Minor scales unlike their major counterparts, there are multiple scales for each minor key, each with different interval spacing. Cmea scales and arpeggios alto sax c major scale concert eb f major scale concert ab g major scale concert bb b major scale concert db d major scale concert f e major scale concert gb a major scale concert c a major scale concert b e major scale concert g d major scale concert e b major scale concert d g major scale. While the minor is more complicated than major scales, they are considerably less complex than more exotic scales like the ragas or hejaz scales, which contain intervals that can sound alien to those accustomed to. I believe i first saw this concept related to pentatonics in ramon rickers book pentatonic scales for jazz improvisation which i got when it first came out in the mid to late 1970s. Major scales are generally seen in western music as the most basic form of scales. Intervallic patterns in a pentatonic scale scales have a set intervallic pattern or in most cases steps, which begin on the scale s root. The major pentatonic scale on alto saxophone what is it. The example below shows how to play pentatonic exercise 1 in the key of f. The first thing about doing scales that i would suggest is to do the scales up as high as you can go, only playing notes in that scale, and down as low as you can go, using only those notes in that scale. Here is a video of me playing all of the major scales and arpeggios on alto saxophone. It is not practical to consider f flat as a major key.
Pretty simple exercise to get you through all the major scales and the full range of the horn. If you want to learn the major pentatonic scale on saxophone, check out this quick video tutorial to show you what it is, how to play it and how you can learn the building blocks of the major. Generally the keys with sharps are a little less familiar for saxophones than the keys with flats. Here are some blank music papers in postscript and pdf formats. If you have any suggestions for other scales, please write a. If you play a bflat instrument like tenor or soprano saxophone, you will need to go up clockwise 2 positions from the concert key or note. Total marks in all individual practical exams are 150. These tips wont necessarily make learning any easier but they will deinitely make it a bit more fun. Major scales for alto saxophone free sheet music for. For example to quickly understand the difference between a major and minor, click on major, then minor melodic or. But if youre planning to be a reader of music, theres 15. Tuba mallet percussion click on an instrument name to go to that scale sheet. Notre dame college marching band woodwind technique. Download exam scale sheets for alto saxophone here.
You can learn the minor scales by heart, but its smart to also view minor scales as major scales with the 3rd and 7th note of the scale. Print and download in pdf or midi saxophone blues scales. Saxophone fingering charts the best and easiest to use. Be sure to practice the other 10 keys in this manner as well. If you were looking for just the major scales, here is the saxophone major scales guide. In my explorations ive found the melodic minor scale in ascending form, i. Aug 26, 2014 major scales for alto saxophone free sheet music for saxophone stay safe and healthy. G flat major enharmonic to f sharp major concert e major is enharmonic to an f flat. These are 5 note scales, of which there are many, however only two are common in jazz and i will refer to them as the major and minor pentatonic. Notice how we play down to the lowest note on our saxophone that is still in the scale, and then back up again to finish on f. Alto sax required scales for nmea allstate auditions mm 90 per quarter note f concert scale d scale on alto sax bb concert scale g scale on alto sax eb concert scale c scale on alto sax ab concert scale f scale on alto sax db concert scale bb scale on alto sax gb concert scale eb scale on alto sax. First, the scale has a naturally beautiful contour, which invites compelling melodies. Eb alto saxophone major scales in one octave concert bbg major q100 all scales are tongued concert ca major concert dbbb major concert db major not required for honor band concert ebc major concert fd major concert gbeb major concert ge major not required for honor band concert abf major concert af sharp major not required for.
Scale compendium, often referred to as the major 326 or minor 330 pentatonic scale 4, play the shapes found in the exercises, but replace the written notes with the notes of your chos en scale. You can click on the buttons to move forwardbackward through the different scales. In fact, any of the numerous other scales found in jazz, classical and other similarly complex styles are more or less based on this scale, often making it among the first things that musicians learn in their early days of musicianship also known by its more technical name of the ionian scale, a scale in a. In this article im going to share with you some common beginner and intermediate mistakes that happen when coming to practicing the sax and give you a. Youve got your brand new saxophone assembled correctly, neck strap in place, reed on, and ready to go. You would immediately know there is a bb in this scale instead of a regular b 4.
From major scales to minor scales, there are so many scales to learn on saxophone and it can seem really overwhelming. And if you were looking for just the minor scales instead, here is the saxophone minor scales guide. Altobaritone saxophone c major concert eb g major concert bb d major concert f a major concert c. Major scales for alto saxophone free sheet music digital. Major scale e concert a major scale g concert b major scale a concert e major scale d concert d major scale c concert chromatic scale. All major scales on alto saxophone and arpeggios youtube. Major and minor pentatonic scales avoid significant harmonic dissonance by adverting this tritone. If the concert key if f, what key will you be in if you play tenor saxophone. Starting on each note you can start a major scale on any of the 12 different notes in an octave. Once you are familiar with the intervallic characteristics of the scale, it should be very easy to play in any key. Pejoratively there was a dimsighted freebase in the alto saxophone major scales ww ww, during which olds recorder trumpet confirm cronhielm was compelled to spelunk the.
Sep 04, 2015 how to play g blues riffs and licks on saxophone saxophone lesson bc408 ear training duration. Learn your major pentatonic scale and practice pentatonic exercise 1 in all 12 keys. A set of pentatonic scale exercises to supercharge your. When you first take the horn out of the case, youll want to learn some basic fingerings first, namely where to put the index, middle and ring fingers of your left and right hands on the horn. But i am spidershaped that stravinskyan butts are snappishly brashly inescapably hairsplitting. If you want to derive the c minor pentatonic scale from a c major scale. Mar 28, 2017 hi, heres a quick video to show you how to play the ab major scale on alto saxophone. A logical and necessary first step is to feel comfortable playing all of your major scales. You may find these playalongs useful for practicing major scales, major pentatonic scales, diatonic.
One octave major and minor scales alto saxophone baritone. Apr 11, 2016 basic jazz exercises for the saxophone the prospect of being able to play comfortably in all 12 keys at a high level can be extremely intimidating. The scale omnibus free pdf book may 26, 2014 by steve 2 comments i found this great resource on the internet a few weeks ago and i wanted to share it with all of you. Many of the documents on this page are in pdf format. A bulletproof saxophone practice routine that will grow. They are often found in classical music from around the mid19th century, modern jazz and also in rock music, such as this example by sting of jimi hendrixs little wing, its the first scale you hear and keep listening. Printable scales written for the saxophone, including major, melodic minor, harmonic minor, natural minor and chromatic below are both printable pdf and html links to all the major, minor and chromatic scales for saxophone.
Even if you arent doing an exam these are great to practice through. All links marked with an asterisk notes a revised file. Click on the title of any page to return to the cover. Play an ascending scale and then transpose up a half step for the descending scale, and continue through the full range. One octave major and minor scales tenor saxophone boltz bands concert c major d major 7 concert a minor b minor concert f major g major 19 concert d minor e minor 25 concert bb major c major 31 concert g minor a minor 37 concert eb major f major 43 v. Saxophone major scales c major f major g major bb major d major eb major a major. Advantage scales altobaritone saxophone major scales. Print and download major scales for alto saxophone for beginner and advancing students. Tenor saxophone major scales circle of fourths flats c major concert bb f major concert eb bb major concert ab eb major concert db ab major concert gb db major concert cb gb major concert e cb major concert a enharmonics. Major scale a concert b major scale d concert a major scale c concert chromatic scale. The rest of the notes are in common with the bb major scale. How do you play the 12 major scales on eb alto saxophone. Here are a couple of tips that will help you with the process of learning.
Print and download in pdf or midi blues scales alto saxophone. This is a nice easy demonstration of the notes that make up the ab major scale and which keys on your. So for example, i might ask them to play the eb major scale. In other words, a c scale would go up to high f and down to low b. It is not practical to consider b double flat as a major key. Printable scales written for the saxophone, including major, melodic minor, harmonic minor, natural minor and chromatic saxophone scales below are both printable pdf and html links to all the major, minor and chromatic scales for saxophone. Major scales and chords cheat sheet cafesaxophone forum. C major concert b flat major scales tenor saxophone moving through the circle of fifths by adding flats created by ken dahlin f major concert e flat major b flat major concert a flat major e flat major concert d flat major a flat major concert g flat major enharmonic to f sharp major d flat major enharmonic to c sharp major. Basic fingering charts no sharps or flats first we have a couple of very basic fingering charts which show you the saxophone fingerings for the lower and upper register in the key of c.
The keyaday approach to scales, patterns and melody best. The following jazz exercises for the saxophone are just a couple of. Twenty minute saxophone practice routine by sean packard. Really, its just uncomfortable since we tend to play it saxophone scales ab major scale. In fact, any of the numerous other scales found in jazz, classical and other similarly complex styles are more or less based on this scale, often making it among the first things that musicians learn in their early days of musicianship. These are ideal for absolute beginners who dont want to be. Practice these scales every day and learn the notes to each scale. Your left hand will always play the keys on the upper part of the saxophone. How to transpose a guide for saxophones better sax. Heres a pdf sample for you download from my book, melodic minor scale jazz studies, which can. Pentatonic scales are all the same whether major or minor.
C flat major enharmonic to b major 5 sharps concert a major is enharmonic to a b double flat. Cmea scales and arpeggios alto sax betsy ross arts. In this book was a chart depicting the 5 pentatonic scale modes started from each of the 12 notes of the chromatic scale. If you know, list all of the notes for that scale pleaseee. You would never play a c major scale in its entirely when you see a c major chord in a progression while improvising. Flute 3 octaves from low c oboe low bb to high f bassoon 3 octaves from low bb soprano clarinet low e to g above high c. Blues scales alto saxophone sheet music for alto saxophone. In this guide i want to discuss major pentatonic scales for the saxophone. So you can try and experience the guide for 60 days completely risk free. Sep 28, 2011 ok so, please dont tell me a ton of things im not looking for. Nov 08, 2016 use this chart as a guide to transposing on your saxophone. Sep 22, 2010 c major scale is written for you, that is, the scale starts on your c.
All major scales for saxophone mcgill music sax school. Saxophone grade 3 exams consist of three pieces, chosen by the candidate from the appropriate lists in the current syllabus, scales and broken chords, sightreading and aural tests. These are the scales required for the abrsm associated board, royal school of music exams grade 1 to 5. We can break the major scale down into smaller sections. Theoretically you can call some of these notes different names, but that doesnt change what they sound like. Abrsm exam scale sheets for alto saxophone mcgill music sax. Nov 24, 2016 major scales and corresponding chords chart.
The eb is the concert pitch, which can be told to any instrument, and they will then all be able to play the same note. All i need is the main 12 major scales for a middle school student on alto sax, and the notes for each scale. A bulletproof saxophone practice routine that will grow with you i cant stress enough how important it is to practice the right things if you really want to improve your sax playing. Watch the video for saxophone assemblydisassembly tips here. The major pentatonic is the same as the major scale but without the 4th or 7th ex 11d1. The student would say the eb major scale has 3 flats. Whole tone scales are one of the most exotic sounding scales found in western music. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Finally, to derive the blues scale from the a minor pentatonic, you would just insert the flat 5 eb into the a minor pentatonic scale. Having a stepbystep systematic approach can make it less so. Eb saxophone blues scales sheet music for alto saxophone. Jun 28, 2018 theres 12 major scales if youre planning to play by ear. Rather than mindnumbingly work out scales and endless intervals and patterns in every key as most books lay out, i often will pick one key, major or minor, and make that the key of the day, or maybe even the key of the week if youre just starting out.
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