Saxophone Techniques

Developing Your Sound As An Artist

In this lesson, you explore how to develop your own artistic voice by studying influences, listening actively, recording and transcribing yourself, and drawing inspiration from many genres, players, and even non-musical sounds.

Practice Mindset

You’ll learn how to build a healthier, more sustainable practice routine by creating a good environment, setting manageable goals, limiting distractions, and focusing on consistency, confidence, and quality over guilt or perfection.

Long Tones

In this lesson, you learn how long tones build tone, breath control, embouchure strength, and dynamic control, with exercises that help you play more consistently and in tune across the range of the saxophone.

Overtones & Altissimo

Mastering overtones and altissimo helps you unlock brighter or darker tone colors, extend your range, and develop the breath, ear, and embouchure control needed for some of the saxophone’s most advanced sounds.

Tonguing & Articulation

In this lesson, you build cleaner, stronger, faster articulation by training the tongue with breath attacks, muting, anchor-note exercises, and coordination drills that make your phrasing sound sharper and more controlled.

Basic Exercises

In this lesson, you strengthen your improvisation foundations by practicing major and natural minor scales, building groove and vocabulary, and using transcription to internalize phrasing, articulation, and solo language from great players.

Pentatonic & Blues Scales

An introduction to major and minor pentatonic and blues scales, showing how their simple, flexible note choices make them powerful tools for melody, improvisation, and adding soulful color across many styles of music.

Practice Techniques

In this lesson, you learn how to practice more effectively by planning sessions ahead of time, focusing on clear goals, tracking your progress, using the right tools, and balancing disciplined work with jamming and enjoyment.

Advanced Exercises

This supplemental material explores advanced improvisation tools like chord substitutions, transposition, trills, false fingerings, and chromatic techniques to help you add more color, tension, dexterity, and creativity to your playing.

Extended Techniques

In this lesson, you explore expressive extended techniques like bending, vibrato, and growling, learning how they add emotion and personality to your sound while building the control and strength needed to use them well.

Leo P Gliss

An invitation to expand your sonic imagination by drawing inspiration from electronic music and everyday noises, then experimenting, naming, and documenting new sax sounds as you develop your own personal vocabulary of effects.