kjp

Last weekend, I went to a QWO gig - Speed. It was, as per usual for QWO, very good. Although I couldn't stay for the entire of the concert, the two highlights for me were the two Eric Whitacre pieces Equus (a horse race / chase), and Ghost Train Triptych. The soprano saxophone in the Ghost Train was excellent. Loved it.

Also, on saxophones, I had my first play of one on Wednesday night, at dinner with friends. It was very interesting to play. My arms got sore - I didn't adjust the neck strap properly. It was an under-played sax. Apparently it would have gone a year or maybe more since the last time it was played. I was able to play it a bit, the fingering is similar to the second register on the clarinet. However, I found it difficult to stay in the lower register... So maybe there was a problem with the register key, or my embouchure was not correct and I was overblowing? I had a 2 1/2 reed on. Apparently you're supposed to have a softer reed on a sax than a clari because of the different embouchure. Another problem that I had was with the low notes, when using the left had little finger keys (eg: for long b over the break), I had to have the right hand little finger C key held down. Otherwise a squawk would ensues. (On clarinet, the C key would be put down automatically). And obviously, it was louder than clarinet.

So, now I need to decide whether I take up saxophone. If so, do I (a) buy one, or (b) hire one for a bit first. Hmmm. Probably, when I get back to Brisbane in the new year, I’ll hire one for a month or two. See how that goes - if I like it: I’ll buy one of my own.