Check latest news section for stunning new review of Alphasax from top UK sax player!
No longer need you be told that you are too small or too young to play the saxaphone!
email received 15th July 2010 -
Hi,
I’ve been on the Trevor James Alphasax web site. Please could you give me an approximation of what prices they start at as my daughter is a tall 7yr ears old and desperate to start playing as she’s been nagging me since she was 5!
Many Thanks
Susan McSterney - Leeds, U.K
The saxophone is one of the most popular musical instruments around today, and features in many high profile bands. Until now however, a new generation of potential musicians have been denied the opportunity to learn the instrument, based solely around their age and size!
The challenge was to design and manufacture an alto saxophone that would meet the needs of the smaller and younger players currently unable to learn to play the instrument, due to weight and hand positioning issues.
To enable future progression on the saxophone it was also essential that any new design would also fit in with established instrumental teaching publications by retaining fundamental fingerings and instrumental key of Eb.
The revolutionary new Alphasax has solved all the issues and now enables young players to fulfil their dream of learning to play the saxophone.
What and Why the Alphasax?
As one of the World’s leading woodwind manufacturers and distributors, we have been consistently receiving comments from parents and teachers about the problems facing a new and younger generation of players wanting to learn the saxophone. Issues concerning the weight of an alto saxophone compared with playing the flute or clarinet along with the various problems associated with having smaller hands and therefore finger positioning issues have surfaced.
As the saxophone is now one of the most popular woodwind instruments of today, we set about researching where and how we can design a saxophone to cater for the younger or smaller player.
Our research during the last 12 months has unearthed some very important factors for us to consider:
(1) Who is the new saxophone to be aimed at? – Any player wanting to play the saxophone from the ages of 7 yrs upwards (school years 2 – 7) who are currently told they are too small to play the conventional alto.
(2) The instrument must look like an alto saxophone! – Therefore just using a curved soprano was not possible.
(3) The weight of the instrument must be reduced by around a third to be acceptable to the younger or smaller player! - This would have to be achieved without changing the thickness, or material of the body tube! This would ensure the same tonal characteristics as on a normal alto saxophone!
(4) A minimum two octave chromatic instrument – our research was very specific in that for the first couple of years, it would be very unusual for a young player to learn to play more than a two octave range.
(5) Some keys are impossible to avoid, making the instrument unplayable & other keys
are impossible to reach. The weight can be too much for some young players (& some adults) so we made changes to the mechanism to ensure smaller fingers could reach the keys! – and not simply putting the pearl touch pieces closer together.
(6) Having achieved points 1-4, it was vital that the instrument package as a whole (which included the carry case) was light enough to be carried around by the younger or smaller player.
The instrument
Unique Design
The new Alphasax is based around the original body tube of an alto saxophone with completely redesigned mechanism and tone hole positioning. This ensures that the desire that the instrument looked and played like a normal alto sax was kept.
Key and Mechanism
The Alphasax in the key of Eb, with a full two octave chromatic facility using established finger positioning to enable the smaller player to learn the alto saxophone using current study books. New and innovative mechanism has enabled us to maintain the finger
positioning of a normal saxophone.
Key and Mechanism Detail
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The left hand palm keys for top D#, E and F have been removed.
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The top D key has been adjusted to fit small hands.
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The low B & Bb keys have been removed.
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Redesigned G# and low C# keys are now easier to reach.
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The right hand side F# keys and side C key have been removed.
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Redesigned low D# and C keys are now easier to reach.
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The Alphasax retains a fully chromatic range from low C to high D.
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Bb bis and side Bb keys are retained.
The Alphasax Solution
Weight
At only 1.86kg in weight the revolutionary Alphasax saxophone is 33% lighter than the traditional alto saxophone.
Case
A new lightweight (1.48kg) moulded case with backpack straps is included along with a padded neckt strap, mouthpiece, cap and single screw ligature. A Vandoren reed completes the package.
The Alphasax is therefore an incredible 3.34kg in its carry case (compared to the usual 4.9kg + of the standard alto saxophone). A stunning 46% lighter!
Alphasax - Teachers & Players Comments
Various comments from John Berreen – Kent (UK ) sax teacher
“The Alphasax is fantastic! The keys are all in the right place and the pointless keys, only suitable for the higher grades have been removed. There is no beginner’s music written that uses the high and low notes anyway so they are hardly, if ever, used!”
(He held it in the palm of his hand and was amazed at the weight)
“Kids all complain about hurting necks and moan about the weight of standard saxophones”
“The simple system for Sax
Best advancement
Kid friendly”
“at last the sax comes of age” or “at last the sax comes to all ages”
“Finally accessible to everyone, now easier than the curved soprano or Lyons Clarinet as starter”
Michael Watkin – Manchester (UK) sax teacher
Initially I was skeptical when I opened the case and saw the Alphasax. However on playing the instrument and then understanding why it has been done, I believe it to be a truly fantastic opportunity for music education. It opens new doors for the younger or smaller players who want to play a saxophone…not a flute or clarinet!
John Doorman - Leeds (UK) sax teacher
What a fantastic idea! The alphasax is still an alto sax but has been designed for just the students I am turning away because they are too small!
Amanda Cornock – Kent (UK) sax player
“A great new alto sax for younger players!”
Kasper Hemmer Pihl. Sax teacher, Denmark
"I'll take one now and expect an order for 5 - 10 more. It's exactly what my younger students need!" - on visiting sax.co.uk in Denmark Street, London
www.alphasax.co.uk
