Alistair Parnell » Saxophone

Voices in Nottingham on 11/05/13.

Alistair Parnell — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:06:53 +0000

Equinox in Nottingham on 19/05/13

Alistair Parnell — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:04:39 +0000

Equinox in Huddersfield on 02/06/13

Alistair Parnell — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:00:57 +0000

Swindon Recital Series – Northern Saxophone Quartet

Alistair Parnell — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 13:42:28 +0000

The Northern Saxophone Quartet was formed in 1980 and is widely recognized as Britain’s premier saxophone ensemble, with a repertoire which ranges from renaissance music to jazz and the avant garde. The group is regularly featured on radio and television. Their debut album received considerable critical acclaim and the quartet gives recitals throughout Britain; in recent years they have performed in the U.S.A., Japan, Italy and Finland. They performed by invitation at the World Saxophone Congress in Spain in 1997, as well as the previous three congresses in Italy, Tokyo and Washington DC.

They were guest recitalists and clinicians at the New England Saxophone Symposium, Massachusetts, in 1993, and gave recitals and masterclasses in the USA in 1997. Their CD, “Second Revolution”, features music by Phil Woods, Monteverdi, Michael Brecker and George Gershwin.

Swindon Recital Series – Northern Saxophone Quartet.

Sax practice on the EWI.

Alistair Parnell — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 16:18:48 +0000

Recently I had an email from a pilot who was busy travelling the world. He asked whether I thought you could practice the saxophone on the EWI. I have had the same question asked many times. If you think about it there are many people who may not be able to either carry a saxophone on their travels or not be in a place where the volume of the saxophone would be tolerated.

The EWI has many similarities with the saxophone. Starting with the fingering, there are 33 regular range notes on most saxophones. The EWI has roughly 27 of these notes in more or less the same place. The left hand octave key is certainly different on the EWI but the action of covering just two octaves is really not that different. The EWI has little finger keys in roughly the same place and has some of the same alternative fingerings that can be found on a saxophone. For me, the only key I really miss on the EWI is a side key B-flat. It actually is on the EWI but feels in a funny place. Some EWI beginners who play the saxophone or clarinet for that matter, find it hard not to rest the right hand thumb on the upper plate on the EWI. On the saxophone is not good to take the weight of the instrument on the right hand thumb, you should let the sling take the weight. so you could argue that the EWI would be good discipline. The other good discipline is that finger movements need to be accurate and clean on the EWI so as to not accidentally trigger a note. This teachers you to be more aware of finger movements which again helps when playing the sax. In short, 80% of the key work on the EWI is very similar

The EWI can be set to play in saxophone fingering mode. That means that the instrument will behave more like a saxophone. There are pros and cons to this but the deal breaker for me is that the saxophone fingering mode is the only mode where little finger G sharp doesn’t make every other note raise by a semi tone it just affects G. I know many EWI players have managed to work on the specific EW I fingerings and have found many advantages, but for me being a saxophone player I find that changing from the saxophone to the EW I is much easier when using the saxophone fingering mode.

Of course the embouchure is different on EWI. I tend to recommend putting both top and bottom teeth on the EWI mouthpiece to give a firm grip with enough mouthpiece in the mouth but not having to put any pressure on the upper or lower lip. I’ve found it good way to distinguish between sax and EWI. Also the throat and internal oral shape doesn’t have any influence on the sound of the EWI as it does on a sax. Tonguing, dynamics and vibrato however are pretty similar once you’ve set up the EWI properly to suite your playing style.

It also strikes me that much of what we do when we learn a piece on the sax is actually just about familiarity with the notation. We learn the finger moves, the oral perception and the line of the music in the same way, whether we play it on sax or EWI just the same really.

Of course the EWI will transpose to any key so you can also get the right pitch if you are learning for Eb or Bb sax. Or anything else for that matter. There are even some great little gadgets to plug into your IOS device so you can practice with backing tracks.

Recently I worked on “Rhapsody” by Tony Davis. A piece originally for Sax and audio. Its rhythmically busy and there are lots of repetitive patterns to learn. Its 4 minutes long and quite an advanced piece to play. Having learnt and performed it in July last year I was teaching it to a sax student recently and decided to demonstrate it on the sax. I really didn’t give it a second thought, but I’d never played it on the sax. I was amazed at how well it went. There were very few moments that didn’t feel completely comfortable on the sax, yet I’d only ever played it on the EWI.

So in answer to the question, yes the EWI makes an excellent tool for sax practicing whilst away from the sax. All you need is the EWI and a pair of headphones. Just be prepared to loose a lot of sleep because your having so much fun.

Alistair

SaxDay in Nottingham on 10/03/13

Alistair Parnell — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 15:43:23 +0000

SaxDay returns to the Djanogly Arts Centre for another one day event on 10th March 2013, with tutors Alistair Parnell, Sarah Markham, Naomi Sullivan, Julia Mills and Nicola Pennill.

More details will be announced soon – in the meantime put the date in your diary!

For more information http://www.saxday.co.uk/dates_82896.html

Equinox in Grantham on 03/11/12

Alistair Parnell — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 13:34:05 +0000

Click for full details.

Singing with Saxophones

Tony Davis performing Ku Ku at the World Sax Congress 2009

Alistair Parnell — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 11:56:31 +0000

My good friend and composer Tony Davis performing in Thailand 2009.

Alistair Parnell » Saxophone

Voices in Nottingham on 11/05/13.

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Equinox in Nottingham on 19/05/13

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Equinox in Huddersfield on 02/06/13

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Swindon Recital Series – Northern Saxophone Quartet

Sax practice on the EWI.

SaxDay in Nottingham on 10/03/13

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Equinox in Grantham on 03/11/12

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Tony Davis performing Ku Ku at the World Sax Congress 2009