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Saxophone Vocabulary

© Chris Mindel

To paraphrase Aristotle: before we begin an intelligent discussion of the saxophone, we must define our terms. So, this first article will be a saxophone vocabulary list. Future articles will use terms listed here, and will cause other words to be added. Here we go:

Altissimo - A collection of notes above the range built into the saxophone, played with special fingerings and throat positions.

Bell - The flared end of the saxophone where most of the sound is projected from.

B-flat - This one note deserves a special section because of the many ways to produce it.[This is not referring to the low B-flat.] 1. Side Key - A B-flat produced by fingering an A (1st and 2nd fingers of the left hand) and adding the lowest side key with the right hand. A B-flat produced this way is called a Side Key B-flat. 2. BIS Key - A small key located between the B and A keys which, when depressed with the B key (using the same finger), produces a B-flat. 3. F1, Fork 1, "One and One" - A method of playing a B-flat by depressing the keys under the first fingers of both the left and the right hands. 4. F2, Fork 2, "One and Two" - A method of producing a B-flat using the first finger of the left hand and the second finger of the right hand. This is primarily used for A-sharp.

Body - The part of the saxophone where the keys are.

Clef - A symbol used to identify one note on the staff. This note is then used as the basis to identify the rest of the notes on the staff. Saxophone music is written in Treble (or G) Clef, which identifies the second line of the staff as G.

Embouchure - The formation of the mouth when playing any wind instrument.

Enharmonic Equivalent - Notes such as B-flat and A-sharp are said to be enharmonic equivalents. That is, they are fingered the same on a piano and some other instruments. Professional players, however, play them slightly different (when possible). A sharp is played slightly closer to the note above it, while a flat is played slightly closer to the note below it. (This is accomplished through various techniques.) This practice is done to emphasize the aural "feeling" of sharps needing to go up, and flats "feeling" like they should go down.

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