Mario Marzi
The Saxophone Book (PDF)

The Saxophone Book, the English edition of the bestselling Il saxofono by Italian sax virtuoso Mario Marzi, is a carefully researched and illustrated volume, written by one of the great performers of our time. With over 750 photos and musical examples, the book offers a comprehensive history of the instrument and an overview of its repertoire. The birth of the instrument and its inventor, Adolphe Sax; the evolution of the “nickel pipe”; its most important performers, the Golden age: 1921-1955, the modern saxophone family, with its characteristics and repertoire, with more than 100 pages dedicated teaching the sax; the saxophone in jazz; the acoustics of the instrument; a history of women and the saxophone.
With an introduction by Maestro Riccardo Chailly.

Table of contents

Presentation by RICCARDO CHAILLY
Preface by MARIO MARZI

Adolphe Sax. ‘’The power of genius’’

Timeline of historical events

History and evolution of the magic ‘’nickel pipe’’
1. Foreword - 2. The invention of the saxophone - 3. Adolphe Sax's saxophones - 4. True or alleged predecessors - 5. Other patents and experiments; Obscurity and isolation; Recovery and revival of the saxophone overseas; The voice of jazz; Homecoming: the sax once again a protagonist - 6. ‘’Evolution’’ of the saxophone - 7. Modifications and experiments; Materials; Form; Range; Technique; Acoustics, resonance, tone and intonation; Neck; Bell; Pads; Lacquer; Mouthpiece; Manufacturing - 8. New and old models - 9. Manufacturing in the United States; The golden era: 1921-1955 - 10. Italian manufacturers - 11. Other experiments and curiosities - 12. Features; Introduction; Classification. ‘’The pride and joy of wind instruments’’; Register: ‘’A miniature symphony orchestra’’; Form. ‘’Matching elegance with seduction’’ - 13. The modern saxophone family - 14. Characteristics and repertoire; The Manufacturing Cycle

The saxophone and its bards
1. Pioneers; Early saxophonists; The first soloists - 2. Once upon a time in America; Introduction; H. Benne Henton. ‘’The Paganini of the saxophone’’; Jascha Gurewich. ‘’The Heifetz of the also saxophone’’; Rudy Wiedoeft. ‘’The king of the saxophone’’; Rudy Vallée - 3. Early classical saxophonists in America; Cecil Leeson. ‘’The Segovia of the saxophone’’ - 4. The Great European Classical Saxophonists; Rebirth; Gustav Bumcke - 5. Marcel Mule and Sigurd Raschèr, the ‘’Apollo and Dionysius’’ of the saxophone; Marcel Mule (1901-2001); Sigurd Manfred Raschèr - 6. The ‘’noble’’ heirs; Jean-Marie Londeix (Libourne, 1932). ‘’A consummate artist’’ - 7. A ‘’new dawn’’; America; Europa - 8. The sax quartet

The sax in Italy. The ‘’sassofono’’ or the ‘’saxofono’’?
1. Historical origins - 2. The saxophone in the Italian band tradition - 3. Teaching the saxophone - 4. The pioneers of the classical sax in Italy; The Marcel Mule Quartet's concerts in Italy and the influence of the French school in the 1950s-60s; The new generations

The Italian saxophone repertoire. The saxophone in the symphony orchestra and opera
1. The sax in the symphony orchestra and opera: ‘’the instrument that was given the most beautiful melodies’’ - 2. The sax's debut in ‘’high society’’ - 3. Early appearances in Europe - 4. American composers - 5. From the post-war period to the present day

Time and redemption by Alessandro Zignani and Mario Marzi
1. Orchestral music; A certain melodramatic quality; Allusions to far-off worlds of which, as yet, nothing is known; The domesticated saxophone and German alienation; Auguste: the saxophone between the two wars in France and Germany; Heretics; The saxophone and the force of destiny; Pointillism and tradition; Landscapes of the soul; New forces and old ambiguities; America, balanced on a reed; Ruins and illuminations; Italian echoes; Stockhausen's research; New paths and old scenarios; Sonic matter and metaphysical vertigo; Limits and signs of the times - 2. Chamber music; The death of tradition; A picnic under the spotlights; New consonance in America; Saxophone quartets: a new sort of conversation; Works with the piano - 3. The present; The sound of time and human consciousness

Learning the saxophone
1. Introduction - 2. Sound production - 3. Breathing: ‘’the magic of air’’; Introduction - 4. ‘’Ordinary’’ breathing - 5. It's all about blowing - 6. Respiratory muscles; The diaphragm - 7. Key breathing techniques; High or clavicular breathing; Low or diaphragmatic breathing; Total or full breathing; Advice and approach; Conclusion; Recommended reading for breathing technique - 8. Increasing our respiratory capacity; Exercises without the sax; Rhythmic breathing exercises; Slow breathing exercises; Fast breathing exercises; Exercises for maintaining air pressure; Exercises for developing abdominal tone; Spirometers and balloons - 9. Air pressure - 10. Hyperventilation - 11. Hypoventilation - 12. The larynx; Posture - 13. The vocal chords - 14. The oral cavity; Exercise - 15. The tongue; Exercises without the instrument - 16. Embouchure; Introduction; Definition, description and technique - 17. Position on the mouthpiece; Posture and advice for the embouchure; General considerations on classical and jazz embouchures; Conclusion; Exercises with the mouthpiece; Exercises with the saxophone - 18. Creating sound; Attacks and articulation - 19. Producing sound; Single attack. Overview; Advice and approach - 20. ‘’Many voices, one sound’’; Introduction; Vocal aspects - 21. Mind and sound; Imitation; Advice; Technical description; Definitions of sound properties and qualities - 22. The timbre of our sax - 23. Legato - 24. Staccato; Staccato and speed - 25. Double staccato; Technical application - 26. Types of attack and articulation - 27. Vibrato. The child of psyche (breath) and anemos (wind); Vibrato and the saxophone: ‘’All saxophonists are a bit like singers’’ - 28. ‘’Saxophones, vibrez!’’. Main types of vibrato on the saxophone; Vibrato exercises - 29. Posture - 30. The optimal position - 31. Bodily posture - 32. Position of the hand - 33. Positioning the sax; Advice (Alexander Technique); Recommended reading - 34. The saxophone as an extension of our emotions: saxophonists or artists? - 35. Phrasing - 36. Mental aspects - 37. Conditioned stimuli and reflexes. Learning to learn, learning to unlearn - 38. Stage fright; Introduction; Preparation; The concert; Relation with the audience; Ritual aspects; Conclusion; Recommended reading - 39. Daily practice and attitude - 40. Daily warmup; Tips - 41. Daily exercises - 42. Overtones; Exercises for overtones; Recommended reading - 43. The altissimo register; Recommended reading - 44. Intonation; Introduction; Considerations and exercises for intonation; Habits; Recommended reading - 45. Technique and speed; Introduction; Technique and quality; Right hand; Left hand; Method and advice; Alternative fingerings; Recommended reading - 46. Extended technique: 100 ways and more to ‘’play with’’ the sax; Circular breathing; Growl; Vocalising (double sound); Pitch bends; Flutter tongue; Half tongue; Subtone; Portamento; Glissando; Multiphonics (multiple sounds); Ghost notes; Slap; Inverse slap; Bisbigliando (timbre trill); Biphonics; Quarter tones; Smear; False fingering (variations in timbre); Recommended reading - 47. Our equipment: reeds, mouthpiece, instrument; The reed; Origin; Processing; Physical features; The physical structure of the reed; Parts of the reed; Functions and features; Advice; Conclusion - 48. Fine-tuning our reeds - 49. The mouthpiece; Advice; Fun facts - 50. The ligature - 51. Choosing our sax; Neck - 52. Dr Sax, by Franco Pedretti; The ‘’10 commandments’’ to keep our sax healthy; Recommended texts for saxophone repair

The saxophone in jazz
1. Introduction, by Luca Bragalini; ‘’What-a- phone?’’; Before the roaring Twenties; In the beginning was vaudeville; Triple-tonguing: a remnant of 19^th-century bands and vaudeville; The saxophone section: linchpin and protagonist of specials; The first great soloists; The sound of the jazz saxophone: the fluctuating colours that defined a century, by Tino Tracanna - 2. Some remarks on jazz performance, by Tino Tracanna; Writing and polyrhythm; Basic elements of rhythm in jazz; Syncopation; Once again, three against four; Jazz conventions - 3. Coleman Hawkins: the demiurge of jazz saxophonists, by Luca Bragalini - 4. Lester Young: melody without redemption, by Luca Bragalini - 5. Charlie Parker: the jazz rhapsodist, by Luca Bragalini - 6. John Coltrane: the blues in interstellar space, by Luca Bragalini - 7. The jazz saxophone: fifty desert island recordings, edited by Giuseppe Borea

Observing the sound of the saxophone, by Danilo Spada
1. The instrument; Basic principles - 2. ‘’Listening to an image’’ or ‘’seeing a sound’’? - 3. Music and the digital world; Sampling; Quantisation; Conclusion - 4. Ways of representing sound; The physics of sound; The physics of sound and the saxophone; The representation of a sound; Frequency waves; The spectrum; The spectrogram; The saxophone: ‘’classical’’ and ‘’jazz’’ sounds; Brief data analysis: characteristics; Brief analysis of the data: reasons - 5. The saxophone and the recording studio; The analysis; Results; What to say, then? - 6. Conclusion - 7. Bibliography; Books; Equipment; Programmes used

An alternative history of the sax, and other odds and ends
1. The saxophone, seen through the eyes of women; Soloists and ensembles in classical and contemporary music - 2. Sax mania, co-written by Giuseppina Levato - 3. An imaginary interview with Adolphe Sax, by Alberto Caprotti - 4. What people have said about the sax; Both its friends...; ... and its ‘’enemies’’

Bibliography
Index of names
Acknowledgements