Got a saxophone to play? Great! In order to play the saxophone properly, one needs to tune it first! Just like every other musical instrument, a saxophone needs to be tuned too. And, we are here to help you with that.
We could just tell you the steps. In other order, simply- how to tune it. But for beginners, the steps will be utterly confusing.
As a solution to that, we will provide you with every important aspect associated with the tuning process of the saxophone. That will include some steps and relative details about saxophone tuning.
Let’s find out everything you need to know about tuning a saxophone accurately.
The Mouthpiece And The Cork Adjustment
Tuning a saxophone is an interesting process! Why? The sound quality varies for the adjustment of the mouthpiece and the cork of your saxophone. That is certainly a remarkable aspect of the saxophone.
Anyway, the point is, you need to connect the mouthpiece and the cork in a certain place where you will get the right pitch.
What is pitch? The pitch is music means the frequency of the sound. The higher the frequency, the higher the pitch. If the frequency is lower, then the pitch is also lower.
We will talk about the pitch later on again. Now, let’s stick with the adjustment of the mouthpiece and the cork.
The main idea is, the further you pull the mouthpiece from the cork, the flatter your saxophone will sound. On the other hand, if you push it more inside the cork, the shaper will be the sound of your saxophone.
The Gauging Process Of The Sound
To test the sound, you can utilize a chromatic tuner. You keep on tuning until you see the number 440 on the screen of the chromatic tuner.
You play a note and check the tuner. To get 440 hertz on the screen, you will need to push or pull the mouthpiece on the cork.
With a shaper sound, the need will be slanted on the right side. If the sound is flatter, the needle will be slanted on the left side.
Which Note Should You Play While Tuning The Saxophone?
The saxophone is a transposing musical instrument. It won’t play exactly the same notes that are written on a music sheet!
Similarly, in a chromatic tuner, you will see note A, which is 440 hertz. But, in an alto saxophone, you need to play F sharp in order to tune the saxophone correctly. Nevertheless, you can select the G note to tune the sax.
The reason for suggesting F and G notes is, they are two good notes to tune a saxophone.
Expertsaxophonists say you should select a note from the middle of the register. Because you can never tune a long tube like a saxophone perfectly from top to bottom!
Different Tuning Notes For Alto & Tenor Sax
While tuning a tenor saxophone, you need to play G. As we have already suggested before while tuning an alto sax, you need to play F shape. You see, all saxophones are different in some way or another.
You need to be well aware of the differences. That way, you will know how to roughly make it sound accurate.
Remember that when your play F sharp in alto sax, it isn’t going to show F sharp on the screen. The same goes for the G note in a tenor sax.
That’s because the chromatic tuner is the default instrument for some other musical instruments like piano and guitar.
Warming Up The Instrument
The temperature will always affect the pitch of your saxophone because it’s made from brass metal. So, note that a warmer saxophone will sound sharper, and a cold saxophone is a sound flatter
Considering that you are thinking about setting the mark in the neck of the saxophone while tuning is a total waste of time!
Since the temperature will affect the sound, you need to be completely dependent on the chromatic tuner. By following the tuner, you can asset the mouthpieces.
Essentials Tips &Facts For Tuning The Saxophone
- New saxophone cork could be less smooth. Hence, you can apply some cork grease to make the mouthpiece slide in and out effortlessly.
- While adjusting the mouthpiece for the right piece, hold the neck, and twist the mouthpiece in and out. If the cork is well lubricated, the mouthpiece will go in and come out with gentle pressure.
- In the process of tuning, you should pay attention to how the saxophone sounds. If you look at the tuner while playing the saxophone, you will end up correcting your mouth or embouchure. But embouchure might not be the problem.
- The main target is to adjust the mouthpiece first. Even if you don’t get the right pitch after the adjustment, you need to pay attention to the embouchure.
- The type of the reed is also important to tune a saxophone. Softer reeds will render broker pitch. And, the stronger reed will help you to get a clean and strong sound.
- There is no right spot for tuning the saxophone.
- Experts always provide one more smart suggestion to tune the saxophone. That is- the wavering sound quality. A well-tuned saxophone won’t sound wavy. It will sound completely steady. So, keep this in mind while tuning a saxophone.
- The chromatic tuner is not the only measure to tune a saxophone. Nowadays, there are many applications available online.
- You can consider playing note A on YouTube well to test the sound quality of the saxophone.
On A Final Note
You have noticed that there are different variables in terms of tuning a saxophone. Collect the device, or arrange the measures we have suggested. Then, adjust the cork.
Cork and mouthpiece adjustment is the only way to tune a saxophone. Then, you need to troubleshoot the saxophone when you just can’t get it to sound right.
You can now tune the saxophone as you have gone through all the variables we have explained above.
Hope you get to play the saxophone nicely! 🙂