About The Biggest Saxophone: Saxophone Contrabass

Saxophone Contrabass – The biggest trumpet you see:

In this article, we're diving into the story of the biggest woodwind played today: the contrabass saxophone .

Despite its charm (it sounds an octave lower than even its roaring cousin the baritone sax), it has been used in a number of popular recordings.

First, let's get back to basics…

There are four members of the saxophone family that we see and hear relatively often:

• soprano

• alto

• tenor

• baritone

These are the trumpets - especially the alto and tenor sax - that dominate many of the greatest albums in jazz history.

However, there are saxophone sizes other than this quartet; These distinct trumpets have a very high or very low sound. If we continue to dig deeper into the saxophone family, we will find the bass saxophone, followed by the contrabass contrabass sax.

In this article, we take a closer look at this fascinating, rare trumpet and some of the musicians who have played it.

Saxophone Contrabass

All modern members of the saxophone family are transverse trumpets, pitched in the E or B sound.

Like the alto sax and baritone, the contrabass is an E♭ trumpet, which means that when it plays the C sound, it sounds like the Eb sound on a piano.

In terms of size and weight, the bass is an absolute "giant".

The baritone saxophone is considered quite loud and unwieldy - it's not something you want to carry around for long - but the tube of a contrabass is twice the length of a baritone!

Contrabass is sometimes played with only a neck strap - it was originally intended for use in marching bands, among other things - but is more often held upright with a sax stand for weight bearing.

It weighs about 20 kg and is about 1.9 meters tall.

It uses the same fingering system as all other saxophones, so, in theory, any saxophonist can play one. However, as you might have guessed, it needs more air than its smaller cousins!

Sound Contrabass

Like most saxophones, the playing range of the contrabass goes from a low B to a high F, so it's about two and a half octaves (although some modern versions drop down to a low A and up to an F. High).

Its written concert pitch range – the range it will sound on on a piano – is D flat 1 (nearly three octaves below the middle C), all the way up to A flat 3, located a few notes below C middle range.

It is one octave below the baritone and two octaves below the alto.

Because the pitch is so low, it's often difficult for the human ear to distinguish the pitch of the double bass when it's playing at a lower pitch!

With its large bore, the bass has a big, powerful sound that can deliver a particularly impressive sound in large spaces.

Like other saxophones, it can sound harsh and harsh, or soft and mellow, depending on the player and how the reed and mouthpiece are set up. .

Due to its eye-catching size, double bass performances often provide a real spectacle: it's not the most manageable trumpet physically!

“It attracts a lot of attention tonal as well as visually. The resonance and depth of sound, the vibrating power and deep range of this trumpet (lowest note is the lowest sharp C on the piano) certainly made its presence known. arrive."

Players of the sax contrabass and use in music

Let's be honest: the bass is not used very often.

It's rare to meet a saxophonist who owns a contrabass, so composers and orchestrators tend not to write for it, and it's not usually used as part of a jazz orchestra.

However, it sometimes appears in the hands of professionals.

Scott Robinson, a New York-based saxophonist who is known for his unusual use of wind instruments, owns a contrabass.

He has played it on movie soundtracks and in various jazz settings, including on the tracks "Ko Ko" and "Basso Profundo" from the album Thinking Big.

Anthony Braxton, another saxophonist who enjoys experimenting with all sorts of trumpets, used the contrabass saxophone on his 1974 album For Trio.

This trumpet was first conceived as part of Adolph Sax's original saxophone collection, with the intent that it would provide a deep tone in orchestral settings, as well as with military bands.

However, the saxophone never really gained attention as an orchestral trumpet, and the contrabass, like other members of the saxophone family with extremely high or extremely low intervals, gradually fell out of use.

However, double bass appeared in a number of dance bands in the 1920s and 1930s.

It is also commonly used in saxophone choirs - large bands consisting solely of various saxophones - and sometimes in contemporary classical ensembles.

The American folk punk band Violent Femmes often plays the contrabass played by actor and musician Blaise Garza.

Saxophone Contrabass Manufacturer

Until relatively recently, buying a vintage model was the best way to get your hands on contrabass saxophones that were only available in limited quantities.

Now, however, new models are being produced by Benedikt Eppelsheim, a small Munich-based company that specializes in distinctive high- and low-voiced woodwinds.

Although, as you would expect from such a large, dedicated device, they certainly don't come cheap..!

Thanks for reading!

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