and Belgian military bands were quick to include the
instrument in their ensembles. Most French and Belgian military
bands incorporate at least a quartet of saxophones, comprising an
E ♭ baritone, B ♭ tenor, E ♭ alto and B ♭ soprano. These four
A US sailor with the Seventh Fleet
instruments have proved the most popular of all of Sax's Band plays a saxophone in Hong
creations, with the E♭ contrabass and B♭ bass usually considered Kong
impractically large and the E♭ sopranino insufficiently powerful.
British military bands tend to include at minimum two
saxophonists, on the alto and tenor.

The saxophone was introduced into the concert band, which usually calls for an E♭ alto saxophone, a B♭
tenor saxophone, and an E♭ baritone saxophone. A concert band may include two altos, one tenor, and
one baritone. A B ♭ soprano saxophone is also used, in which case it is played by the first alto
saxophonist. A bass saxophone in B♭ is used in some concert band music (especially music by Percy
Grainger).[24]
Saxophones are used in chamber music, such as saxophone quartets and
other chamber combinations of instruments. The classical saxophone
quartet consists of a B♭ soprano saxophone, E♭ alto saxophone, B♭ tenor
saxophone, and E♭ baritone saxophone (SATB). On occasion, the soprano
is replaced with a second alto sax (AATB); a few professional saxophone
quartets have featured non-standard instrumentation, such as James Fei's
Alto Quartet[25] (four altos).

There is a repertoire of classical compositions and arrangements for the

SATB instrumentation dating back to the nineteenth century, particularly
by French composers who knew Sax. However, the largest body of Classical saxophonist
chamber works for saxophone are from the modern era of classical Sigurd Raschèr
saxophone initiated by Marcel Mule in 1928. Sigurd Raschèr followed as a
soloist in orchestral works, starting in 1931, and also figured prominently
in development of modern classical saxophone repertoire. The Mule quartet is often considered the
prototype for quartets due the level of virtuosity demonstrated by its members and its central role in the
development of modern quartet repertoire. However, organized quartets existed before Mule's ensemble,
the prime example being the quartet headed by Edward A. Lefebre (1834–1911), which was a subset of
Patrick Gilmore's 22nd Regiment band between 1873 and 1893.[21]

In the 20th and 21st centuries, the saxophone found increased popularity in symphony orchestras. The
instrument has also been used in genres such as opera and choral music. Many musical theatre scores
include parts for saxophone, sometimes doubling another woodwind or brass instrument.

Selected works of the repertoire

Fantasie sur un thème original (1860)—Jules Demersseman
Rapsodie pour orchestre et saxophone [Rhapsody for orchestra and saxophone] (1901)—
Claude Debussy
Choral varié, Op.55 (1903)—Vincent d'Indy
Légende, Op.66 (1918)—Florent Schmitt
Saxophone Concerto (1934)—Lars-Erik Larsson
Concerto in E♭ major for alto saxophone and orchestra (1934)—Alexander Glazunov
Concertino da camera (1935)—Jacques Ibert
Aria pour saxophone alto (1936)—Eugène Bozza
Sonata for alto saxophone and piano (1937)—Bernhard Heiden
Scaramouche for alto saxophone and piano (1937)—Darius Milhaud
Ballade for Alto Saxophone (1938)—Henri Tomasi
Sonata for alto saxophone and piano, Op. 19 (1939)—Paul Creston
Sonata for alto saxophone and piano (1943)—Paul Hindemith
Concerto for alto saxophone and orchestra, Op. 26 (1944)—Paul Creston
Concerto for alto saxophone and orchestra (1948)—Ingolf Dahl
Fantasia for saxophone, three horns, and strings (1948)—Heitor Villa-Lobos
Concerto for alto saxophone and orchestra (1949)—Henri Tomasi
Tableaux de Provence (1955)—Paule Maurice
Prélude, cadence et finale (1956)—Alfred Desenclos
Saxophone Concerto (1958)—Erland von Koch
 Concerto for alto saxophone and orchestra (1959)—Pierre Max Dubois
Élégie et rondeau pour saxophone alto et orchestre (1961)—Karel Husa
Sonata for alto saxophone (1970)—Edison Denisov
Sonata for alto saxophone and piano, Op. 29 (1970)—Robert Muczynski
Panic for alto saxophone, jazz drum kit, winds and percussion (1995)—Harrison Birtwistle
Concerto for Saxophone Quartet (1995)—Philip Glass[26][27]
Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra (2013)—John Adams

Selected saxophone quartets

Premier Quatuor [Quartet No. 1], Op. 53 (1857) – Jean-Baptiste Singelée
Quartette [Quartet] (1879) – Caryl Florio
Saxophone Quartet in B♭, Op.109 (1932) – Alexander Glazunov
Introduction et variations sur une ronde populaire (1934) – Gabriel Pierné
Andante et Scherzo for saxophone quartet (1938) – Eugène Bozza
Quatuor pour Saxophones [Quartet for Saxophones], Op. 102 (1939) – Florent Schmitt
Quatuor pour Saxophones [Quartet for Saxophones] (1956) – Pierre Max Dubois
Quatuor [Quartet] (1962) – Alfred Desenclos
Suite for Saxophone Quartet (1979) – Paul Creston
XAS (1987) – Iannis Xenakis

Selected chamber-music pieces with saxophone

Nonet (1923) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
Chôros No. 7 (1924) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
Chôros No. 3 (1925) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
Quartet for clarinet, tenor saxophone, violin, and piano, Op. 22 (1930) – Anton Webern
The Flowering Peach, Op. 125, for clarinet, saxophone, percussion (timpani, tam-tam,
vibraphone, glockenspiel), harp, and celesta (1954) – Alan Hovhaness
Prometheus for flute, oboe, cor anglais, clarinet, saxophone, and bassoon (1967) – Brian
Ferneyhough
Erwachen, Nr. 92 (2007) – Karlheinz Stockhausen

Selected orchestral pieces with saxophones

L'Arlésienne (1872) – Georges Bizet
Sylvia (1876) – Léo Delibes
Symphonia Domestica (1904) – Richard Strauss
The Wooden Prince (1917) – Béla Bartók
Pictures at an Exhibition (1922 Ravel version) – Modest Mussorgsky/Maurice Ravel
Boléro (1928) – Maurice Ravel
La création du monde (1923) – Darius Milhaud
Symphony No. 4 (1924) – Charles Ives
Rhapsody in Blue (1924) – George Gershwin
Chôros No. 8 (1925) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
Háry János (1926) – Zoltán Kodály
Chôros No. 10 (1926) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
 Piano Concerto (1926) – Aaron Copland
An American in Paris (1928) – George Gershwin
Symphony No. 1 (1928) – Aaron Copland
Der Wein (1929) – Alban Berg
The Golden Age (1930) – Dmitri Shostakovich
Belshazzar's Feast (1931) – William Walton
Job: A Masque for Dancing (1931) – Ralph Vaughan Williams
Suite No. 1 (1931) – Dmitri Shostakovich
Uirapuru (1934) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
Lieutenant Kijé (1934) – Sergei Prokofiev
Violin Concerto (1935) – Alban Berg
Suite No. 2 (1938) – Dmitri Shostakovich
Romeo and Juliet (1938) – Sergei Prokofiev
Alexander Nevsky (1938) – Sergei Prokofiev
Symphonic Dances (1940) – Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sinfonia da Requiem (1940) – Benjamin Britten
Chôros No. 11 (1928–41) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
Chôros No. 6 (1925–42) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
Chôros No. 12 (1925–45) – Heitor Villa-Lobos
Symphony No. 6 (1947) – Ralph Vaughan Williams
On the Waterfront (1954) – Leonard Bernstein
Symphony No. 9 (1957) – Ralph Vaughan Williams
Suite for Variety Orchestra (post-1956) – Dmitri Shostakovich
The Prince of the Pagodas (1957) – Benjamin Britten
Gruppen (1955–57) – Karlheinz Stockhausen
Carré (1959–60) – Karlheinz Stockhausen
Déclarations d'orage for reciter, soprano, baritone, three improvising instruments (alto
saxophone, tuba, synthesizer), large orchestra and tape (1988–89) – Henri Pousseur
City Noir (2009) – John Adams

Selected operas and musicals with saxophones

Hérodiade (1881) – Jules Massenet
Werther (1892) – Jules Massenet
Turandot (1926) – Giacomo Puccini
Jonny spielt auf (1927) – Ernst Krenek
Neues vom Tage (1929) – Paul Hindemith
Lulu (1937) – Alban Berg
Billy Budd (1951) – Benjamin Britten
West Side Story (1957) – Leonard Bernstein
We Come to the River (1976) – Hans Werner Henze
Samstag aus Licht (1984) – Karlheinz Stockhausen
Nixon in China (1987) – John Adams

In jazz and popular music

Coincident with the more widespread availability of
saxophones in the US around the turn of the century
was the rise of ragtime music. The bands featuring
the syncopated latin- and African-American
rhythmic influences of ragtime were an exciting new
feature of the American cultural landscape and
provided the groundwork for new styles of dancing.
The rise of dance bands into the 1920s followed from
the popularity of ragtime. Two of the best known
ragtime-playing brass bands with saxophones were
those led by W. C. Handy and James R. Europe. The
saxophone was also used in Vaudeville entertainment
SS Stockholm. 369th Infantry Regiment Band and
during the same period. Ragtime, Vaudeville, and
leader Lt. James Reese Europe, winter 1918–1919
dance bands introduced much of the American public
to the saxophone. Europe's 369th Infantry Regiment
Band popularized ragtime in France during its 1918 tour.[28] Rudy Wiedoeft became the best known
individual saxophone stylist and virtuoso during this period leading into the "saxophone craze" of the
1920s.[29] Following it, the saxophone became featured in music as diverse as the "sweet" music of Paul
Whiteman and Guy Lombardo, jazz, swing, and large stage show bands.

The rise of the saxophone as a jazz instrument followed its widespread adoption in dance bands during
the early 1920s. The Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, formed in 1923, featured arrangements to back up
improvisation, bringing the first elements of jazz to the large dance band format.[30] Following the
innovations of the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra, the Duke Ellington Orchestra and Jean Goldkette's
Victor Recording Orchestra featured jazz solos with saxophones and other instruments. The association
of dance bands with jazz would reach its peak with the swing music of the 1930s. The large show band
format, influenced by the 1930s swing bands, would be used as backing for popular vocalists and stage
shows in the post World War II era, and provided a foundation for big band jazz. Show bands with
saxophone sections became a staple of television talk shows (such as the Tonight Show that featured
bands led by Doc Severinsen and Branford Marsalis) and Las Vegas stage shows. The swing era fostered
the later saxophone styles that permeated bebop and rhythm and blues in the early postwar era.

Coleman Hawkins established the tenor saxophone as a jazz solo

instrument during his stint with Fletcher Henderson from 1923 to
1934. Hawkins' arpeggiated, rich-toned, vibrato-laden style was the
main influence on swing era tenor players before Lester Young, and
his influence continued with other big-toned tenor players into the
era of modern jazz. Among the tenor players directly influenced by
him were Chu Berry, Charlie Barnet, Tex Beneke, Ben Webster,
Vido Musso, Herschel Evans, Buddy Tate, and Don Byas.[5]
Hawkins' band mate Benny Carter and Duke Ellington's alto
saxophonist Johnny Hodges became influential on swing era alto
styles, while Harry Carney brought the baritone saxophone to
prominence with the Duke Ellington Orchestra. The New Orleans
Coleman Hawkins, the most
player Sidney Bechet gained recognition for playing the soprano
influential saxophone stylist of
saxophone during the 1920s, but the instrument did not come into Jazz's early period, c. 1945
wide use until the modern era of jazz.
As Chicago style jazz evolved from New Orleans jazz in the 1920s, one of its defining features was the
addition of saxophones to the ensemble. The small Chicago ensembles offered more improvisational
freedom than did the New Orleans or large band formats, fostering the innovations of saxophonists
Jimmy Dorsey (alto), Frankie Trumbauer (c-melody), Bud Freeman (tenor) and Stump Evans (baritone).
Dorsey and Trumbauer became important influences on tenor saxophonist Lester Young.[5]

Lester Young's approach on tenor saxophone differed from Hawkins', emphasizing more melodic "linear"
playing that wove in and out of the chordal structure and longer phrases that differed from those
suggested by the tune. He used vibrato less, fitting it to the passage he was playing. His tone was
smoother and darker than that of his 1930s contemporaries. Young's playing was a major influence on the
modern jazz saxophonists Al Cohn, Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Dexter Gordon, Wardell Gray, Lee Konitz,
Warne Marsh, Charlie Parker, and Art Pepper.[5]

The influence of Lester Young with the Count Basie Orchestra in the
late 1930s and the popularity of Hawkins' 1939 recording of "Body
and Soul" marked the saxophone as an influence on jazz equal to the
trumpet, which had been the defining instrument of jazz since its
beginnings in New Orleans. But the greatest influence of the
saxophone on jazz was to occur a few years later when alto
saxophonist Charlie Parker became an icon of the bebop revolution
that influenced generations of jazz musicians. The small-group
format of bebop and post-bebop jazz ensembles gained ascendancy
in the 1940s as musicians used the harmonic and melodic freedom
pioneered by Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Bud Charlie Parker, leader of the
Powell in extended jazz solos. bebop revolution, 1947

During the 1950s, prominent alto players included Sonny Stitt,

Cannonball Adderley, Jackie McLean, Lou Donaldson, Sonny Criss and Paul Desmond, while prominent
tenor players included Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Dexter Gordon, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins,
Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Lucky Thompson, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, and Paul Gonsalves. Serge Chaloff,
Gerry Mulligan, Pepper Adams and Leo Parker brought the baritone saxophone to prominence as a solo
instrument. Steve Lacy renewed attention to the soprano saxophone in the context of modern jazz and
John Coltrane boosted the instrument's popularity during the 1960s. Smooth jazz musician Kenny G also
uses the soprano sax as his principal instrument.

Saxophonists such as John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Sam Rivers, and Pharoah Sanders defined the
forefront of creative exploration with the avant-garde movement of the 1960s. The new realms offered
with Modal, harmolodic, and free jazz were explored with every device that saxophonists could conceive
of. Sheets of sound, tonal exploration, upper harmonics, and multiphonics were hallmarks of the creative
possibilities that saxophones offered. One lasting influence of the avant-garde movement is the
exploration of non-Western ethnic sounds on the saxophone, for example, the African-influenced sounds
used by Sanders and the Indian-influenced sounds used by Coltrane. The devices of the avant-garde
movement have continued to be influential in music that challenges the boundaries between avant-garde
and other categories of jazz, such as that of alto saxophonists Steve Coleman and Greg Osby.

Some ensembles such as the World Saxophone Quartet use the soprano-alto-tenor-baritone (SATB)
format of the classical saxophone quartet for jazz. In the 1990s, World Saxophone Quartet founder
Hamiet Bluiett formed the quartet Baritone Nation (four baritones).
The "jump swing" bands of the 1940s gave rise to rhythm and blues,
featuring horn sections and exuberant, strong-toned, heavily
rhythmic styles of saxophone playing with a melodic sense based on
blues tonalities. Illinois Jacquet, Sam Butera, Arnett Cobb, and
Jimmy Forrest were major influences on R&B tenor styles and Louis
Jordan, Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson, Earl Bostic, and Bull Moose
Jackson were major influences on alto. The R&B saxophone players
influenced later genres including rock and roll, ska, soul, and funk.
Horn section work continued with Johnny Otis and Ray Charles
featuring horn sections and the Memphis Horns, the Phenix Horns,
and Tower of Power achieving distinction for their section playing. Illinois Jacquet, early influence on
Horn sections were added to the Chicago and West Coast blues R&B saxophone, 1941
bands of Lowell Fulson, T-Bone Walker, B.B. King, and Guitar
Slim. Rock and soul fusion bands such as Chicago, The Electric
Flag, and Blood, Sweat, and Tears featured horn sections; others employed more rock & roll style players
the likes of Clarence Clemons and Bobby Keys. Junior Walker, King Curtis and Maceo Parker became
influential soul and funk saxophone stylists, preceding the more technical jazz-fusion and post-bop
sounds of Michael Brecker and Bob Mintzer.

Unusual variants
A number of experimental saxophones and saxophone-related instruments have appeared since Sax's
original work, most with no lasting impact. During the early 1920s Reiffel & Husted of Chicago
produced a slide soprano saxophone.[31][32][33] During the 1920s some straight alto and tenor saxophones
were produced by Buescher, which proved cumbersome to handle and difficult to transport. Buescher
custom produced one straight baritone saxophone as novelty instrument for a vaudeville performer.[34]
C.G. Conn introduced two new variants in 1928–1929, the Conn-O-Sax and the mezzo-soprano
saxophone keyed in F. The Conn-O-Sax is a straight-conical bore instrument in F (one step above the E♭
alto) with a slightly curved neck and spherical bell. This instrument, which combines a saxophone bore
and keys with a bell shaped similar to that of a heckelphone, was intended to imitate the timbre of the
English horn and was produced only in 1929 and 1930. The instrument has a key range from low A to
high G. Fewer than 100 Conn-O-Saxes are in existence and they are highly sought by collectors. The
Conn mezzo-soprano experienced a similarly short production run as the economics of the Great
Depression curtailed the market for what were regarded as novelty instruments. Most were expended by
Conn as objects of repair training exercises.

The most successful of the unusual 1920s designs was the King Saxello, essentially a straight B ♭
soprano, but with a slightly curved neck and tipped bell, made by the H. N. White Company. Such
instruments now command prices up to $4,000 USD. Its lasting influence is shown in the number of
companies, including Keilwerth, Rampone & Cazzani (altello model), L.A. Sax and Sax Dakota USA,
marketing straight-bore, tipped-bell soprano saxophones as saxellos (or "saxello sopranos").

Interest in two 1920s variants was revived by jazz musician Rahsaan Roland Kirk, who called his straight
Buescher alto a "stritch" and his Saxello a "manzello.". The Buescher straight alto was a production
instrument while the manzello was in fact a Saxello with a custom-made large bell and modified
keywork.[35] More recently, the mezzo-soprano, or a modern variant of it, came into use by jazz
musicians Anthony Braxton, James Carter, Vinny Golia, and Joe Lovano.
Some of the 1920s experimental designs, in addition to the Saxello, provide the basis for similar
instruments produced during the modern era. Straight altos and tenors have been revived by
Keilwerth,[36] L.A. Sax[37] and Sax Dakota USA. A mezzo-soprano in the key of G has been produced
by Danish woodwind technician Peter Jessen, most notably played by Joe Lovano. This instrument is
more in the timbral quality of Bb soprano saxophone.

The contralto saxophone, similar in size to the orchestral c-soprano, was developed in the late 20th
century by California instrument maker Jim Schmidt.[38] This instrument has a larger bore and a new
fingering system, and does not resemble the orchestral instrument except for its key and register.

Benedikt Eppelsheim, of Munich, Germany has introduced recent innovations at the upper and lower
ends of the saxophone range. The soprillo sax is a piccolo-sized straight instrument with the upper
speaker hole built into the mouthpiece. The instrument, which extends Sax's original family, is pitched a
full octave higher than the B♭ soprano sax. The tubax, developed in 1999 by Eppelsheim,[39] plays the
same range and with the same fingering as the E♭ contrabass saxophone; its bore, however, is narrower
than that of a contrabass saxophone, resulting in a more compact instrument with a "reedier" tone (akin to
the double-reed contrabass sarrusophone). It can be played with the smaller (and more commonly
available) baritone saxophone mouthpiece and reeds. Eppelsheim has also produced subcontrabass
tubaxes in C and B♭, the latter being the lowest saxophone ever made.

Among the most recent developments is the aulochrome, a double soprano saxophone invented by
Belgian instrument maker François Louis in 2001.

Since the 1950s, saxophones with non-metallic bodies have occasionally been in production. Such
instruments have failed to gain acceptance over a number of issues including durability, repairability, and
deficiencies in key action and tone.[40][41] The best known of these efforts is the 1950s Grafton acrylic
alto saxophone used briefly by Charlie Parker and Ornette Coleman. It had a production run of over 10
years as a budget model saxophone. The polycarbonate Vibratosax is in production as a low cost
alternative to metal saxophones. Wooden Sawat saxophones are made in Thailand on a small scale.
Opinions vary on the significance of body materials to sound.

The fingering scheme of the saxophone, which has had only minor changes since the instrument's
original invention, has presented inherent acoustic problems related to closed keys below the first open
tonehole that affect response of, and slightly muffle, some notes. There is also a lack of tactile
consistency between key centers, requiring extra effort from the player to adjust modes of muscle
memory when moving between key centers. Two efforts to remedy the acoustic problems and awkward
aspects of the original fingering system are noteworthy.

The Leblanc Rationale and System[42] saxophones have key mechanics designed to remedy the acoustic
problems associated with closed keys below the first open tonehole. They also enable players to make
half-step shifts of scales by depressing one key while keeping the rest of the fingering consistent with
that of the fingering a half step away. Some Leblanc System features were built into the Vito Model 35
saxophones of the 1950s and 1960s. Despite the advantages of that system, acceptance was impaired by
the expense and mechanical reliability issues related to the complexity of certain key mechanisms.[43]

The chromatic or linear fingering, saxophone is a project of instrument designer and builder Jim Schmidt,
developing a horn maximizing tactile and logical consistency between every interval regardless of the
key, and avoiding the acoustic problems associated closed keys below the first open tone hole.[44] Several
working prototypes have been built and presented at trade shows.[45] Production of this original and
expensive saxophone is on an individual order basis.

Related instruments
Inexpensive keyless folk versions of the saxophone made of
bamboo (recalling a chalumeau) were developed in the 20th
century by instrument makers in Hawaii, Jamaica, Thailand,
Indonesia, Ethiopia, and Argentina. The Hawaiian instrument,
called a xaphoon, was invented during the 1970s and is also
marketed as a "bamboo sax", although its cylindrical bore more
closely resembles that of a clarinet, and its lack of any keywork
makes it more akin to a recorder. Jamaica's best known exponent
of a similar type of homemade bamboo "saxophone" was the
mento musician and instrument maker 'Sugar Belly' (William
Walker).[46] In the Minahasa region of the Indonesian island of
Sulawesi, there exist entire bands made up of bamboo
"saxophones"[47] and "brass" instruments of various sizes. These
instruments are imitations of European instruments, made using
local materials. Similar instruments are produced in Thailand.[48]
Saxos de Bambú by Ángel
Sampedro del Río, Argentina
In Argentina, Ángel Sampedro del Río and Mariana García have
produced bamboo saxophones of various sizes since 1985, the
larger of which have bamboo keys to allow for the playing of
lower notes.[49]

Many synthesizer wind controllers are played and fingered like a saxophone.

Image gallery
From left to right, an E ♭ alto
saxophone, a curved B ♭
soprano saxophone, and a B ♭
tenor saxophone
A straight-necked Conn C
melody saxophone (Conn New
Wonder Series 1)[50] with a
serial number that dates
manufacture to 1922

Vintage silver-plated Conn 6M "Lady Face"[52] brass

'Pennsylvania Special' alto alto saxophone (dated 1935) in
saxophone, manufactured by its original case
Kohlert & Sons for Selmer[51] in
Czechoslovakia, circa 1930
1950s Grafton alto made of Yamaha YAS-25 alto
plastic saxophone. Circa 1990s

Yanagisawa A9932J alto Bauhaus Walstein tenor

saxophone: has a solid silver saxophone manufactured in
bell and neck with solid 2008 from phosphor bronze
phosphor bronze body. The
bell, neck and key-cups are
extensively engraved.
Manufactured in 2008
The lower portion of a P. A Yamaha baritone saxophone
Mauriat alto saxophone,
showing the mother of pearl key
touches and engraved brass
pad cups

Two mouthpieces for tenor Ochres Music "No.5" hand-

saxophone: the one on the left made professional alto
is ebonite; the one on the right saxophone with 24 carat gold
is metal. seal on bell.

See also
Saxophone technique

Notes
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2010/06/0628saxophone-patent). Wired.com. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
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Retrieved 2012-05-25.
3. Stephen Cottrell (2013). The Saxophone (Yale Musical Instrument Series). Yale Musical
Instrument Series.
 4. Raumberger, Ventzke, Claus, Karl. "Saxophone" (http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grove
music/abstract/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-000002467
0). Oxford Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-
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81561592630-e-0000024670) (inactive 2019-08-20). Retrieved 6 April 2019.
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7. "T9937" (https://web.archive.org/web/20071230212350/http://www.yanagisawasax.co.jp/en/
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o.jp/en/tenor/9937/) on 2007-12-30. Retrieved 2008-01-06.
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Q%26A_Relacquering_Pros_%26_Cons.html). cybersax.com. Archived from the original (ht
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w.eugene-rousseau.com/discussions.htm#Art). EugeneRousseau.com. The Art of Choosing
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cussions.htm#Art) on 2016-04-05. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
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14. Goodson, Steve. "Product description, Delrin mouthpiece with shank weight" (https://www.n
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18. Noyes, p. 119 (Noyes refers to the "Evette and Schaeffer" company, however, Buffet-
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brand for their own instruments)
19. Noyes, Chapter II
20. Noyes, Chapter III
21. Noyes, Chapter IV
22. Noyes, Chapter V
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References
Grove, George (January 2001). Stanley Sadie (ed.). The New Grove Encyclopædia of
Music and Musicians (2nd ed.). Grove's Dictionaries of Music. Volume 18, pp534–539.
ISBN 978-1-56159-239-5.
Horwood, Wally (1992) [1983]. Adolphe Sax, 1814–1894: His Life and Legacy ((Revised
edition) ed.). Herts: Egon Publishers. ISBN 978-0-905858-18-0.
Howe, Robert (2003). Invention and Development of the Saxophone 1840–55. Journal of
the American Musical Instrument Society.
Ingham, Richard (1998). The Cambridge Companion to the Saxophone (https://archive.org/
details/cambridgecompani00ingh). Cambridge Companions to Music. Cambridge:
Cambridge Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0-521-59348-9.
Kool, Jaap (1931). Das Saxophon (in German). Leipzig: J. J. Weber. (translated to English
as Gwozdz, Lawrence (1987). The Saxophone. Egon Publishers Ltd.)
Kotchnitsky, Léon (1985) [1949]. Sax and His Saxophone (Fourth ed.). North American
Saxophone Alliance.
Lindemeyer, Paul (1996). Celebrating the Saxophone. William Morrow & Co. ISBN 978-0-
688-13518-8.
Marzi, Mario (2009). Il Saxofono. The Expression of Music 4 (in Italian). Varese, Italy:
Zecchini Editore (Zecchini Publisher). p. 468. ISBN 978-88-87203-86-8.
Noyes, John Russell (2000). Edward A. Lefebre (1835-1911): Preeminent Saxophonist of
the Nineteenth Century (PhD Dissertation) (http://jamesnoyes.com/pdf/Lefebre_FULL.pdf)
(PDF). New York: Manhattan School of Music. Retrieved 21 April 2019.
Segell, Michael (2005). The Devil's Horn: The Story of the Saxophone, from Noisy Novelty
to King of Cool (https://archive.org/details/devilshornstoryo00sege). Farrar, Straus and
Giroux. ISBN 978-0-374-15938-2.
Thiollet, Jean-Pierre (2004). Sax, Mule & Co. Paris: H & D. ISBN 978-2-914266-03-1.
Further reading
Chadwick, George. "Waner Boys Popularizing Saxophone" (https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdn
c?a=d&d=SBS19270616.1.19&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN-%252522waner+boys+popularizi
ng+saxophone%252522-------1). The San Bernardino Sun. June 16, 1927.

External links
Instruments In Depth: The Saxophone (http://www.bsmny.org/exploring-music/features/iid/s
axophone/) An online feature with video demonstrations from Bloomingdale School of Music
(June 2009)
Saxophone Fingering Charts (http://www.wfg.woodwind.org/sax/)

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