A few months ago I mentioned that I was a fan of the saxophone play-along books that Argentinian-saxophonist, flutist, & composer, Jorge Polanuer had written. I find using his books is one of the methods by which I can try to keep up on my technical skills—something I am really struggling with at the moment thanks to my neuro problems—as well as stay fluent with some of the complexities of Latin rhythms I used to be able to play flawlessly, but now that I no longer play in a Latin band, am a little out of practice on.
A number of months ago Jorge had sent me an email letting me know that he had a new book coming out. A few weeks ago I finally got the book, and just this week my neurological fatigue finally let up enough for me to spend some time in the shed again, so that I could play through the 12 tunes in Music For Saxophone by Jorge Polanuer.
This is a great book! Of the 3 books of Jorge’s I have, I would say that this is currently my favourite. The music is a collection of styles from the Americas.
According to the author:
This book is made up of tunes developed specifically with the sax in mind, inspired in the main rhythms of the Americas; these enable us to experience a broad range of sensations.
From: the Introduction of Music For Saxophone by Jorge Polanuer.
My absolute favourite in this collection is #11, The Encounter. It is an alto & tenor duet which is reminiscent of a 1950s rock ‘n roll ballad.
So far Music For Saxophone by Jorge Polanuer is not available yet on either Amazon.com or Amazon.ca. However, your local brick and mortar store may very well have it. I found one of the big music stores in Vancouver had it in stock.
Like the rest of Jorge’s resources I have, the book contains both music for Eb and Bb pitched saxophones, which I appreciate. (I can’t be the only one who is gets really peeved off having to buy 2 books at $20+ each, just because a publisher is greedy.)
If you haven’t yet checked out Jorge’s play-along books, you should give one a try. I think you will like it. The books have multiple uses, and have the potential to maximize your time in the shed.
I just found out what brand of sax this curvy is. The sax is made by the Greatmind Saxophone company in Taiwan. It is from their 2008 collection and came out in May of that year. The design is called Geometric Abstract.
I was looking at the key guards and was trying to figure out what brand of sax it might be. I’m not familiar enough with modern horns though, so I have no idea, but I’m assuming it’s Asian-made. I wonder if the finish is original.
Interesting that it says “For Alto and Tenor”, then features a curvy sop on the cover. Maybe that was the only horn he had available with such a wicked paint scheme. I don’t think it really matters, as the tenor parts could be played on soprano just as the alto parts could be played on bari.
I could certainly see that soprano fitting right in with the cubist theme of many of the tapas restaurants I have played. If it sounds good, I’d be willing to play a horn decorated like that in a setting where it makes sense. Why not, my alto already has a metallic blue neck and outer bell.