How to Play OVERTONES on Saxophone for a better SOUND

Is there anything like this for trumpet players?

I changed mouthpiece from Yamaha 7 c to Otto Link 5*. With Yamaha was piece of cake almost all the overtones. With OL I’m suffering big time! The first 3 comes out regularly but the 4th almost never.

Thanks for the reminder to work on fundamentals. There’s so little time to learn and practice new tunes is easy to overlook the basics.

Hi Jay, any lessons just for overtones pkease? Link ? Tgank you.

I do not understand what an overtone is, I don't even hear the difference as you play, how could you explain differently? I really like your instruction.... And thank you.

Another cool lesson 👍🎷
What sax are you playing ?

my problem is my sax will always skip the octave Bb overtone and go straight to the F. what should i do to fix this?

My first 11 lessons with Joe Allard were exclusively about OVERTONES. I’ve come back to it almost 40 years later, and it’s been worth every moment…….of course back then I had no perspective as compared to now, but while at the Village Vanguard listening/watching Dexter Gordon in December 1979 Dexter gave me a lifetime of incomparable learning.

Teaching a class on Overtones today, love the way you go about it! Hope to connect again soon!

Fascinating thanks Jay. One of the best sax tutorials I’ve ever seen

Does it still work with alto sax

Aliquots are cool.

When playing low Bb can’t you just press the octave key to get middle Bb out?

With regard to the shape of your throat and not moving your face, I find when I sing the note of the third octave up as well as my throat changing, I do move my cheeks a bit as a smile; should this still be avoided when trying to play, and the actual movements for singing are not related?

lost me at "sing the low Bb"

Great info.

The hardest for me is the D overtone series. Any suggestions?

What's the point of this? If the octave key also raises an octave?

Is it just me or does anyone else not place their top teeth on the sax I just cover my upper Getty with my lips and I play better than anyone else in my class

What tenor sax do you play on?

the hardest one is the d overtone series

Then the neighbours come pounding on my door🤣

A great resource for overtones and altissimo is "top tones for the saxophone" by Sigurd M Rascher

I love that cover photo Jay 😂 are you looking for the overtones? And by the way I had no idea you can play the overtones in all four octaves. Looks like I have more work to do.

Hi Mat, explain to me how can I undestand that my reed is useless ???

I live in an apartment building, and play three different saxophones…one of them being the soprano. I’m sure my neighbors LOVE me! 🥲😂 Overtones suck, but there is nothing better that has helped me with my tone, and intonation. They’re frustrating, but they work.

C OBAMA KI VA SECLATER LA TOUT LES NOIR JAZZ LES VIEU ET LA UN JOUJOU SAXO MODERNE

Y FO COLLER LA BILLE OU TI ROND KI SOUVRE ET FMERME ET LE FIL VA DAN LE BOOMER LE PAPI BOOMER

I gotta alto Bush or silver low tones and the sea note is not playing at pitch you have any idea what I need to look at

I learned from my professor that to play overtones, or starts with the ears. If you can listen to overtone before playing it, thats the right direction.

As he also mentioned in the video (not my professor lol), this is key!

Muchas Gracias!!! Saludos desde Argentina!!!

Good job

Kids in my beginner band sure are good at this

Great video. Very clear and helpful. Thank you, Jay.

When I try the low low B flat (the one using pinkie I don’t know the proper term) overtones, I actually find middle F, middle B flat and even the high F are way easier to come out than low B flat. But if I play higher notes say low E overtones, the easiest one is middle E. Should I first focus on the easiest one or try to get the first overtone? I actually have never get the low B flat even though I can reliably get middle F now. Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks for the video - really did help me out, not sure if anyone can help me out. I got low C, D, E and F (similar fingering probably helps a bit) to work perfectly. but low B flat goes to a different note - F. Any advice on how to skew it to the right note?

In beginning band, my octave key somehow was broken a few weeks before our Christmas concert. My parents didn't have the money to send my sax to the shop, so I ended up just the fingering the notes and jumping the octave entirely using overtones. Of course, at the time, I had no idea what that was or what I was doing, I just figured out that I could do it if I tried. All that being said, it was beginning band in 6th grade, so the only notes we were playing using the octave key were D and E and maybe an occasional F#.

Hahaha I’ve been practicing overtones without knowing I was playing overtones I was doing it for fun lol

Great concise package of demonstration and explanation. You nailed it!

The thing with Jay is they don't make them more honest than him. I mean really is giving here for free the essential information you need to achieve what you want. The courses are even more worth it as it helps you along with the discipline, the accompaniment and the motivation. This guy is the real thing, straight to the point, no interminable blabla and not boring to death. Thumbs up for Jay.

I play tenor sax and am in the jazz band. I am In 9th grade and most of the people in there are 11th and 12th so right now I need to have a better sound even though mine is pretty nice. This helps a lot and thanks, I would also appreciate if you told me how I could get a better jazz sound and style.

I am so excited!!!!! I got it!!! That is so cool. I am like Jonny 5 man I need more info hahahaha thanks again you rock!!!!

Such an interesting topic! I never knew there was so much going on regarding the mechanics of achieving certain pitches/tones... I always thought it was just air flow and key presses 🤯😅

While I was trying this I got a low Bb, middle Bb, High Bb, and high F

This is true and all but did you hear King Crimson?

Thank you, Jay! Before April 2020, I had never played and instrument before let alone a saxophone, but I now can play and continue to follow what you offer, and at 65 years old I feel confident because you are the best instructor.

I've had a hard time hitting my low C and low Bflat (I'm a beginner)..I started practicing overtones as you suggested..few minutes a day..and I tried one practice session to hit those low notes..I found I could hit them beautifully..that had never happened before..they were so good the geese that usually alighted on my window sill previously; flew away.
Thanks Jay.