Help choosing alto sax

Want to buyr my 12 year old son a sax he can grow with. He is a third year student doing really well. I don't know anything about them to make a good decision and the local dealers just push what they have without giving any real info. I haven't found any good online sources either. Any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks

I need to buy a good alto sax my 12 year old, third year student can grow with. I don't know anything, I can't tell if local dealers just push what they have or are giving any real info, and I haven't found any good sources online either. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks tom

Just to get you started: Everything made today by the Big 4: Yamaha, Yanagisawa, Selmer and Keilwerth is excellent quality. Of these, only Yamaha and Keilwerth make non-pro instruments which would suit lower budgets. I'm wondering how much money you'd want to spend? It depends a lot. Without the knowledge, I'd suggest a Yamaha 62. I've been playing one for many years. Very reliable, and it sounds great in my ears.

Markus from Bonn, Germany

2nd that motion. In fact, I'll jump om Yamaha specifically. Of all the 'student' horns on the market, they are the ONLY ones that I have seen in the hands of traveling pros (who appreciate the ruggedness of the 'student' models for touring. Many other student saxes have intonation problems. Of course, a new student has such bad intonation theat they would not notice the difference, but that's why an advancing student quickly outgrows a student sax - they learn to want something with good intonation.

You might find lots of people who prefer another make over the Yamaha - but you won't find anybody (except for a few Selmer Paris bigots) who say it's a bad horn. If you don't know what you're doing, it's a safe buy.

Other hint: shop around for prices and cultivate a relationship with a good local repair tech. Invest in an annual tuneup/adjustment for whatever you get (starting with a once-over on the new horn - which may need some fine adjustments). It's likely to only cost about $50 per year, and it prevents the frustration of not knowing if some playing problems are a matter of technique ot instrument problems. A student has enough to deal with just learning to play.

There is a lot of good info here:
http://www.saxophone.org/buyersguide/buyers.html

Good luck, David

I think that a yamaha is good advice, but I wouldn't go for the 62. It's an expensive choice for a kid of 12, unless he has the kind of comitment where he knows what he wants for himself. The cheapest yamahas are actually the best value, IMO. The 62 is a nice horn, no doubt, but at that price point you should be making the choice when you know what you want. If you do spend that much, you should at least consider the Yanagisawa 901, which I actually like better than the 62. In any case, either of these is a fantastic horn, a horn that can easily be played professionally.

cheers,

Martin.

On Sun, 22 Jul 2001 00:44:08 +0200, 'Markus Baldingen'

Find a dealer with Buescher Alto saxes. They are intermediate model horns, but if they are like the bari Buescher makes they will suit your son fine until he either goes on or doesn't. I bought a Buescher bari sax for my high school band (around $2100 - so I suspect the alto will be somewhat less). It plays easily , in tune, and seems to have substantial metal. I've played Armstrong, new and old Bundys, and some of the newer Conn student horns. Yuck. Obviously you could try to find a used Selmer Mark VI, or you could buy a new car. Signet used to be their student model horn. If you can find a good used one of those it might be a good choice as well.

Make sure he can play the horn before you fork over your hard earned ducats.

Also, do you know how tires are the contact surface for your car? Get him a decent mouthpiece. Meyer, Otto Link rubber, Selmer C* - if you can't find anything else. For the record, I've been teaching high school music for 14 years, taught a college jazz ensemble for a couple of years, and my first degree was in jazz performance. I would be happy to give follow up advice or answer any questions you have. Hey, I'm a teacher. I was a player for a long time before that.

Good luck. I hope this helped.

'> Was in your shoes the last 4 months. My son is 13, playing 3 years, I felt it was time to move up from the student keilwerth we were renting. After researching this forum under everything from keilwerth, selmer, yamaha, sax recommendations, saxophone, etc.; After checking out the following internet sites: http://www.teleport.com/~jdumars/ and http://www.sbomagazine.com/howtobuy.html and homesites for Selmer, Yamaha, Keilwerth. After talking to every music teacher and band director that would listen (about 6); After watching EBAY for a few months to see what new instruments were selling for, and used models, After researching prices at music stores on the web here in the US and abroad; After going to 2 local music stores that ususally had 2 out of 3 models I wanted him to try, we took a ride to Woodwind Brasswind in South Bend. They had e v e r y t h i n g. But do not go there first, you need to get a feel for what you may want and what he feels comfortable with. We decided to skip the intermediate level and go with a professional horn. I played an accordian in my youth and even after I stopped music lessons I enjoyed my instrument for many years. My rationale was I wanted to give my son something to love and cherish from his parents forever. The next part of the decision making process I feel can go two ways. One, you can go with a particular name brand because of reputation. Depending on who you ask however, they will all have their favorite horn because of various reasons. Few of the people I talked to had recently tested all the comparable models of Yamaha, Selmer, and Keilwerth recently. In the end, since when you get to the top of the line, all the horns have a good sound it comes down to the sound you and your son prefer. Also, I would take into account how the horn feels in his hands and how he feels about playing it. After all our experiences play testing, my son locked onto two horns, a silver selmer 62 and a black nickel Keilwerth SX90R. He liked the action on the Keilwerth and the bright sound and (although he wouldn't quite admit it I know he loved the brilliant shine of the silver). I made him consider the work the silver horn would eventually become and he decided he would choose the Keilwerth, which by the way has a stunning finish as well.

Will this horn be the 'be all end all'. I hope so, but I wouldn't bet high stakes on it. I think it was important that I involved him in the research and the decision making. We took our time. I'm a little surprised that we were able to come to closure in a little over 4 months. It is also important that that horn feels great to him now, and he plays it marvelously and it sounds wonderful to him (and me, and his music teacher). If you can, you should try to find him a private instructor, then have him help if you are totally lost. Don't be in a hurry though. Even if you are looking for a student or intermediate model, take your time, it's a lot of money, the process should be enjoyed. If you are overwhelmed, take it a little slower . Good luck.

P.s. By the way, my son paid a certain percentage for the horn. We did this with his bike as well. He has a vested interest in keeping this horn in excellent condition.

Sounds like you did everything just right. I have heard pros get some WONDERFUL sounds out of that Keilworth.

Now - about the mouthpiece . . . .

Sterling silver doesn't tarnish, right? Plated silver will. The silver Yamaha and Selmer are plated. The Yanagisawa 9930, 9933, and 9935 use sterling silver bodies, bells, and necks, in various combinations.

All silver tarnishes, whether solid sheet or key piece or as thinly applied plating. In some instances, silver is sprayed with a clear coat of lacquer. I believe this might prevent tarnishing, as long as the lacquer coat is