Instruments

Sax (Alto)

The alto saxophone was originally one of a family of fourteen saxophones of various sizes, created by the Belgian-French instrument maker Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. (A saxophone is a reed instrument with a cone-shaped, keyed metal body.) Near the middle of the group, the E flat alto saxophone was a popular orchestral and band instrument in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries (it is still a mainstay of the marching band), and, as saxophones gained importance in jazz around 1930, the alto became the central melody instrument for many jazz bands. The alto saxophone's current prominence as a jazz solo instrument grew largely from the work of one specific performer, Charlie Parker, whose recordings serve virtually as sacred texts of modern jazz, often learned note for note by aspiring performers. The alto saxophone experiments of Ornette Coleman in the 1960s pushed the instrument to its limits.

Artist Highlights

Artist Active Styles
Sonny Stitt 1940s - 1980s Bop, Hard Bop, Soul Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Mainstream Jazz, Saxophone Jazz, Standards
Maceo Parker 1960s - 2020s Funk, Soul, Soul Jazz
David Sanborn 1950s - 2020s Contemporary Jazz, Crossover Jazz, Jazz-Pop, Smooth Jazz, Soul Jazz, Fusion, Jazz Instrument, Neo-Bop, Progressive Jazz, Saxophone Jazz
Lee Konitz 1940s - 2010s Cool, Post-Bop, Jazz Instrument, Modern Creative, Saxophone Jazz
John Zorn 1970s - 2020s Avant-Garde Jazz, Free Jazz, Experimental, Avant-Garde Music, Film Music, Modern Composition, Modern Creative, Soundtracks, Structured Improvisation, Free Improvisation, Jewish Music, Jazz Instrument, Post-Bop, Saxophone Jazz, Chamber Music, Film Score
Louis Jordan 1930s - 1970s East Coast Blues, Jump Blues, Regional Blues, Swing, Urban Blues, Early R&B
Oliver Lake 1970s - 2020s Avant-Garde Jazz, Free Jazz, Chamber Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Saxophone Jazz
Ornette Coleman 1940s - 2010s Free Funk, Free Jazz, Avant-Garde Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Modern Creative, Saxophone Jazz, Fusion, Chamber Music, Show/Musical
Johnny Hodges 1920s - 1970s Swing, Mainstream Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Saxophone Jazz, Early R&B
Cannonball Adderley 1950s - 1970s Hard Bop, Soul Jazz, Post-Bop, Jazz Instrument, Saxophone Jazz
Moe Koffman 1950s - 1970s Bop, Jazz-Pop
Bud Shank 1940s - 2000s Cool, Hard Bop, West Coast Jazz, Bop, Big Band, Film Score, Jazz Instrument, Mainstream Jazz, Saxophone Jazz, Standards
Benny Carter 1920s - 1990s Big Band, Mainstream Jazz, Swing, East Coast Blues, Jump Blues, Regional Blues, Jazz Instrument, Saxophone Jazz
Earl Bostic 1930s - 1960s Swing, American Popular Song, Jazz-Pop, Jump Blues, Standards, Early R&B, Soul Jazz, Soul
Eric Dolphy 1940s - 1960s Free Jazz, Post-Bop, Avant-Garde Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Saxophone Jazz
Don Redman 1920s - 1960s Early Jazz, Swing, Jazz Instrument, Saxophone Jazz
Lou Donaldson 1950s - 2010s Bop, Hard Bop, Soul Jazz, Guitar Jazz, Jazz Blues, Jazz Instrument, Mainstream Jazz, Saxophone Jazz
Phil Woods 1940s - 2010s Big Band, Bop, Hard Bop, Modern Big Band, Post-Bop, Jazz Instrument, Progressive Jazz, Saxophone Jazz, Standards, Straight-Ahead Jazz, Cool
Anthony Braxton 1960s - 2020s Avant-Garde Jazz, Experimental Big Band, Free Jazz, Structured Improvisation, Creative Orchestra, Jazz Instrument, Saxophone Jazz, Avant-Garde Music
Eli Wolinsky Avant-Garde Jazz, Experimental Big Band, Free Jazz, Structured Improvisation, Creative Orchestra, Jazz Instrument, Saxophone Jazz, Avant-Garde Music