Introduction

The word ‘saxophone’ means ‘the sound of Sax’ – specifically that of Adolphe Sax. The Greek word ‘phone’, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, relates in particular to vocal sounds, so we should not be surprised that the saxophone is often described as a ‘singing’ instrument. In fact, the saxophone is the most flexible and expressive of musical instruments, exceeded, perhaps, only by the human voice. The human voice, of course, is capable of sounds as varied as cheerleading and Schubert lieder; it is capable of producing guttural sounds and fine-spun eloquence, of rabble-rousing and of inspiring. The saxophone is similar in its potential to move people, both viscerally and emotionally.

As a ‘singing’ instrument, the saxophone is unmatched by its mechanical counterparts. This is often reflected in its classical repertoire, but there can be little doubt that the saxophone is the pre-eminent jazz instrument. If jazz first came from the work-shouts and the blues sung in the nineteenth century, then it is natural that a ‘singing’ instrument such as the saxophone should be well suited to jazz and popular music. What is remarkable is that the instrument took so long to be adopted by jazz musicians.

The saxophone is the invention of a single man, Adolphe Sax. Both a thinker and a doer, he had the genius to conceive a new and versatile instrument, the practical background to bring his theories to fruition and the foresight to create the mechanisms necessary to ensure that it would become an important part of the musical world.