The saxophone is such a beautiful and diverse instrument! Its inventor, Adolphe Sax, was dissatisfied with brass instruments not being able to blend with an orchestra, and woodwinds not being able to project their sound enough to be heard. The saxophone was conceived as the perfect hybrid between a brass instrument and a woodwind (a woodwind made of brass!). From beautiful pure oboe-like tones, to raw, high energy electric rock tones, the saxophone fits well in any style of music, from Classical to Jazz, Rock, Funk, R&B, Contemporary Christian, Gospel, and more! Because of it’s conical bore, it has a lush and nuanced tone that is easy to shape and color to suit your individual preferences. It is such a great soloing instrument with so many different techniques and sound colors at your disposal, such as screams, growls, shakes, wobbles, tremolos, bends, super high altissimo notes, polyphonics, etc. I can teach you all of these techniques and more, plus help you learn the art of improvisation.
Most method books available for learning the sax tend to be rather dry and boring, so I wrote my own method book, which teaches you all the fundamentals and TRUE NOTE READING, while learning great sounding, fun and exciting songs from the very beginning!
And why just play by yourself? Every song has a backing track, so it’s like jamming with a live band at every lesson! Learn the songs YOU WANT TO LEARN, learn all the fundamentals, then choose which path you want to pursue! We have “Coffee House” jam sessions all the time, where you can get your feet wet playing with a live backup band (guitar, bass, drums, keyboards) to see if you like it. Some of my students go on to get gigs and play professionally with bands, and some just choose to play at home for their own pleasure. The choice is yours – the sky is the limit!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
WHAT WILL I LEARN IN SAXOPHONE LESSONS?
We understand that every student is an individual, with personal musical needs and goals. We make it a priority to tailor how we teach and what we teach to your individual needs.
If you enroll here for saxophone lessons, we will ask you about your favorite type of music, and set goals to help accomplish whatever musical aspirations you have for yourself or your child. Together, you will develop a plan to achieve your goals! We love beginners, so even if you don’t know where to begin, we can help!
WHAT STYLES OF MUSIC CAN I LEARN?
We teach all styles! Classical, Pop, Rock, Jazz, R&B, Country, Contemporary Christian, Gospel, Movie & Game Themes, Dance Music, and more–almost any genre of music from the very beginning. We combine the important fundamentals with the music YOU want to play.
ARE YOUR SAXOPHONE INSTRUCTORS QUALIFIED?
We have music degrees and over 24 years teaching experience, and most importantly we have a passion for teaching. Being a musician doesn’t automatically make you a teacher! We teach AND perform professionally so you get the best of both worlds!
We embody high values at Joy Academy of Music. Most importantly, we strive to relate our teaching to each individual student’s learning style. In addition to our teaching credentials, we have warm personalities, are extremely friendly, and strive to get to know each student and their parent on a person level.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO LEARN TO PLAY SAXOPHONE?
There is no set answer of how long it takes to learn to play sax. With regular practice, a basic level of playing can be accomplished in a few months. Most of our students take lessons on a long term basis because they want to be constantly improving and they find the lessons enjoyable.
I DON’T HAVE ANY MUSICAL BACKGROUND OR ABILITY. CAN I STILL HELP MY CHILD PRACTICE?
Yes. Even if you don’t have a musical background you can ask the us for advice on how to help your child practice. By simply monitoring that they are doing exercises a certain number of times per day the student will progress. Parents will occasionally sit in on their child’s music lesson to get an idea of the proper way a song should sound or how the student should be positioning their hands.
