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Baritone saxophone

Classification Wind Woodwind Aerophone Playing range in E♭: sounds one octave and a sixth lower. Many models include the low A, a half step below the baritone saxophone's average range, and some modern models can also reach high F#. Related instruments Soprillo Sopranino saxophone Soprano saxophone Mezzo-soprano saxophone Alto saxophone C melody saxophone Tenor saxophone Bass saxophone Contrabass saxophone Subcontrabass saxophone Tubax Musicians List of saxophonists More articles Saxophone

The baritone saxophone, often called "bari sax" (to avoid confusion with the baritone horn, which is often referred to simply as "baritone"), is one of the larger and lower pitched members of the saxophone family. It was invented by Adolphe Sax. The baritone is distinguished from smaller sizes of saxophone by the extra loop near its mouthpiece; this helps to keep the instrument at a practical height (the rarer bass saxophone has a similar, but larger loop).

Contents 1 Technical specifications 2 In classical music 3 In popular music 3.1 In Jazz 3.2 Ska 4 External links 5 Trivia

The baritone saxophone is the largest saxophone commonly seen in modern ensembles. The other three are the alto, tenor and soprano. It is a transposing instrument in the key of E-flat, one octave lower than the alto saxophone, although Adolphe Sax had originally also produced a baritone saxophone in F intended for orchestral use. Despite its low register, music for the baritone saxophone is written in treble clef. It is also possible to read parts written in the bass clef for instruments pitched in C as if the part was in the treble clef, while adjusting the key signature from C to E-flat and any accidentals as necessary. This is often useful for reading tuba or trombone parts in songs without a written baritone saxophone part.

The exceptional weight of the instrument (13-14 pounds or 6.5 kg), as compared to the other three commonly used sizes of saxophone, makes it difficult to use in marching bands. Baritone saxophone players in marching groups often use a special harness that distributes the weight of the instrument onto the player's back instead of around his neck, as is the conventional way of supporting the instrument. The baritone saxophone can still be used in a marching band with the standard neckstrap. Its reed size is notably large, twice that of an alto saxophone reed and noticeably larger than that used by the tenor saxophone.

The fingerings for all of the instruments in the saxophone family are essentially the same and many players play more than one saxophone. The baritone saxophone, however, is the only member of the saxophone family which often possesses a "low A" key (sounding concert C, the same pitch as the lowest note on the cello), whereas most other saxophones descend only to a fingered B♭, though altos and basses have been manufactured with low A keys, and Benedikt Eppelsheim now makes a contrabass saxophone with one; (sounding pitch depending on the key of the particular instrument).

The baritone saxophone is used in classical music (particularly as a member of a saxophone quartet), but composers have rarely called for it in orchestral music. Examples include Richard Strauss' Symphonia Domestica, composed in 1902-03; Béla Bartók's Wooden Prince ballet music, Charles Ives' Symphony no. 4, composed in 1910-16, and Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and An American in Paris), and it has a comparatively small solo repertoire.

Baritone sax is an important part of military bands, concert bands, jazz bands, wind ensembles and is common in musical theater, especially those of the more "jazzy" type, e.g. Anything Goes, Mack and Mabel, Chicago. It is the main featured backing instrument in DJ Mark Ronson's hit song Valerie. In concert bands, it often plays a part similar to that of the tuba. The baritone player usually plays rather simple rhythms in order to maintain the musical pulse of the group. Often, this consists of quarter notes on beats one and three in 4/4 time.

Also, it is sometimes also used in rock music. For example, it is featured along with a tenor sax in "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"

Although few classical saxophonists perform exclusively on the baritone saxophone, a number of jazz performers have used it as their primary instrument. The baritone is an important instrument in the big band, being the largest size of saxophone used in that ensemble (although the larger bass saxophone was occasionally used up to the 1940s). One of the instrument's pioneers was Duke Ellington's longtime baritone player, Harry Carney, who played both accompanying bass lines as well as exuberant solos and improvisations.

In big bands, the role of the baritone player usually involves doubling with the bass trombone, bass, or first alto saxophone. (The saxophone section of a standard jazz band contains two altos, two tenors, and a baritone.) The baritone player is usually expected to double on bass clarinet.

Since the mid-1950s, master baritone saxophone soloists such as Gerry Mulligan, Lars Gullin, Cecil Payne, and Pepper Adams achieved fame, and Serge Chaloff was the first player of the instrument to achieve fame as a bebop soloist.

More recent notable performers include Hamiet Bluiett (who has also led a group of baritone players), John Surman, Scott Robinson , James Carter, Stephen "Doc" Kupka of the band "Tower of Power",Nick Brignola, Gary Smulyan, Ronnie Cuber, and Claire Daly. New York "avant-garde/downtown" saxophonists Andy Laster and Tim Berne have occasionally played baritone. A noted British performer is Joe Temperley (actually a Scotsman), who has appeared with Humphrey Lyttelton as well as with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. Atsushi Yanaka, the baritone saxophonist of the Japanese group Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, is widely regarded as the best baritone saxophone player in ska music.^{[citation needed]}

Prominent baritone saxophonists in contemporary American popular music include David Bowie,[1] Dana Colley of Morphine, Skerik of Critters Buggin, Clarence Clemons, John Linnell of They Might Be Giants, and Justin Harris of Menomena. Linnell and Colley also play bass saxophone on occasion. Many saxophonists also play a baritone on occasion including Dick Parry, Dave Koz, Clarence Clemons^{[citation needed]} and David Sanborn.^{[citation needed]}

Bari Sax has become a more commonly seen instrument in punk ska and third wave ska bands including Streetlight Manifesto and previous members of Less Than Jake. The sax is popular for its lower register notes, however, the size and bulk of the instrument, along with the cost, can prevent many bands from using it.

• A site with information on all the great Jazz Baritone Saxophonists and vintage horns

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• In the 1970s, a jazz band called the Baritone Saxophone Retinue consisted of between six and ten baritone saxophones, backed up by a rhythm section. A similar group, the International Baritone Conspiracy, which featured six baritones, was formed in the 1990s.
• The Baritone Saxophone Band, a tribute to Gerry Mulligan, featured three baritone saxophonists: Ronnie Cuber, Gary Smulyan, and Nick Brignola.^video
• Nigerian Afrobeat singer, musician, and bandleader Fela Kuti typically featured two baritone saxophone players in his band (most American jazz big bands feature only one).
• In the 1985 documentary film Bring on the Night, Branford Marsalis discusses how much he disliked playing the baritone saxophone while on tour in Europe with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers during the summer of 1980.
• Although many marching bands choose not to use the instrument due to its weight and unwieldiness, the University of Arizona's marching band, The Pride of Arizona, has been marching anywhere between three and ten baritone saxophones each year since 1999.

v • d • e Members of the Saxophone family
True saxophones	†Soprillo saxophone • Sopranino saxophone • Soprano saxophone • Mezzo-soprano saxophone • Alto saxophone • C melody saxophone • Tenor saxophone • Baritone saxophone • Bass saxophone • Contrabass saxophone • ‡Subcontrabass saxophone
Tubaxes	†Contrabass tubax • †Subcontrabass tubax
† denotes saxophone not designed by Adolphe Sax• ‡ denotes saxophone proposed by Adolphe Sax