1 00:00:08,840 --> 00:00:12,000 Speaker 1: Hey, welcome to invention. My name is Robert Lamb, and 2 00:00:12,039 --> 00:00:14,880 Speaker 1: I'm Joe McCormick. Robert, were you in a band when 3 00:00:14,880 --> 00:00:17,119 Speaker 1: you were in school? Not not like not like a 4 00:00:17,200 --> 00:00:19,400 Speaker 1: rock band, I mean like a school band. School band 5 00:00:19,480 --> 00:00:22,000 Speaker 1: is the only thing I was in. Uh. Yeah, I 6 00:00:22,000 --> 00:00:23,800 Speaker 1: played trumpet for a while, then I played French war 7 00:00:23,840 --> 00:00:25,480 Speaker 1: and then I played just a little more trumpet, and 8 00:00:25,600 --> 00:00:27,680 Speaker 1: uh that was it. Did you ever get good at 9 00:00:27,720 --> 00:00:30,920 Speaker 1: your instruments? No? No, not really the same here. Yeah, 10 00:00:30,920 --> 00:00:33,199 Speaker 1: I played trumpet when I was in school, and I 11 00:00:33,280 --> 00:00:36,320 Speaker 1: was like, I think I was probably a source of 12 00:00:36,400 --> 00:00:39,520 Speaker 1: great amusement for like my band, teachers and stuff. They'd 13 00:00:39,520 --> 00:00:42,800 Speaker 1: probably play my tapes at home for their friends at parties. 14 00:00:45,159 --> 00:00:48,360 Speaker 1: I was probably much in the same territory. I will 15 00:00:48,400 --> 00:00:50,760 Speaker 1: say that towards towards the very end I was, I 16 00:00:50,840 --> 00:00:53,560 Speaker 1: ended up being in like a like the school jazz band. 17 00:00:53,720 --> 00:00:56,080 Speaker 1: I guess it was. I don't know. We played different 18 00:00:56,120 --> 00:00:58,720 Speaker 1: like some types of music. We played Chicago and stuff, 19 00:00:59,400 --> 00:01:01,880 Speaker 1: and that was pretty fun. Like for just a brief 20 00:01:01,960 --> 00:01:05,640 Speaker 1: period of time, I saw the potential of playing music, 21 00:01:06,040 --> 00:01:08,400 Speaker 1: playing an instrument and enjoying it at the same time. 22 00:01:08,520 --> 00:01:11,360 Speaker 1: It wasn't later until I picked up the guitar that 23 00:01:11,480 --> 00:01:14,880 Speaker 1: I realized the thing about music is you don't have 24 00:01:14,959 --> 00:01:18,200 Speaker 1: to be really good at your instrument to have fun playing, 25 00:01:18,720 --> 00:01:21,560 Speaker 1: but you have to be good enough to play to 26 00:01:21,680 --> 00:01:23,959 Speaker 1: have fun playing. And I think when I played trumpet, 27 00:01:23,959 --> 00:01:26,400 Speaker 1: I never got there. I never even got to where 28 00:01:26,440 --> 00:01:29,800 Speaker 1: I could really do it. But anyway, when I was 29 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:33,119 Speaker 1: in school bands, I remember being there with the kids 30 00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:35,760 Speaker 1: in the room who played saxophones, and they'd have to, 31 00:01:36,560 --> 00:01:39,120 Speaker 1: you know, like learn all the fingerings and mess with 32 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:42,400 Speaker 1: the reads and everything. And I remember thinking looking at 33 00:01:42,440 --> 00:01:44,360 Speaker 1: these instruments with you know, my my trump I had 34 00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:47,680 Speaker 1: three valve buttons on it and keys whatever you call. 35 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:50,280 Speaker 1: And the saxophone had so many. It had all these 36 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:54,160 Speaker 1: like lumps and wires and keys and stuff. And I thought, 37 00:01:54,160 --> 00:01:56,760 Speaker 1: how could you ever learn all that? And how why 38 00:01:56,880 --> 00:01:59,920 Speaker 1: why would you put this like brass alien paris I 39 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:03,040 Speaker 1: it up against your body. It's so lumpy. Ye. At 40 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:05,800 Speaker 1: the same time, though, I always thought the saxophone, the clarinet, 41 00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:11,040 Speaker 1: various other woodwinds, they looked more organic, especially the saxophone really, 42 00:02:11,080 --> 00:02:13,440 Speaker 1: because it as this it's like it's coiling like some 43 00:02:13,520 --> 00:02:16,160 Speaker 1: sort of a beast and and it makes sense that 44 00:02:16,200 --> 00:02:20,200 Speaker 1: you would utilize all of your fingers in playing an instrument, 45 00:02:20,200 --> 00:02:22,920 Speaker 1: as opposed to our use of the trumpet, where you're 46 00:02:22,960 --> 00:02:25,080 Speaker 1: just using the three or in the case of the 47 00:02:25,080 --> 00:02:27,359 Speaker 1: french horn, you have one hand just sort of shoved 48 00:02:27,440 --> 00:02:30,480 Speaker 1: up there for good measure. That is right, you please? Yeah, 49 00:02:30,480 --> 00:02:32,639 Speaker 1: So when you played french horn, what is that for? 50 00:02:32,760 --> 00:02:35,120 Speaker 1: What happens if you take your hand out of the hole, Well, 51 00:02:35,400 --> 00:02:38,359 Speaker 1: it helps you support the horn, but also you can 52 00:02:38,520 --> 00:02:40,639 Speaker 1: sort of shape the sound a little bit with it. Oh, 53 00:02:40,720 --> 00:02:43,639 Speaker 1: I see. But of course, my view of the saxophone 54 00:02:43,720 --> 00:02:46,040 Speaker 1: changed greatly when I grew up, and I think that 55 00:02:46,240 --> 00:02:50,200 Speaker 1: largely had to do with me learning to appreciate jazz 56 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:52,400 Speaker 1: like that. I'd never really listened to jazz when I 57 00:02:52,440 --> 00:02:55,000 Speaker 1: was a little kid, and you know, once I heard 58 00:02:56,120 --> 00:02:59,079 Speaker 1: actual jazz music or you know, the stuff from the 59 00:02:59,320 --> 00:03:02,560 Speaker 1: middle of the twin a century, then the saxophone kind 60 00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:04,640 Speaker 1: of made sense to me. I agree on Once you 61 00:03:04,680 --> 00:03:07,840 Speaker 1: hear somebody that is a true master the saxophone, as 62 00:03:07,919 --> 00:03:11,280 Speaker 1: with any musical instrument, you you you see what the 63 00:03:11,280 --> 00:03:13,720 Speaker 1: deal is, you see why you hear, why it exists, 64 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:16,720 Speaker 1: You know why it exists, why it was invented, you 65 00:03:16,760 --> 00:03:19,440 Speaker 1: know what, what sort of a whole. It's filling in 66 00:03:19,480 --> 00:03:22,520 Speaker 1: the human experience, as you will. At the same time, 67 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:27,840 Speaker 1: there's nothing like hearing a terrible saxophone or there's also 68 00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:32,440 Speaker 1: the saxophone, I feel can be a difficult instrument if 69 00:03:32,480 --> 00:03:35,960 Speaker 1: it's um playing in a genre that you have a 70 00:03:35,960 --> 00:03:40,280 Speaker 1: little exposure to. For instance, the more the spacier, more 71 00:03:40,360 --> 00:03:44,440 Speaker 1: chaotic versions of jazz. I know, recently, you and I 72 00:03:44,480 --> 00:03:46,160 Speaker 1: were in a work trip and we had an early 73 00:03:46,240 --> 00:03:50,640 Speaker 1: morning lift ride to the airport and the lift ride 74 00:03:50,760 --> 00:03:54,680 Speaker 1: driver was playing some very free form jazz and it's 75 00:03:54,720 --> 00:03:57,440 Speaker 1: it's not something that like I I am acclimatized to 76 00:03:58,240 --> 00:04:01,280 Speaker 1: so as it orna Coleman or something. Maybe, Oh, I 77 00:04:01,280 --> 00:04:03,600 Speaker 1: don't know, it's just very free form. Okay, it was. 78 00:04:04,040 --> 00:04:08,320 Speaker 1: It was kind of a psychedelic freak out uh saxophone performance. 79 00:04:09,040 --> 00:04:10,880 Speaker 1: But still at the same time, I can appreciate that 80 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:14,640 Speaker 1: there is there's great skill going into the performance. Yeah, 81 00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:17,040 Speaker 1: and at least to me, while saxophone sounds very like 82 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:20,240 Speaker 1: muscular and natural and real, and the genius of it 83 00:04:20,320 --> 00:04:23,440 Speaker 1: is realized in jazz of the don't I don't mean 84 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:27,800 Speaker 1: to sound pretentious, start talking about the genius of music. Um, 85 00:04:28,200 --> 00:04:30,480 Speaker 1: there's also a way in which it's always been kind 86 00:04:30,480 --> 00:04:33,880 Speaker 1: of funny to me, especially like it's they're like the 87 00:04:33,920 --> 00:04:37,800 Speaker 1: saxophone solo and like a rock ballad is always the 88 00:04:37,839 --> 00:04:40,880 Speaker 1: funniest part. But people are into that. Like do you 89 00:04:40,920 --> 00:04:42,760 Speaker 1: remember in the recent stuff to Pull Your Mind episode 90 00:04:42,760 --> 00:04:46,080 Speaker 1: where we talked about the Russian born artists and comedians 91 00:04:46,120 --> 00:04:48,880 Speaker 1: Coomar and Melamed and they they did this thing where 92 00:04:48,920 --> 00:04:53,039 Speaker 1: they used market research to determine all of the elements 93 00:04:53,080 --> 00:04:55,720 Speaker 1: that people like the most and the least in music, 94 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:58,080 Speaker 1: and then they made a most hated song and a 95 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:01,280 Speaker 1: most wanted song. And the most wanted song had things 96 00:05:01,279 --> 00:05:04,320 Speaker 1: like it sounded kind of like a combination of like 97 00:05:04,320 --> 00:05:06,719 Speaker 1: like an eighties or nineties R and B song, but 98 00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:09,680 Speaker 1: also kind of spring steeny. It had like a you know, 99 00:05:09,880 --> 00:05:13,440 Speaker 1: like working class people with humble ambition and dreams and 100 00:05:13,520 --> 00:05:17,719 Speaker 1: like saxophone and the saxophone was what people wanted. That's 101 00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:20,440 Speaker 1: that's that's wonderful. I mean, it does make me think 102 00:05:20,480 --> 00:05:23,800 Speaker 1: now that you mentioned the nineteen eighties, like two kind 103 00:05:23,800 --> 00:05:28,480 Speaker 1: of extremes of of of saxophone player. On one hand, Um, 104 00:05:28,880 --> 00:05:31,200 Speaker 1: I think of Bruce Springstein in the in the EA 105 00:05:31,240 --> 00:05:35,880 Speaker 1: Street Band, and the original sax player Clarence Clemens, who 106 00:05:35,920 --> 00:05:39,560 Speaker 1: lived passed away in two thousand and eleven. He was 107 00:05:39,600 --> 00:05:41,839 Speaker 1: like really tall, and oh yeah it was a I 108 00:05:41,839 --> 00:05:44,120 Speaker 1: mean I think it was like six five. But I 109 00:05:44,520 --> 00:05:47,719 Speaker 1: seem to recall Bruce Springstein himself is maybe a shorter gentleman, 110 00:05:47,880 --> 00:05:51,000 Speaker 1: so you know, he seemed even more gigantic up there 111 00:05:51,040 --> 00:05:54,040 Speaker 1: on the stage playing the sacks. But then I also 112 00:05:54,240 --> 00:05:57,880 Speaker 1: think to the nineteen eighties seven film The Lost Boys. Okay, 113 00:05:57,920 --> 00:05:59,680 Speaker 1: I knew you were going here. Yeah, you know which 114 00:05:59,680 --> 00:06:02,839 Speaker 1: thing I'm talking about. Yeah, there's a scene where they 115 00:06:02,960 --> 00:06:05,279 Speaker 1: characters just go out to what it's a big party 116 00:06:05,320 --> 00:06:08,000 Speaker 1: by the beach or something, and there's a band playing 117 00:06:08,080 --> 00:06:12,520 Speaker 1: and there is just the most intense, oiled up muscle 118 00:06:13,320 --> 00:06:17,440 Speaker 1: wrestle guy ever playing a saxophone solo. Yeah, And it's 119 00:06:17,440 --> 00:06:19,240 Speaker 1: one of these things that for the longest I just 120 00:06:19,320 --> 00:06:22,000 Speaker 1: without researching, and I just assumed this is just some 121 00:06:22,240 --> 00:06:25,359 Speaker 1: bodybuilder and they said, hey, gyrate with the saxophone and 122 00:06:25,360 --> 00:06:27,680 Speaker 1: we'll put we'll play something over it. But as it 123 00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:32,799 Speaker 1: turns out, that gentleman in The Lost Boys is Tim Cappello, 124 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:36,839 Speaker 1: who was and still is an actual saxophonist in addition 125 00:06:36,920 --> 00:06:39,560 Speaker 1: to a bodybuilder. And I don't mean that he could 126 00:06:39,560 --> 00:06:41,440 Speaker 1: just play it well enough to sort of, you know, 127 00:06:41,480 --> 00:06:44,440 Speaker 1: do the scene. No, he played on Peter Gabriel's second 128 00:06:44,440 --> 00:06:48,640 Speaker 1: album and toured with him, particularly the tracks Perspective and 129 00:06:48,720 --> 00:06:51,200 Speaker 1: Home Sweet Home. He played with various other people, played 130 00:06:51,279 --> 00:06:56,320 Speaker 1: with uh Tina Turner. I believe so this was this 131 00:06:56,360 --> 00:06:59,159 Speaker 1: guy was a legit saxophone player who just happened to 132 00:06:59,200 --> 00:07:01,880 Speaker 1: be a bodybuilder as well. His agent must have like 133 00:07:02,040 --> 00:07:04,400 Speaker 1: choked on his coffee when he saw the casting call 134 00:07:04,520 --> 00:07:07,520 Speaker 1: go out for that, like need need oiled up bodybuilder 135 00:07:07,520 --> 00:07:10,520 Speaker 1: who is expert at saxophone. He's your man. He's apparently 136 00:07:10,520 --> 00:07:12,960 Speaker 1: still your man. He's still active today. And on the 137 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:15,840 Speaker 1: other another example is sort of like the ridiculousness of 138 00:07:15,880 --> 00:07:18,560 Speaker 1: the Sacks. I would say, I can't help but think 139 00:07:18,600 --> 00:07:22,160 Speaker 1: of Bill Clinton's Sacks solo on the Arsenio Hall Show. 140 00:07:22,360 --> 00:07:25,000 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, that was I don't remember that from the time, 141 00:07:25,040 --> 00:07:27,080 Speaker 1: but I know that's the thing people talk about now, 142 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:31,440 Speaker 1: like Bill Clinton and the Sacks. Yeah it, you know it. Um, 143 00:07:32,320 --> 00:07:35,240 Speaker 1: I didn't show he was cool that that was the 144 00:07:35,280 --> 00:07:37,840 Speaker 1: intended message. He was a presidential candidate at the time, 145 00:07:38,400 --> 00:07:40,520 Speaker 1: and yeah, he goes in there and he's he's, you know, 146 00:07:40,600 --> 00:07:43,840 Speaker 1: ripping it out on the sacks. The crazy thing about it, though, 147 00:07:43,920 --> 00:07:46,360 Speaker 1: is it's kind of embedded in my mind from just 148 00:07:46,640 --> 00:07:49,120 Speaker 1: being on TV when I was a kid. But it 149 00:07:49,200 --> 00:07:52,920 Speaker 1: also seems to have become just a just a part 150 00:07:53,080 --> 00:07:59,000 Speaker 1: of the American saxophone image abroad. Even um. A couple 151 00:07:59,040 --> 00:08:01,440 Speaker 1: of years ago, I was with and into this. This 152 00:08:01,440 --> 00:08:05,960 Speaker 1: this interesting scenario where when you look at representations of 153 00:08:05,960 --> 00:08:10,480 Speaker 1: Santa Claus in China, Santa Claus will often have a saxophone. 154 00:08:11,240 --> 00:08:13,320 Speaker 1: And uh, this was I believe the first person to 155 00:08:13,400 --> 00:08:16,960 Speaker 1: really get into this was journalist Max Fisher, who at 156 00:08:16,960 --> 00:08:19,080 Speaker 1: the time he was writing for the Washington Post. This 157 00:08:19,120 --> 00:08:22,760 Speaker 1: was and Um, and he was saying, hey, what he 158 00:08:22,800 --> 00:08:25,160 Speaker 1: looked into this situation, Why are there all these Santa 159 00:08:25,160 --> 00:08:28,160 Speaker 1: Clauses with saxophones? What does it mean? And he would 160 00:08:28,160 --> 00:08:29,720 Speaker 1: ask people about it and they would say, I don't know, 161 00:08:30,000 --> 00:08:34,000 Speaker 1: Santa just has a saxophone. Um. And so I looked 162 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:36,280 Speaker 1: into a little bit. I I ended up chatting with 163 00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:41,680 Speaker 1: Beijing based journalist Helen gal And and and this was 164 00:08:41,720 --> 00:08:44,800 Speaker 1: in and the short version the short explanation that most 165 00:08:44,800 --> 00:08:48,640 Speaker 1: people tend to gravitate toward here is that American Santa 166 00:08:49,200 --> 00:08:52,600 Speaker 1: Um kind of took up this American instrument in a 167 00:08:52,679 --> 00:08:55,800 Speaker 1: fusion of American symbols during the nineteen eighties. This was 168 00:08:55,840 --> 00:08:58,720 Speaker 1: the time when Santa Claus was introduced as a Western 169 00:08:58,800 --> 00:09:02,920 Speaker 1: concept uh into Chinese popular culture, and he ended up 170 00:09:02,960 --> 00:09:05,920 Speaker 1: just bringing the saxophone as well. Okay, so it's kind 171 00:09:05,920 --> 00:09:08,520 Speaker 1: of like putting a McDonald's takeout bag in his hand. 172 00:09:08,760 --> 00:09:11,360 Speaker 1: It's just like, this is part of American culture. Let's 173 00:09:11,360 --> 00:09:14,760 Speaker 1: give him an American instrument. And so it might lead 174 00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:18,079 Speaker 1: some people to think like I kind of, without looking 175 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:20,679 Speaker 1: into it, I kind of just thought of the saxophone. Yes, 176 00:09:20,720 --> 00:09:22,800 Speaker 1: it is a very American instrument. It's a part totally. 177 00:09:22,840 --> 00:09:24,760 Speaker 1: It's a part of jazz, it's a part of part 178 00:09:24,800 --> 00:09:27,360 Speaker 1: of the you know, the blues, is a part of 179 00:09:27,480 --> 00:09:30,720 Speaker 1: Bruce Springsteen. What could be more American than these examples 180 00:09:31,000 --> 00:09:33,680 Speaker 1: of our musical heritage. And yet it is not an 181 00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:37,160 Speaker 1: American invention, not at all. No, Rather, it is an 182 00:09:37,280 --> 00:09:41,520 Speaker 1: eighteen forties or maybe as early as eighteen thirties creation 183 00:09:42,120 --> 00:09:48,720 Speaker 1: by the Belgian born French inventor and musician Adolf Sacks. Right, 184 00:09:48,800 --> 00:09:52,320 Speaker 1: and and it's not even necessarily one instrument. We keep 185 00:09:52,360 --> 00:09:56,160 Speaker 1: talking about the saxophone, and we'll keep talking about the saxophone. 186 00:09:56,600 --> 00:10:02,040 Speaker 1: But on June eighty six, Uh, Adolph Sacks applied for 187 00:10:02,080 --> 00:10:06,280 Speaker 1: patents on fourteen different types of saxophone. And that's just 188 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:08,560 Speaker 1: the day of the patent, as we'll discuss. He you know, 189 00:10:08,600 --> 00:10:11,760 Speaker 1: he developed and invented it earlier than that. Yeah. Now, 190 00:10:11,800 --> 00:10:14,679 Speaker 1: despite how many he applied for patents for this, at 191 00:10:14,679 --> 00:10:18,000 Speaker 1: this time, there are really only a few varieties of 192 00:10:18,040 --> 00:10:21,240 Speaker 1: saxophone that are in common use today. If you just 193 00:10:21,280 --> 00:10:25,160 Speaker 1: think of a saxophone, what you're probably thinking of is 194 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:29,040 Speaker 1: like an alto saxophone or maybe a tenor saxophone. But 195 00:10:29,080 --> 00:10:33,440 Speaker 1: then they are also soprano saxophones, is baritone saxophone, and 196 00:10:33,480 --> 00:10:37,600 Speaker 1: then there are a lot of later riff riffs on 197 00:10:37,640 --> 00:10:40,959 Speaker 1: the saxophone concept. There are other experimental saxophones, and we'll 198 00:10:40,960 --> 00:10:43,600 Speaker 1: get into some of these as we continue the episode. 199 00:10:43,679 --> 00:10:45,560 Speaker 1: All right, well, maybe first of all we should look 200 00:10:45,640 --> 00:10:50,600 Speaker 1: at what came before the saxophone. Yeah, so obviously there 201 00:10:50,720 --> 00:10:52,240 Speaker 1: was there were, there were there was a lot of 202 00:10:52,280 --> 00:10:55,520 Speaker 1: history before the saxophone. And before the saxophone, we we 203 00:10:55,559 --> 00:10:59,480 Speaker 1: had woodwind instruments and we had brass instruments. The saxophone 204 00:10:59,600 --> 00:11:01,960 Speaker 1: is in singing that it's kind of a hybrid that 205 00:11:02,000 --> 00:11:05,240 Speaker 1: bridges these two families. Now, not to get too bogged 206 00:11:05,240 --> 00:11:07,280 Speaker 1: down in ancient history here, though, I'd love to come 207 00:11:07,280 --> 00:11:11,120 Speaker 1: back and discuss more musical instruments in the future, but horns, 208 00:11:11,400 --> 00:11:14,160 Speaker 1: you know, we've had a shell and bone instruments of 209 00:11:14,280 --> 00:11:17,199 Speaker 1: this type for a very long time. Some of our 210 00:11:17,200 --> 00:11:22,079 Speaker 1: earliest models of musical instrument technology involved blowing a horn 211 00:11:22,120 --> 00:11:25,320 Speaker 1: of some kind, usually adapted from something you know that 212 00:11:25,360 --> 00:11:28,960 Speaker 1: occurs naturally. And uh and in them we see, you know, 213 00:11:29,000 --> 00:11:33,520 Speaker 1: the basic technologies that would evolve into woodwind and brass 214 00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:37,000 Speaker 1: as well. So it's it's all an evolution of materials, 215 00:11:37,040 --> 00:11:42,199 Speaker 1: of design and engineering. As for brass itself as a 216 00:11:42,200 --> 00:11:45,160 Speaker 1: as a as the material for this instrument. I've read 217 00:11:45,160 --> 00:11:47,720 Speaker 1: that the trumpet is the oldest brass instrument, dating back 218 00:11:47,760 --> 00:11:52,840 Speaker 1: to roughly c oh. I think that's where the trumpet 219 00:11:52,920 --> 00:11:57,400 Speaker 1: that I used in in my school days came from. Yes, yeah, yes, 220 00:11:57,480 --> 00:12:00,760 Speaker 1: it was quite elderly and it uh you know, I 221 00:12:00,760 --> 00:12:04,360 Speaker 1: I often wondered, Okay, so I'm like breathing through this thing. 222 00:12:04,520 --> 00:12:08,160 Speaker 1: There's an inevitable amount of when you're blowing through and 223 00:12:08,320 --> 00:12:10,720 Speaker 1: taking a breath, you're gonna suck sort of some air 224 00:12:10,920 --> 00:12:13,520 Speaker 1: through the trumpet as well. And they just had to 225 00:12:13,559 --> 00:12:18,640 Speaker 1: be amazing undiscovered cultures of mold and some stuff in there. 226 00:12:18,920 --> 00:12:21,520 Speaker 1: Sometimes you'd open the spit valves and oh, I don't 227 00:12:21,520 --> 00:12:23,600 Speaker 1: want to gross everybody out too bad. But even if 228 00:12:23,640 --> 00:12:25,400 Speaker 1: you're touching on it, I can kind of, you know, 229 00:12:25,480 --> 00:12:29,440 Speaker 1: the way that you interact with with with scent memories, 230 00:12:29,880 --> 00:12:33,520 Speaker 1: I can sort of recall that that funky brass odor. Yes, 231 00:12:33,960 --> 00:12:36,520 Speaker 1: this this combination of like the smell of the metal. 232 00:12:36,640 --> 00:12:38,200 Speaker 1: I don't know if that's really the metal or if 233 00:12:38,200 --> 00:12:41,240 Speaker 1: it's just imagined, but also of the oil you would 234 00:12:41,360 --> 00:12:44,199 Speaker 1: use to oil the keys on the valves, so some 235 00:12:44,280 --> 00:12:46,640 Speaker 1: kind of gross oil and when you got it in 236 00:12:46,679 --> 00:12:49,800 Speaker 1: your mouth that was not pleasant. And also just the 237 00:12:49,840 --> 00:12:53,480 Speaker 1: smell of life that dwells in moist shadow, the taint 238 00:12:53,559 --> 00:12:57,319 Speaker 1: of the unwashed corn. So to be clear here, the 239 00:12:57,360 --> 00:13:01,000 Speaker 1: saxophone is a woodwind and f mint that is just 240 00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:04,680 Speaker 1: made of brass. It takes the easy to play, single 241 00:13:04,800 --> 00:13:07,880 Speaker 1: read mouthpiece that you would find in a clarinet, for example, 242 00:13:08,080 --> 00:13:11,400 Speaker 1: and it melds it with the easy fingering of large 243 00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:14,600 Speaker 1: woodwinds and an event of course, it is made of brass. 244 00:13:14,679 --> 00:13:18,920 Speaker 1: That's material. It depends on oscillating read for its sound, 245 00:13:19,080 --> 00:13:21,800 Speaker 1: not buzzing lips, which you would find in a in 246 00:13:22,160 --> 00:13:25,120 Speaker 1: a brass mouthpiece such as with the trumpet or than chorn. 247 00:13:25,280 --> 00:13:28,400 Speaker 1: With those you kind of have to go, yeah, it's 248 00:13:28,400 --> 00:13:33,520 Speaker 1: a buzzing I hope you enjoyed that, folks. So, yes, 249 00:13:33,559 --> 00:13:37,760 Speaker 1: this is a this is a pure woodwind. In this regard, however, 250 00:13:37,920 --> 00:13:41,240 Speaker 1: it's worth noting that the very first saxophone was was 251 00:13:41,600 --> 00:13:43,679 Speaker 1: all Would but he was only later than he made 252 00:13:43,679 --> 00:13:46,560 Speaker 1: the switch to brass um. And we'll come back to 253 00:13:47,120 --> 00:13:51,440 Speaker 1: kind some of the curious trivia about this as we proceed. Well, 254 00:13:51,520 --> 00:13:54,600 Speaker 1: let's take a look at all Adolf Sacks himself. So 255 00:13:54,679 --> 00:13:57,280 Speaker 1: I've been reading a book called The Cambridge Companion to 256 00:13:57,360 --> 00:14:01,760 Speaker 1: the Saxophone, edited by Richard Ingham from Cambridge University Press 257 00:14:01,840 --> 00:14:06,880 Speaker 1: n and it has some excellent chapters, especially about the 258 00:14:07,160 --> 00:14:10,320 Speaker 1: the inventor of the saxophone himself, chapter by an author 259 00:14:10,400 --> 00:14:14,480 Speaker 1: named Thomas Lily, but also the book starts with a 260 00:14:14,559 --> 00:14:18,480 Speaker 1: quote from a poem from the Scottish poet Douglas Dunn 261 00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:21,680 Speaker 1: called an Address to Adolph Sas in Heaven and it's 262 00:14:21,720 --> 00:14:23,600 Speaker 1: too good not to read this here here he goes 263 00:14:23,640 --> 00:14:28,080 Speaker 1: so from saxophone quartets by Strauss on days off from 264 00:14:28,080 --> 00:14:30,960 Speaker 1: the opera House, or works by mil Hoode and Ravel 265 00:14:31,400 --> 00:14:35,280 Speaker 1: or Villa Lobos in Brazil to Lester leaping and possessed 266 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:39,200 Speaker 1: by his brass belled iconoclast. The sound we hear is yours, 267 00:14:39,240 --> 00:14:44,240 Speaker 1: Adolph Posterity. It's howling wolf times, salivating on a read 268 00:14:44,680 --> 00:14:48,280 Speaker 1: and fingering at breakneck speed. I like that. It almost 269 00:14:48,280 --> 00:14:51,480 Speaker 1: has kind of a beat quality to it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, 270 00:14:51,560 --> 00:14:54,360 Speaker 1: So who is this guy who's being addressed in heaven here? 271 00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:56,840 Speaker 1: Obviously you can tell from the poem that he's dead, 272 00:14:57,160 --> 00:14:59,800 Speaker 1: and you can probably guess that since he invented the saxophone, 273 00:14:59,800 --> 00:15:02,280 Speaker 1: he pretty much have to be dead, unless I don't know, 274 00:15:02,440 --> 00:15:05,560 Speaker 1: he's a multi centenarian, right, he know he lives on 275 00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:09,560 Speaker 1: in the instrument. But yes, he died in eight He 276 00:15:09,640 --> 00:15:12,680 Speaker 1: was born in eighteen fourteen. He was the first of 277 00:15:12,760 --> 00:15:18,320 Speaker 1: eleven children born in to musical instrument maker in denn 278 00:15:18,680 --> 00:15:21,280 Speaker 1: in what is now Belgium. His parents were not only 279 00:15:21,320 --> 00:15:24,720 Speaker 1: instrument makers, but they were also innovators of in their 280 00:15:24,720 --> 00:15:27,840 Speaker 1: own right, altering designs and uh and of course just 281 00:15:27,920 --> 00:15:30,080 Speaker 1: playing music. So he was born into a family that 282 00:15:30,200 --> 00:15:33,080 Speaker 1: was not only musically literate, but but very versed in 283 00:15:33,120 --> 00:15:37,200 Speaker 1: the technology of musical instruments. Yeah, Adolf's father, Charles Sacks, 284 00:15:37,400 --> 00:15:40,840 Speaker 1: was at one point made the official instrument maker to 285 00:15:40,880 --> 00:15:44,680 Speaker 1: the Court of the Netherlands. And so Charles created an 286 00:15:44,720 --> 00:15:49,360 Speaker 1: alternative design of the horn, the core Omni Tonique, which 287 00:15:49,440 --> 00:15:51,360 Speaker 1: I have an image of here I went and fetched 288 00:15:51,400 --> 00:15:54,560 Speaker 1: from an image of the met Museum, ain't she Abut 289 00:15:54,760 --> 00:15:57,160 Speaker 1: this is good? Now, Robert, you played the French horn, 290 00:15:57,200 --> 00:15:59,440 Speaker 1: but this is not what you played. No, this is 291 00:15:59,680 --> 00:16:03,440 Speaker 1: this his French horn esque in its overall design. But 292 00:16:03,560 --> 00:16:07,640 Speaker 1: there there, there's there are different additional whorls in there. 293 00:16:07,720 --> 00:16:11,000 Speaker 1: It looks like the entrails of a brass angel. Yeah. 294 00:16:11,000 --> 00:16:12,960 Speaker 1: I think it's got a valve that you can sort 295 00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:15,120 Speaker 1: of pump in and out, maybe sort of like a 296 00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:18,160 Speaker 1: trombone handle. I think, yeah, this was no rough horn. 297 00:16:18,240 --> 00:16:19,760 Speaker 1: You can look at this and tell like this, this 298 00:16:19,840 --> 00:16:22,680 Speaker 1: is something that was created by a true craftsman. Beautiful, 299 00:16:22,800 --> 00:16:27,280 Speaker 1: beautiful metal guts and uh and so Sacks. Uh. Adolf 300 00:16:27,360 --> 00:16:31,920 Speaker 1: Sacks grew up amid these these these brass guts. According 301 00:16:31,960 --> 00:16:36,280 Speaker 1: to a text I was reading Leon Kaczynski's Adolf Sacks 302 00:16:36,320 --> 00:16:40,320 Speaker 1: and his Saxophone. Uh. Sacks could drill a clarinets holes 303 00:16:40,400 --> 00:16:43,000 Speaker 1: and bend a horn by the age of six. So 304 00:16:43,040 --> 00:16:45,400 Speaker 1: he simply just grew up in the world of instrument 305 00:16:45,400 --> 00:16:47,560 Speaker 1: crafting and music. And he learned to play a clarinet 306 00:16:47,560 --> 00:16:49,920 Speaker 1: and flute and was quite skilled at this as well, 307 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:54,560 Speaker 1: like like no mere amateur as a musician at all. Yeah. 308 00:16:54,640 --> 00:16:56,920 Speaker 1: It was said that he could have been a renowned 309 00:16:56,920 --> 00:17:00,400 Speaker 1: clarinetist if he wanted, like if he pursued that path instead. 310 00:17:00,440 --> 00:17:02,760 Speaker 1: But when he when he would play his instruments, he 311 00:17:02,800 --> 00:17:06,639 Speaker 1: would keep noticing chances for improvements to the design of 312 00:17:06,680 --> 00:17:09,959 Speaker 1: the instrument itself and then returned to the workshop. And 313 00:17:10,000 --> 00:17:12,400 Speaker 1: so he began to become known for his skill at 314 00:17:12,400 --> 00:17:16,119 Speaker 1: instrument making. With his father Charles, according to the chapter 315 00:17:16,160 --> 00:17:20,000 Speaker 1: by Thomas Lillay, Uh, with his father Charles primarily churning 316 00:17:20,000 --> 00:17:22,800 Speaker 1: out the known instruments for the family to sell, and 317 00:17:22,920 --> 00:17:26,680 Speaker 1: Adolf focusing more and more on experimenting with new forms 318 00:17:26,680 --> 00:17:30,480 Speaker 1: and designs. Yeah, he entered his own handcrafted flutes and 319 00:17:30,520 --> 00:17:33,439 Speaker 1: clarinets and contests by the age of fifteen, and he 320 00:17:33,480 --> 00:17:35,400 Speaker 1: created his own take on the bat at the base 321 00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:39,399 Speaker 1: of clarinet at age twenty. Yeah. Lila's chapter tells the 322 00:17:39,440 --> 00:17:42,720 Speaker 1: story of Sax's entry at the Brussels Exhibition of eighteen 323 00:17:42,760 --> 00:17:46,240 Speaker 1: forty one. Uh. And so this was this instrument show 324 00:17:46,320 --> 00:17:49,639 Speaker 1: and contest that Sachs entered with a handful of clarinets. 325 00:17:49,680 --> 00:17:54,080 Speaker 1: And according to Sax's friend George Kassner, an early model 326 00:17:54,160 --> 00:17:57,680 Speaker 1: of the saxophone was there. So, according to Kassner's version 327 00:17:57,720 --> 00:18:00,040 Speaker 1: of the story, this would have been the public a 328 00:18:00,160 --> 00:18:03,679 Speaker 1: view of the saxophone, except for the unfortunate twist of 329 00:18:03,680 --> 00:18:07,239 Speaker 1: fate that the new instrument quote was sent flying with 330 00:18:07,280 --> 00:18:10,040 Speaker 1: a kick by an unknown person at a time when 331 00:18:10,080 --> 00:18:14,840 Speaker 1: the inventor, Atolf Sacks, was away, so already making enemies 332 00:18:14,880 --> 00:18:19,280 Speaker 1: even one. Somebody just punts your saxophone. Uh. And according 333 00:18:19,320 --> 00:18:22,680 Speaker 1: to Lila, the judges at this contest recommended Sacks for 334 00:18:22,720 --> 00:18:26,880 Speaker 1: the gold medal, but the central jury rejected their recommendation 335 00:18:26,920 --> 00:18:29,239 Speaker 1: because they said Sacks was too young to win the 336 00:18:29,280 --> 00:18:33,120 Speaker 1: top prize. And Sacks reportedly commented on this quote if 337 00:18:33,160 --> 00:18:35,120 Speaker 1: I am too young for the gold medal, I am 338 00:18:35,160 --> 00:18:38,000 Speaker 1: too old for the silver. Oh man, this is already 339 00:18:38,000 --> 00:18:41,560 Speaker 1: just a great snapshot of of Sacks. Yeah. You know, 340 00:18:41,600 --> 00:18:45,000 Speaker 1: in reading his from his biographies, he becomes pretty clear 341 00:18:45,040 --> 00:18:48,080 Speaker 1: like that he's one of these these individuals who creates 342 00:18:48,119 --> 00:18:51,760 Speaker 1: something that's going to live on after he's gone, but 343 00:18:51,880 --> 00:18:54,840 Speaker 1: he himself is is not really going to have a 344 00:18:54,920 --> 00:18:57,560 Speaker 1: real bite of that success. Yeah, he clearly was a 345 00:18:57,680 --> 00:19:01,000 Speaker 1: very talented, very smart person, but also just he had 346 00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:04,280 Speaker 1: a lot of troubles. Yeah, and some of these were 347 00:19:04,359 --> 00:19:06,719 Speaker 1: outside of his control, but then a number of them 348 00:19:06,760 --> 00:19:09,399 Speaker 1: also seemed to be kind of self inflicted. And and 349 00:19:09,440 --> 00:19:11,040 Speaker 1: this is he's very much a study and like what 350 00:19:11,280 --> 00:19:16,360 Speaker 1: kind of like what kind of determination is sometimes involved 351 00:19:16,400 --> 00:19:19,600 Speaker 1: in an inventor's mindset? You know? Uh? And and how 352 00:19:19,760 --> 00:19:24,280 Speaker 1: might that determination uh run at odds with polite society. 353 00:19:24,560 --> 00:19:26,639 Speaker 1: But what were all the stories about how he like 354 00:19:26,720 --> 00:19:30,560 Speaker 1: almost perished repeatedly as a child. Oh yeah, according to 355 00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:35,200 Speaker 1: Adolf sax and his saxophone, Um, his mother referred to 356 00:19:35,359 --> 00:19:38,919 Speaker 1: him as quote little Sacks of the ghost based on 357 00:19:38,960 --> 00:19:41,640 Speaker 1: the number of times he almost died. So he managed 358 00:19:41,680 --> 00:19:44,880 Speaker 1: to survive a three story fall Uh, an incident where 359 00:19:44,920 --> 00:19:49,160 Speaker 1: he swallowed virtualized water and a pin at age three, 360 00:19:49,920 --> 00:19:54,720 Speaker 1: gunpowder explosion, burns, a fall into a cast iron frying pan. 361 00:19:55,160 --> 00:19:57,920 Speaker 1: How do you fall into one? He's very small at 362 00:19:57,920 --> 00:20:00,439 Speaker 1: the time. Maybe small at the time, yeah, or you know, 363 00:20:00,480 --> 00:20:05,080 Speaker 1: it's unclear, like maybe just part of him. Uh. Also 364 00:20:05,320 --> 00:20:09,919 Speaker 1: poisonings and phyxiations due to varnished items left lying in 365 00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:13,520 Speaker 1: his bedroom at night. What I'm unclear of that is, 366 00:20:13,840 --> 00:20:16,439 Speaker 1: you know, due to ongoing projects that his parents were 367 00:20:16,480 --> 00:20:18,480 Speaker 1: working on or stuff that he was working on, because 368 00:20:18,480 --> 00:20:21,280 Speaker 1: clearly from a very early age he was engaging in 369 00:20:21,320 --> 00:20:23,080 Speaker 1: these sort of in this sort of activity. Well, I 370 00:20:23,080 --> 00:20:26,479 Speaker 1: think before his parents worked on musical instruments, they worked 371 00:20:26,520 --> 00:20:29,800 Speaker 1: on furniture, like cabinets. They were cabinet makers, and so 372 00:20:29,840 --> 00:20:32,719 Speaker 1: it could be varnishing of cabinet parts. There you go. 373 00:20:33,240 --> 00:20:34,960 Speaker 1: And once he was hit in the hit on the 374 00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:39,320 Speaker 1: head by a cobblestone and fell into a river. Dang. Yeah. 375 00:20:39,400 --> 00:20:42,080 Speaker 1: So it's kind of a minor miracle that he even 376 00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:46,359 Speaker 1: lived to adulthood based on these stories, and then his 377 00:20:46,520 --> 00:20:50,200 Speaker 1: life in Paris as an adult seems just consumed by 378 00:20:50,440 --> 00:20:54,560 Speaker 1: rivalries with various enemies. At least one of which culminated 379 00:20:54,600 --> 00:20:58,080 Speaker 1: in a musical duel. Uh. And then there were all 380 00:20:58,119 --> 00:21:02,560 Speaker 1: these various betrayals as well. So Kochynsky wrote that he 381 00:21:02,680 --> 00:21:06,440 Speaker 1: quote had exceptional gifts for the gentle art of making enemies. 382 00:21:07,040 --> 00:21:10,040 Speaker 1: So you're left with this, this vision of a difficult 383 00:21:10,080 --> 00:21:13,720 Speaker 1: of very difficult but determined and talented man um And 384 00:21:13,760 --> 00:21:16,239 Speaker 1: he did find some key patrons and supporters, you know, 385 00:21:16,440 --> 00:21:19,240 Speaker 1: sometimes in very high places. Yeah, like he there was 386 00:21:19,280 --> 00:21:21,680 Speaker 1: almost like when he did make friends, he could make 387 00:21:21,840 --> 00:21:26,679 Speaker 1: really influential friends. But even in his successes, such as 388 00:21:26,680 --> 00:21:30,040 Speaker 1: with the saxophone, he still had to fight ceaseless battles 389 00:21:30,080 --> 00:21:33,600 Speaker 1: against those who would imitate and and or outright steal 390 00:21:33,760 --> 00:21:36,160 Speaker 1: his craft. Yeah, so we should get to more on that, 391 00:21:36,280 --> 00:21:39,679 Speaker 1: because after this Brussels exhibition in eighteen forty one, Sachs 392 00:21:39,760 --> 00:21:42,000 Speaker 1: moved to Paris and he continued his work there. This 393 00:21:42,040 --> 00:21:45,359 Speaker 1: was around eighteen forty two, and at the time a 394 00:21:45,480 --> 00:21:49,479 Speaker 1: writer named Hector Barelos wrote an article about Sax's arrival, 395 00:21:49,480 --> 00:21:53,040 Speaker 1: which included the following. This is sited in Lila's chapter quote. 396 00:21:53,400 --> 00:21:56,720 Speaker 1: He is a man of penetrating mind, lucid, tenacious, with 397 00:21:56,760 --> 00:22:00,720 Speaker 1: a perseverance against all trials and great skill. He is 398 00:22:00,760 --> 00:22:04,680 Speaker 1: at the same time a calculator, accoustician and as necessary 399 00:22:04,720 --> 00:22:08,879 Speaker 1: also a smelter, turner and engraver. He can think and act, 400 00:22:09,000 --> 00:22:14,360 Speaker 1: He invents and accomplishes. So obviously Sax made he found it. Uh, 401 00:22:14,880 --> 00:22:17,359 Speaker 1: he found a way of making very positive impressions on 402 00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:20,280 Speaker 1: some people. And once in Paris, Sacks made friends with 403 00:22:20,400 --> 00:22:23,360 Speaker 1: big players in the music world and gave public performances 404 00:22:23,400 --> 00:22:26,600 Speaker 1: with his instruments. But he also made enemies very quickly, 405 00:22:26,720 --> 00:22:31,560 Speaker 1: especially among the other instrument makers of Paris, people who 406 00:22:31,800 --> 00:22:35,639 Speaker 1: saw in Sacks a threat to their business. Yeah, who 407 00:22:35,680 --> 00:22:39,880 Speaker 1: would have thought that this was such a vicious world? 408 00:22:40,800 --> 00:22:43,680 Speaker 1: You know that the world of of of of instrument 409 00:22:43,720 --> 00:22:46,639 Speaker 1: makers in Paris. Oh, it's about to get vicious in 410 00:22:46,720 --> 00:22:50,000 Speaker 1: ways that you will be shocked by. So Lili quotes 411 00:22:50,040 --> 00:22:52,320 Speaker 1: a letter written by Hector bare leo Is in October 412 00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:55,560 Speaker 1: of eighteen forty three. Quote, it is scarcely to be 413 00:22:55,560 --> 00:22:58,439 Speaker 1: believed that this gifted young artist should be finding it 414 00:22:58,480 --> 00:23:02,160 Speaker 1: difficult to maintain his edition and make a career in Paris. 415 00:23:02,560 --> 00:23:05,720 Speaker 1: The persecutions he suffers are worthy of the Middle Ages, 416 00:23:05,960 --> 00:23:09,040 Speaker 1: and recall the antics of the enemies of Ben Venuto 417 00:23:09,160 --> 00:23:14,040 Speaker 1: the Florentine sculptor. They lure away his workmen, steal his designs, 418 00:23:14,080 --> 00:23:17,960 Speaker 1: accuse him of insanity, and bring legal proceedings against him. 419 00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:22,160 Speaker 1: Such is the hatred inventors, inspire and rivals who are 420 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:26,800 Speaker 1: incapable of inventing anything themselves. Man, So, what are some 421 00:23:26,880 --> 00:23:29,199 Speaker 1: examples of how they work to get against him? There? 422 00:23:29,280 --> 00:23:31,879 Speaker 1: There are several in this book. Uh So, some of 423 00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:35,640 Speaker 1: Sax's enemies tried to undercut him by using their influence 424 00:23:35,680 --> 00:23:38,720 Speaker 1: in the music world to make sure Sax's instruments, for example, 425 00:23:38,760 --> 00:23:42,359 Speaker 1: his bass clarinet were not accepted in orchestras right, so 426 00:23:42,400 --> 00:23:45,000 Speaker 1: they would they would have influence over somebody in in 427 00:23:45,119 --> 00:23:49,119 Speaker 1: some big influential orchestra, they say, like the lead clarinetists 428 00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:52,239 Speaker 1: and some Paris orchestra, who would then say, you know, 429 00:23:52,320 --> 00:23:56,680 Speaker 1: if you let instruments invented by Adolph Sax into this orchestra, 430 00:23:57,040 --> 00:23:59,600 Speaker 1: I will walk out. I will not play with you anymore. Yeah, 431 00:23:59,640 --> 00:24:01,200 Speaker 1: I was your thing about some of these, and then 432 00:24:01,240 --> 00:24:03,399 Speaker 1: the other text where people were like, yeah, I'm not 433 00:24:03,440 --> 00:24:08,320 Speaker 1: playing at Off Sacks instrument. It's hard, it's really it's 434 00:24:08,400 --> 00:24:10,280 Speaker 1: very it's difficult. But I think for us to really 435 00:24:10,359 --> 00:24:12,920 Speaker 1: imagine this kind of world, because I know, for all 436 00:24:12,960 --> 00:24:15,679 Speaker 1: of my life I kind of thought of you know, 437 00:24:15,720 --> 00:24:18,919 Speaker 1: instruments are kind of fixed, you know, they're they're all old, 438 00:24:18,960 --> 00:24:21,399 Speaker 1: well established instruments, Like the newest instrument is going to 439 00:24:21,440 --> 00:24:24,119 Speaker 1: be like the you know what, electric guitar whatnot. But 440 00:24:24,320 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 1: but no new invent new instruments are being invented all 441 00:24:27,119 --> 00:24:29,640 Speaker 1: the time. I mean. Now, one thing that does come 442 00:24:29,680 --> 00:24:33,480 Speaker 1: into become an issue here is that when a new 443 00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:39,080 Speaker 1: instrument is invented, it doesn't yet have like compositions written 444 00:24:39,119 --> 00:24:42,719 Speaker 1: specifically with it in mind. So if you're playing older 445 00:24:42,760 --> 00:24:45,359 Speaker 1: compositions for an orchestra, they're probably they're not going to 446 00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:48,840 Speaker 1: have a saxophone part written in them, right, And of course, 447 00:24:48,840 --> 00:24:52,080 Speaker 1: not every instrument has a lot of versatility, Like obviously 448 00:24:52,119 --> 00:24:54,359 Speaker 1: the saxophone has quite a bit of versatility. But on 449 00:24:54,400 --> 00:24:58,199 Speaker 1: the other hand, something like the theoremin has limited usage 450 00:24:58,720 --> 00:25:02,520 Speaker 1: in music even when it is it's it's played exceptionally well. Yeah, 451 00:25:02,560 --> 00:25:06,280 Speaker 1: but even if these orchestras were considering incorporating say a 452 00:25:06,280 --> 00:25:10,439 Speaker 1: base clarinet of sax's design, or a saxophone or a 453 00:25:10,520 --> 00:25:13,119 Speaker 1: sax horn, uh, you know, any of the stuff he 454 00:25:13,160 --> 00:25:16,639 Speaker 1: put together, there would be ways that these rival instrument 455 00:25:16,760 --> 00:25:19,600 Speaker 1: instrument makers could try to shut that down and prevent 456 00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:22,560 Speaker 1: it from happening. Also, when the French government was considering 457 00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:25,680 Speaker 1: adopting some of Sax's instruments for the reform of its 458 00:25:25,720 --> 00:25:29,640 Speaker 1: military ensembles, because apparently at the time, the French government 459 00:25:29,720 --> 00:25:33,320 Speaker 1: considered the old, sort of decrepit state of their their 460 00:25:33,359 --> 00:25:36,840 Speaker 1: military marching bands to be an embarrassment. They needed new 461 00:25:36,880 --> 00:25:39,240 Speaker 1: military music to show off, which is kind of a 462 00:25:39,240 --> 00:25:42,760 Speaker 1: funny thing to consider that they'd be super concerned about, 463 00:25:42,800 --> 00:25:45,680 Speaker 1: but that this would be an expression of your military 464 00:25:45,760 --> 00:25:48,560 Speaker 1: prowess since I guess as a different time. Yeah, but 465 00:25:48,640 --> 00:25:51,320 Speaker 1: then again, it is technology, and that's one thing that 466 00:25:51,160 --> 00:25:53,800 Speaker 1: is that we shouldn't overlook, like like we're talking about 467 00:25:53,960 --> 00:25:58,040 Speaker 1: musical technology. Yeah. Uh So this was going on. There 468 00:25:58,119 --> 00:26:01,199 Speaker 1: was a just so the French government considering adopting some 469 00:26:01,280 --> 00:26:05,760 Speaker 1: of Sax's instruments for their for their military use, and 470 00:26:05,920 --> 00:26:10,040 Speaker 1: then opposition to Sax really intensified the rival instrument makers. 471 00:26:10,080 --> 00:26:14,720 Speaker 1: They formed this association that was basically just organized to 472 00:26:14,760 --> 00:26:17,679 Speaker 1: attack Sacks and shut him down, and they tried to 473 00:26:17,720 --> 00:26:20,199 Speaker 1: sue him to prevent him from getting a patent on 474 00:26:20,240 --> 00:26:25,000 Speaker 1: the saxophone. One of the tactics they tried is downright diabolical. 475 00:26:25,240 --> 00:26:28,280 Speaker 1: So in I'm gonna quote here from Lilla's chapter quote, 476 00:26:28,680 --> 00:26:32,439 Speaker 1: in another tactic, several saxophones were purchased and sent to 477 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:37,800 Speaker 1: other countries. Sax's identification was removed and the instruments were 478 00:26:37,840 --> 00:26:41,560 Speaker 1: then re engraved to indicate foreign manufacture. Right, So the 479 00:26:41,640 --> 00:26:45,800 Speaker 1: ideas to say, oh, no, saxophone, saxophone, I'm calling him saxophone. 480 00:26:45,840 --> 00:26:49,359 Speaker 1: Sacks did not invent the saxophone. They're already ones being 481 00:26:49,400 --> 00:26:52,520 Speaker 1: made by other people over here beforehand, man, So they're 482 00:26:52,520 --> 00:26:56,520 Speaker 1: just straight up falsifying evidence to support this idea that 483 00:26:56,600 --> 00:27:00,359 Speaker 1: he stole the saxophone design from other countries. Right. But 484 00:27:00,440 --> 00:27:04,840 Speaker 1: of course, fortunately that Lila says that these forgeries were 485 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:08,399 Speaker 1: poorly executed and quickly revealed as a ruse. But it 486 00:27:08,520 --> 00:27:11,360 Speaker 1: just did not stop here. From the late eighteen forties 487 00:27:11,400 --> 00:27:13,920 Speaker 1: on through the rest of his life, it seems sax 488 00:27:14,040 --> 00:27:18,879 Speaker 1: was just plagued with money troubles and constant lawsuits. His 489 00:27:18,960 --> 00:27:22,160 Speaker 1: biography at this point really just reads mostly as one 490 00:27:22,840 --> 00:27:27,600 Speaker 1: miserable sounding court case or bankruptcy threat after another, and 491 00:27:27,760 --> 00:27:31,560 Speaker 1: he eventually died in eighteen ninety four in poverty. I believe, Yeah, 492 00:27:31,560 --> 00:27:34,480 Speaker 1: I think so. But I think we should turn back 493 00:27:34,520 --> 00:27:37,440 Speaker 1: to the eighteen forties to look at the invention of 494 00:27:37,480 --> 00:27:40,399 Speaker 1: the saxophone in particular. But maybe first we'll take a break. 495 00:27:46,119 --> 00:27:49,920 Speaker 1: All right, we're back and we're discussing the saxophone. So 496 00:27:50,080 --> 00:27:53,040 Speaker 1: Sachs was first granted a patent for the saxophone on 497 00:27:53,160 --> 00:27:56,879 Speaker 1: June twenty second, eighteen forty six, and getting this patent, 498 00:27:56,960 --> 00:27:59,440 Speaker 1: as we mentioned earlier, turned out to be difficult due 499 00:27:59,520 --> 00:28:03,959 Speaker 1: to the intentional sabotage of an association of rival musical 500 00:28:04,000 --> 00:28:07,800 Speaker 1: instrument makers, which we discussed a bit earlier, a musical 501 00:28:07,880 --> 00:28:11,000 Speaker 1: legion of doom. Yeah. So, according to this chapter by 502 00:28:11,000 --> 00:28:14,520 Speaker 1: Thomas Lillay, another one of the challenges that Sax's rivals 503 00:28:14,560 --> 00:28:18,040 Speaker 1: put in his way was quote the contention that because 504 00:28:18,080 --> 00:28:21,720 Speaker 1: the saxophone had been performed before a large public audience 505 00:28:21,840 --> 00:28:24,960 Speaker 1: during the contest on the Champ du Mars, it was 506 00:28:25,080 --> 00:28:29,320 Speaker 1: invalid for patent. So Sax's response to this challenge was 507 00:28:29,359 --> 00:28:32,160 Speaker 1: pretty awesome. He came back with a challenge. In return, 508 00:28:32,520 --> 00:28:37,040 Speaker 1: he withdrew his patent request and dared his the plaintiffs 509 00:28:37,240 --> 00:28:40,240 Speaker 1: to build a saxophone of their own without the use 510 00:28:40,280 --> 00:28:43,000 Speaker 1: of his design specs, and they were unable to do it. 511 00:28:43,280 --> 00:28:45,920 Speaker 1: So a little less than a year later sax refiled 512 00:28:46,000 --> 00:28:49,480 Speaker 1: and got his patent application granted. So now he's got 513 00:28:49,480 --> 00:28:52,680 Speaker 1: the thing patented. But as we've talked about, obviously Sacks 514 00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:55,560 Speaker 1: didn't invent it in eighteen forty six. He'd been working 515 00:28:55,600 --> 00:28:58,200 Speaker 1: on this for a while. Uh. We remember the story 516 00:28:58,240 --> 00:29:00,920 Speaker 1: from eighteen forty one with the exhibition in Brussels were 517 00:29:00,960 --> 00:29:04,480 Speaker 1: at least according to Kassner, Uh, he had a saxophone 518 00:29:04,520 --> 00:29:08,520 Speaker 1: then before somebody came along and punted it. But maybe 519 00:29:08,520 --> 00:29:10,760 Speaker 1: a way of coming at this issue is to think 520 00:29:10,800 --> 00:29:14,680 Speaker 1: about what makes the saxophone special, Like, what is it 521 00:29:14,800 --> 00:29:18,360 Speaker 1: about this instrument that needed to be invented. So the 522 00:29:18,400 --> 00:29:22,280 Speaker 1: word saxophone means literally either sound of Sacks or voice 523 00:29:22,280 --> 00:29:24,840 Speaker 1: of Sacks. I don't know which one is better. I 524 00:29:24,880 --> 00:29:27,160 Speaker 1: guess voice of Sacks is better. That the Greek phone 525 00:29:27,280 --> 00:29:30,440 Speaker 1: could mean sound or voice off often voice, and I 526 00:29:30,520 --> 00:29:32,440 Speaker 1: like that. It's kind of creepy to think about the 527 00:29:32,520 --> 00:29:35,440 Speaker 1: voice of the inventor coming and speaking through the brass tube. 528 00:29:35,440 --> 00:29:37,560 Speaker 1: More than the century after he dies. It would have 529 00:29:37,600 --> 00:29:39,800 Speaker 1: been a great album title for him, you know, the 530 00:29:40,160 --> 00:29:44,040 Speaker 1: Voice of Sacks, Sound of Sacks, Sacks from the Heart 531 00:29:44,080 --> 00:29:48,560 Speaker 1: of Space. Now, the saxophone has nineteen keys, and it 532 00:29:48,720 --> 00:29:53,400 Speaker 1: slightly resembles the off acclyde, which is a brass instrument. 533 00:29:53,440 --> 00:29:56,840 Speaker 1: It was invented earlier that century in France. Yes, and 534 00:29:57,200 --> 00:29:59,960 Speaker 1: literally lists a number of instruments that have been offered 535 00:30:00,080 --> 00:30:03,480 Speaker 1: does design ancestors to the saxophone. So a few of 536 00:30:03,480 --> 00:30:07,640 Speaker 1: these include a quote Argentine instrument quote made of a 537 00:30:07,680 --> 00:30:10,600 Speaker 1: cow's horn whose tip is shaped to resemble a single 538 00:30:10,640 --> 00:30:13,840 Speaker 1: read mouthpiece with a thin read of bone bound by 539 00:30:13,840 --> 00:30:17,600 Speaker 1: a silk thread. Another one might be the alto fagato, 540 00:30:17,720 --> 00:30:19,960 Speaker 1: which is a sort of high register bassoon. I think 541 00:30:19,960 --> 00:30:23,080 Speaker 1: that name just means high bassoon. And then the Hungarian 542 00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:27,160 Speaker 1: taro gatta, which is a canonical bore would wind you know. 543 00:30:27,160 --> 00:30:28,880 Speaker 1: I'm gonna mention this later in the episode as well. 544 00:30:28,880 --> 00:30:32,520 Speaker 1: But anyone who's intrigued by the history of musical instruments, 545 00:30:32,520 --> 00:30:36,640 Speaker 1: I highly recommend the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, Arizona. 546 00:30:37,360 --> 00:30:40,960 Speaker 1: It's amazing museum, well worth the price of admission. They 547 00:30:40,960 --> 00:30:44,600 Speaker 1: have musical instruments from all over the world. Uh, just 548 00:30:44,920 --> 00:30:48,680 Speaker 1: stroll from continent to continent and just wow yourself with 549 00:30:48,720 --> 00:30:52,520 Speaker 1: how many different designs there are that have a lot 550 00:30:52,600 --> 00:30:54,719 Speaker 1: in common. Like you know, they're they're string instruments from 551 00:30:54,720 --> 00:30:57,680 Speaker 1: all over the world, and in in a very simple way, 552 00:30:57,720 --> 00:31:00,560 Speaker 1: they are all doing the same thing. But yet the 553 00:31:00,600 --> 00:31:04,480 Speaker 1: materials involved, the design involved, the artistry involved, this the 554 00:31:04,520 --> 00:31:07,000 Speaker 1: sort of music that has then created with the instrument 555 00:31:07,760 --> 00:31:10,760 Speaker 1: very so much. Um and certainly you see plenty of 556 00:31:10,800 --> 00:31:14,240 Speaker 1: different instruments of that museum that are made from parts 557 00:31:14,240 --> 00:31:16,760 Speaker 1: of an animal was going there? What means you want 558 00:31:16,760 --> 00:31:18,840 Speaker 1: to do this episode on the saxophone? I think it did. 559 00:31:18,880 --> 00:31:21,800 Speaker 1: It did? It did remind me of of the saxophone 560 00:31:21,840 --> 00:31:24,200 Speaker 1: as being an example of like, here's a musical instrument 561 00:31:24,280 --> 00:31:27,520 Speaker 1: that first of all has a very clear cut inventor, 562 00:31:28,480 --> 00:31:30,440 Speaker 1: but also with his name on it, with his name 563 00:31:30,480 --> 00:31:32,320 Speaker 1: on it. Uh. And yet at the same time it 564 00:31:32,360 --> 00:31:37,680 Speaker 1: does tie into this this larger history of musical instrument technology. Right. Well, 565 00:31:37,800 --> 00:31:40,080 Speaker 1: given that it was part of this larger history, I 566 00:31:40,120 --> 00:31:42,720 Speaker 1: guess we need to ask the question again what makes 567 00:31:42,800 --> 00:31:46,000 Speaker 1: the saxophone special? Like what was it alf Sacks trying 568 00:31:46,040 --> 00:31:49,160 Speaker 1: to do when he made it? Uh? Some sources claim 569 00:31:49,240 --> 00:31:52,720 Speaker 1: that he sort of discovered the design by accident. Sax's 570 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:56,880 Speaker 1: son Adolf Edward, disputes this. A likely reason for its 571 00:31:56,920 --> 00:32:01,320 Speaker 1: creation was that Sachs wanted to create a version of 572 00:32:01,360 --> 00:32:06,240 Speaker 1: the clarinet that would overblow in octaves rather than in twelve. 573 00:32:06,360 --> 00:32:08,440 Speaker 1: So now I didn't know what this meant when I 574 00:32:08,480 --> 00:32:09,960 Speaker 1: first read it, so I had to go read about 575 00:32:09,960 --> 00:32:12,640 Speaker 1: this and figure out what this is. As best as 576 00:32:12,640 --> 00:32:16,240 Speaker 1: I understand. Overblowing is when you change the note being 577 00:32:16,240 --> 00:32:20,080 Speaker 1: played on a wind instrument without changing the fingering, but 578 00:32:20,240 --> 00:32:23,040 Speaker 1: simply by altering the air flow. So maybe like blowing 579 00:32:23,080 --> 00:32:26,080 Speaker 1: harder or changing the position of the mouth or whatever, 580 00:32:26,360 --> 00:32:29,120 Speaker 1: So you can hold a fingering, change what you're doing 581 00:32:29,160 --> 00:32:32,080 Speaker 1: with your mouth and your lungs, and cause the sound 582 00:32:32,200 --> 00:32:35,200 Speaker 1: produced by the instrument to jump up to a higher pitch. 583 00:32:35,800 --> 00:32:38,520 Speaker 1: And on the saxophone, what makes the saxophone special is 584 00:32:38,560 --> 00:32:41,760 Speaker 1: that this interval where the note jumps up to is 585 00:32:41,760 --> 00:32:45,880 Speaker 1: a perfect octave, essentially the same note one octave up, 586 00:32:46,200 --> 00:32:48,080 Speaker 1: which is a useful thing. This isn't the case on 587 00:32:48,120 --> 00:32:51,640 Speaker 1: other instruments, like on a clarinet, it when you overblow, 588 00:32:51,680 --> 00:32:54,120 Speaker 1: it tends to jump up by like a twelve or 589 00:32:54,200 --> 00:32:56,920 Speaker 1: something not a perfect octave, and the fact that the 590 00:32:56,960 --> 00:33:02,240 Speaker 1: saxophone can overblow into a perfect octave is musically useful. 591 00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:04,880 Speaker 1: It's useful to the player. It can be pleasing. So 592 00:33:04,920 --> 00:33:07,400 Speaker 1: there's a lot of speculation that this was the purpose 593 00:33:07,480 --> 00:33:10,560 Speaker 1: of why why sax created this in the first place. 594 00:33:10,600 --> 00:33:12,640 Speaker 1: It was to have an instrument that could do this, 595 00:33:13,120 --> 00:33:16,400 Speaker 1: But we don't know for sure exactly why the saxophone 596 00:33:16,440 --> 00:33:19,840 Speaker 1: was created. Yeah, ad off Sex never claimed to have 597 00:33:19,880 --> 00:33:23,960 Speaker 1: been visited by a muscular angel playing this instrument, right right. 598 00:33:24,480 --> 00:33:26,720 Speaker 1: Uh you know. Also, I just had the perfect idea, 599 00:33:26,760 --> 00:33:29,280 Speaker 1: and now what I know has to be the case 600 00:33:29,720 --> 00:33:31,760 Speaker 1: is that that guy in the Lost Boys. You know, 601 00:33:32,440 --> 00:33:35,479 Speaker 1: muscle guys are often oiled up, this guy was oiled 602 00:33:35,600 --> 00:33:40,360 Speaker 1: up with with like the trumpet valve key oil. Now 603 00:33:40,600 --> 00:33:43,800 Speaker 1: I've also read that the saxophone bridges the gap between 604 00:33:43,840 --> 00:33:46,200 Speaker 1: the brass section and the woodwinds. Uh you know, and 605 00:33:46,200 --> 00:33:48,520 Speaker 1: I guess that that explanation kind of know. It also 606 00:33:48,560 --> 00:33:50,560 Speaker 1: plays with this idea that it is a fusion of 607 00:33:50,600 --> 00:33:53,560 Speaker 1: the two design elements. But the idea is that it 608 00:33:53,560 --> 00:33:56,040 Speaker 1: also it creates a tonal balance between the two. It's 609 00:33:56,040 --> 00:33:59,840 Speaker 1: a versatile instrument with a quote middle voice. Yeah, and 610 00:34:00,040 --> 00:34:03,040 Speaker 1: the saxophone is also said to have the sound closest 611 00:34:03,040 --> 00:34:05,680 Speaker 1: to the human voice, making it an obvious choice for 612 00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:09,600 Speaker 1: you know, you're pleasing musical solos. Yeah. Thomas Lily's chapter 613 00:34:09,760 --> 00:34:13,680 Speaker 1: in in the Cambridge Companion, he writes about how the 614 00:34:13,760 --> 00:34:17,919 Speaker 1: saxophone is sometimes thought of as a singing instrument. It's 615 00:34:17,960 --> 00:34:21,080 Speaker 1: got the like the range and versatility of a human 616 00:34:21,200 --> 00:34:25,560 Speaker 1: voice quote, capable of producing guttural sounds and fine spun 617 00:34:25,800 --> 00:34:30,400 Speaker 1: spun eloquence, of rabble rousing and of inspiring and he 618 00:34:30,600 --> 00:34:33,480 Speaker 1: so he says, like the singing quality of the saxophone 619 00:34:33,640 --> 00:34:37,040 Speaker 1: made it really well suited, especially to become part of 620 00:34:37,520 --> 00:34:41,160 Speaker 1: not like orchestral music, but of jazz and popular music, 621 00:34:41,239 --> 00:34:45,839 Speaker 1: which tended to evolve from originally acapella forms that, like, 622 00:34:45,960 --> 00:34:49,320 Speaker 1: you know, jazz and popular music grew out of stuff 623 00:34:49,360 --> 00:34:52,279 Speaker 1: like blues and work songs and folk songs that were 624 00:34:52,360 --> 00:34:55,200 Speaker 1: sung before they were anything else. So in a way, 625 00:34:55,200 --> 00:34:58,640 Speaker 1: it's almost like a an instrument of translation from purely 626 00:34:58,719 --> 00:35:02,239 Speaker 1: vocal music into uh, instrumental music. Yeah, I think that's 627 00:35:02,280 --> 00:35:04,240 Speaker 1: a good way of thinking about it. Yeah, this again, 628 00:35:04,239 --> 00:35:06,720 Speaker 1: this player, this, this definitely aligns up with this feeling 629 00:35:06,800 --> 00:35:10,320 Speaker 1: that the saxophone is very organic and and and also 630 00:35:10,440 --> 00:35:13,560 Speaker 1: probably plays up to the sensual aspects of the saxophone. 631 00:35:13,560 --> 00:35:17,320 Speaker 1: There are again personified in this this vision of the 632 00:35:17,400 --> 00:35:22,279 Speaker 1: muscular saxophone player engaging in his solo. I should also, 633 00:35:22,440 --> 00:35:24,960 Speaker 1: as long as we're talking about materials and all, I 634 00:35:24,960 --> 00:35:27,040 Speaker 1: should point out that the flute is the only other 635 00:35:27,440 --> 00:35:32,080 Speaker 1: you know, um of famous metal woodwind instrument. However, the 636 00:35:32,120 --> 00:35:35,320 Speaker 1: flute was originally crafted from wood and is still sometimes 637 00:35:35,400 --> 00:35:39,160 Speaker 1: crafted from wood today. I think they're they're even bone flutes, right, yeah, yeah, 638 00:35:39,200 --> 00:35:42,520 Speaker 1: flute technology. Yeah, it goes back a long way now. 639 00:35:42,560 --> 00:35:45,560 Speaker 1: According to the author Don Ashton, one of the things 640 00:35:45,640 --> 00:35:48,879 Speaker 1: that makes the saxophone unique and appealing is that it's 641 00:35:49,000 --> 00:35:51,520 Speaker 1: sort of a friendly instrument to pick up, like that 642 00:35:51,719 --> 00:35:56,200 Speaker 1: it has acoustical properties that make it easy to learn 643 00:35:56,480 --> 00:36:00,560 Speaker 1: and and uh, it is an amiable object to sound. 644 00:36:00,880 --> 00:36:04,719 Speaker 1: Ashton writes, quote relative to other woodwind instruments, the saxophone 645 00:36:04,719 --> 00:36:08,040 Speaker 1: has a large bore, and this is of great significance 646 00:36:08,080 --> 00:36:11,280 Speaker 1: to many aspects of its sound capabilities and player response. 647 00:36:11,719 --> 00:36:15,000 Speaker 1: The use of a conical tube renders the sound wave 648 00:36:15,280 --> 00:36:19,360 Speaker 1: richly harmonic, yet the fingering system rivals that of the flute. 649 00:36:19,360 --> 00:36:23,160 Speaker 1: In simplicity. In common with other large bore instruments, the 650 00:36:23,200 --> 00:36:27,360 Speaker 1: fundamentals are easily formed. Yet the reduction and bore towards 651 00:36:27,400 --> 00:36:31,560 Speaker 1: the mouthpiece facilitates both an evenness of timber throughout the 652 00:36:31,600 --> 00:36:34,880 Speaker 1: instrument and the extension of the two and a half 653 00:36:34,920 --> 00:36:39,480 Speaker 1: octave normal range. Now, of course, experienced players now often 654 00:36:39,560 --> 00:36:42,520 Speaker 1: take the instrument beyond that normal range, but that was 655 00:36:42,560 --> 00:36:44,839 Speaker 1: sort of like the range at which it was originally 656 00:36:44,840 --> 00:36:47,200 Speaker 1: said that the instrument was meant to be played. So 657 00:36:47,239 --> 00:36:50,640 Speaker 1: it kind of hits this perfect balance point, you know. 658 00:36:50,760 --> 00:36:53,680 Speaker 1: It's it's an instrument that's easy to pick up, but 659 00:36:53,880 --> 00:36:57,920 Speaker 1: yet it rewards the h the musician who invests a 660 00:36:57,960 --> 00:37:00,920 Speaker 1: great deal of time and energy into it. Exactly. Yeah, 661 00:37:01,200 --> 00:37:04,600 Speaker 1: And because it's characterized as as seeming to to like 662 00:37:04,880 --> 00:37:08,520 Speaker 1: grow so organically from what the musician is able to do, 663 00:37:08,600 --> 00:37:10,840 Speaker 1: you can take it in a lot of directions, the 664 00:37:10,880 --> 00:37:13,200 Speaker 1: way you can take your voice in a lot of directions. 665 00:37:13,719 --> 00:37:15,319 Speaker 1: All right, Well, on that note, we're gonna take one 666 00:37:15,320 --> 00:37:17,200 Speaker 1: more break and we come back. We're going to discuss 667 00:37:17,320 --> 00:37:26,160 Speaker 1: the legacy of the saxophone. Alright, we're back now. The 668 00:37:26,200 --> 00:37:30,040 Speaker 1: saxophones impact on music and culture was, of course enormous. 669 00:37:30,520 --> 00:37:34,080 Speaker 1: Lily notes that it's spread really quickly to other countries 670 00:37:34,360 --> 00:37:36,920 Speaker 1: soon after its debut in Paris in the eighteen forties. 671 00:37:36,920 --> 00:37:39,880 Speaker 1: Within the next few decades, it was appearing all around 672 00:37:39,880 --> 00:37:44,240 Speaker 1: the world. There were several early saxophonists names like Louis 673 00:37:44,280 --> 00:37:49,200 Speaker 1: Adolph Mayor, on Riwui and Suaya, who made the instrument 674 00:37:49,480 --> 00:37:52,719 Speaker 1: popular abroad with their performing tours, and early on a 675 00:37:52,760 --> 00:37:56,280 Speaker 1: lot of listeners. This is kind of funny now, given 676 00:37:56,360 --> 00:37:58,960 Speaker 1: I don't know all the like the Saxy Santa and 677 00:37:59,000 --> 00:38:02,479 Speaker 1: the Muscle Guy and all, but early listeners reported being 678 00:38:02,600 --> 00:38:06,759 Speaker 1: awed by the beauty of the sound produced by the saxophone. 679 00:38:07,480 --> 00:38:11,000 Speaker 1: Like after an early demonstration by Sacks in eighteen forty 680 00:38:11,040 --> 00:38:14,640 Speaker 1: two in Paris, an author named Scootier wrote in La 681 00:38:14,719 --> 00:38:19,160 Speaker 1: France Musicale that the instrument had this amazing sound quote 682 00:38:19,360 --> 00:38:24,040 Speaker 1: remarkable intensity and quality of sound. You cannot imagine the 683 00:38:24,080 --> 00:38:27,239 Speaker 1: beauty of sound and the quality of the notes. It 684 00:38:27,239 --> 00:38:29,680 Speaker 1: makes me wonder if to a large extent, we're just 685 00:38:29,800 --> 00:38:33,040 Speaker 1: desensitized to the saxophone today and I'm just so used 686 00:38:33,080 --> 00:38:37,080 Speaker 1: to hearing it in commercials and recordings in many cities 687 00:38:37,080 --> 00:38:39,200 Speaker 1: you walk on the street and you hear the saxophone. 688 00:38:39,239 --> 00:38:41,359 Speaker 1: If you attend to parade, you see people marching here, 689 00:38:41,400 --> 00:38:44,680 Speaker 1: people marching with the saxophone. Yeah, I mean, just think 690 00:38:44,680 --> 00:38:47,879 Speaker 1: about the quality of uh, you know, a sort of 691 00:38:47,920 --> 00:38:52,000 Speaker 1: like mid level middle range tone produced by the saxophone. 692 00:38:52,040 --> 00:38:56,960 Speaker 1: It is remarkably like it feels very like thick and 693 00:38:57,200 --> 00:39:02,719 Speaker 1: deep and rich, full full of little harmonics and uh yeah, yeah, 694 00:39:02,719 --> 00:39:04,759 Speaker 1: I think I can hear what they're saying. I've just 695 00:39:04,880 --> 00:39:07,239 Speaker 1: heard it so many times. Now, what what if I 696 00:39:07,320 --> 00:39:10,200 Speaker 1: could hear a saxophone for the first time? Another one, 697 00:39:10,280 --> 00:39:13,400 Speaker 1: So that last quote was cited in Lila. Here's another 698 00:39:13,400 --> 00:39:16,040 Speaker 1: one sided in lay again, this one from that guy 699 00:39:16,360 --> 00:39:19,480 Speaker 1: George Kastner, who wrote in eighteen forty four about the 700 00:39:19,520 --> 00:39:23,759 Speaker 1: saxophone quote the nobility and beauty if it's timber. I 701 00:39:23,840 --> 00:39:27,200 Speaker 1: cannot say enough times the saxophone is called to the 702 00:39:27,280 --> 00:39:31,359 Speaker 1: highest destiny by the beauty of its timber. Yeah, these 703 00:39:31,400 --> 00:39:34,839 Speaker 1: guys are losing their minds about a saxophone. Like it's 704 00:39:34,840 --> 00:39:38,680 Speaker 1: clearly scratching an itch that that other instruments were not 705 00:39:38,719 --> 00:39:41,280 Speaker 1: really capable of dealing with. You know, it's it's delivering 706 00:39:41,320 --> 00:39:44,200 Speaker 1: a new experience. Yeah, and of course not everyone would 707 00:39:44,239 --> 00:39:46,560 Speaker 1: always feel this way. On top of so, you had 708 00:39:46,600 --> 00:39:49,600 Speaker 1: the rivals of Sacks who opposed the saxophone for pure 709 00:39:49,640 --> 00:39:52,399 Speaker 1: business reasons, you know, they just wanted to take him down. 710 00:39:53,040 --> 00:39:55,400 Speaker 1: But there have been people who hated it for other reasons. 711 00:39:55,400 --> 00:39:58,239 Speaker 1: Of course, one really sad fact in its history is 712 00:39:58,280 --> 00:40:02,320 Speaker 1: that probably because would reach its most powerful and brilliant 713 00:40:02,560 --> 00:40:06,440 Speaker 1: use later on in like African American jazz music, racists 714 00:40:06,480 --> 00:40:09,880 Speaker 1: have often targeted the saxophone. Like no surprise here, but 715 00:40:09,920 --> 00:40:14,479 Speaker 1: the Nazis hated the saxophone. Um. There's an article in 716 00:40:14,480 --> 00:40:16,920 Speaker 1: in the Atlantic by J. J. Gould about this, citing 717 00:40:17,640 --> 00:40:22,239 Speaker 1: the writings of the Czech dissident literary figure Josef Skvoreki, 718 00:40:22,280 --> 00:40:26,239 Speaker 1: and the Nazis often opposed jazz music. He talks about 719 00:40:26,280 --> 00:40:29,960 Speaker 1: how they considered the saxophone to be linked to uh 720 00:40:30,120 --> 00:40:33,720 Speaker 1: TO like African music, and they banned it. They highly 721 00:40:33,719 --> 00:40:37,600 Speaker 1: regulated it in Germany and some occupied territories uh And 722 00:40:37,640 --> 00:40:41,080 Speaker 1: in one of his books, Skvoreki relays a set of 723 00:40:41,120 --> 00:40:44,799 Speaker 1: regulations issued by a Nazi officer name go Lighter in 724 00:40:44,880 --> 00:40:49,400 Speaker 1: occupied Czechoslovakia, and some of these rules are just bizarrely specific, 725 00:40:49,560 --> 00:40:53,160 Speaker 1: like quote, pieces in fox trot rhythm so called swing 726 00:40:53,239 --> 00:40:56,279 Speaker 1: are not to exceed twenty percent of the repertoires of 727 00:40:56,360 --> 00:41:00,799 Speaker 1: light orchestras and dance bands. Like so tightly regulating the 728 00:41:01,040 --> 00:41:04,360 Speaker 1: specific musical qualities of what kind of music can be 729 00:41:04,440 --> 00:41:09,200 Speaker 1: played and when literal music nazis yes, yes, and like 730 00:41:09,360 --> 00:41:13,560 Speaker 1: banning vocal improvisation, you know, like scat singing. But then 731 00:41:13,640 --> 00:41:16,120 Speaker 1: also one of the things that that is in this 732 00:41:16,200 --> 00:41:19,840 Speaker 1: list of prohibitions is quote, all light orchestras and dance 733 00:41:19,880 --> 00:41:22,960 Speaker 1: bands are advised to restrict the use of saxophones of 734 00:41:23,000 --> 00:41:27,680 Speaker 1: all keys, and to substitute for them the violincello, the viola, 735 00:41:27,920 --> 00:41:31,320 Speaker 1: or possibly a suitable folk instrument. Uh. And so a 736 00:41:31,400 --> 00:41:35,480 Speaker 1: lot of these rules explicitly cite racial resentment as their motivation, 737 00:41:35,600 --> 00:41:39,760 Speaker 1: saying that music should not sound Jewish or African. Uh, 738 00:41:39,800 --> 00:41:44,000 Speaker 1: it's insanity. And and Scoreki wrote that jazz was opposed 739 00:41:44,000 --> 00:41:46,879 Speaker 1: by the authorities of the Soviet Union as well. Uh. 740 00:41:46,880 --> 00:41:49,320 Speaker 1: He wrote, jazz was a sharp thorn in the sides 741 00:41:49,360 --> 00:41:52,600 Speaker 1: of the power hungry men from Hitler de Bresnev who 742 00:41:52,640 --> 00:41:55,600 Speaker 1: successfully ruled in my native land. I have to say 743 00:41:55,640 --> 00:41:58,240 Speaker 1: I think I'm am even more inclined to like jazz 744 00:41:58,239 --> 00:41:59,800 Speaker 1: now that I know that it was, you know, getting 745 00:41:59,800 --> 00:42:03,200 Speaker 1: an the skin of of of prominent Nazis and giving 746 00:42:03,200 --> 00:42:05,279 Speaker 1: them the willies right well, I mean you can you 747 00:42:05,320 --> 00:42:08,399 Speaker 1: can tell apart from their racial hatred, there's also there's 748 00:42:08,400 --> 00:42:11,560 Speaker 1: a spirit of creativity and freedom in it that is 749 00:42:11,600 --> 00:42:16,640 Speaker 1: anathema to the totalitarian, authoritarian spirit you know, that hates 750 00:42:16,680 --> 00:42:19,239 Speaker 1: that kind of creativity. And of course I think many 751 00:42:19,239 --> 00:42:21,840 Speaker 1: people would truly agree that like jazz is one of 752 00:42:21,880 --> 00:42:26,359 Speaker 1: the truest and most powerful realizations of what the saxophone 753 00:42:26,400 --> 00:42:29,080 Speaker 1: was capable of with you know, artists like Charlie Parker 754 00:42:29,120 --> 00:42:32,160 Speaker 1: and John Coltrane. Yeah, artists that really like took that 755 00:42:32,280 --> 00:42:35,160 Speaker 1: organic nature that we've been talking about and just laying like, like, 756 00:42:35,320 --> 00:42:38,560 Speaker 1: let that balloon out let that be the defining aspect 757 00:42:38,600 --> 00:42:41,000 Speaker 1: of the performance. Now, despite the fact that I think 758 00:42:41,160 --> 00:42:44,520 Speaker 1: most people today would really associate the saxophone with jazz 759 00:42:44,560 --> 00:42:47,880 Speaker 1: more than anything else, uh, it actually wasn't a commonly 760 00:42:48,000 --> 00:42:50,680 Speaker 1: used instrument in the very earliest days of jazz and 761 00:42:50,719 --> 00:42:55,080 Speaker 1: only became a regular addition to jazz ensembles and compositions roughly, 762 00:42:55,120 --> 00:42:57,960 Speaker 1: I think in the time after World War One. Like 763 00:42:58,000 --> 00:43:01,920 Speaker 1: its earliest widespread use in the nineteenth and early twentieth 764 00:43:01,920 --> 00:43:04,960 Speaker 1: centuries was in bands you don't think like John Phillips 765 00:43:04,960 --> 00:43:08,000 Speaker 1: sousa type of music like marches and that kind of thing. 766 00:43:08,360 --> 00:43:11,319 Speaker 1: And in the nineteen twenties, the popularity of its skyrocket 767 00:43:11,360 --> 00:43:15,359 Speaker 1: it it surged in America with the saxophone craze. Now 768 00:43:15,400 --> 00:43:16,880 Speaker 1: I take like to take a few minutes here to 769 00:43:16,920 --> 00:43:22,120 Speaker 1: talk about self playing saxophones, Like how you begin this 770 00:43:22,360 --> 00:43:26,240 Speaker 1: like a like now word from our sponsor? Well, because 771 00:43:27,280 --> 00:43:28,640 Speaker 1: I have to. I feel like I have to sort 772 00:43:28,680 --> 00:43:31,839 Speaker 1: of set it apart from what we've been talking about 773 00:43:31,840 --> 00:43:34,239 Speaker 1: because the idea we've talked about how organic it is 774 00:43:34,400 --> 00:43:37,040 Speaker 1: and it's you know, it's this expression of the human spirit. 775 00:43:37,280 --> 00:43:41,440 Speaker 1: So it seems kind of also make it a soulless 776 00:43:41,480 --> 00:43:44,239 Speaker 1: mechanical thing. Yeah, it's see it seems like an exercise 777 00:43:44,320 --> 00:43:46,320 Speaker 1: in tira need to do that, doesn't it? But m 778 00:43:47,280 --> 00:43:50,200 Speaker 1: but there there were a self playing saxophones, and and 779 00:43:50,239 --> 00:43:52,080 Speaker 1: i'd like, I'd like to come back and discuss self 780 00:43:52,239 --> 00:43:56,040 Speaker 1: playing musical instrument technology in the future because because there 781 00:43:56,120 --> 00:43:59,080 Speaker 1: is quite a lot to cover. Again, the Fabulous Musical 782 00:43:59,080 --> 00:44:01,719 Speaker 1: Instrument Museum and NEX Arizona. They have an entire room 783 00:44:01,840 --> 00:44:06,319 Speaker 1: dedicated to everything from player pianos to musical boxes, uh, 784 00:44:06,400 --> 00:44:10,360 Speaker 1: to automated umpah bands and and of course the self 785 00:44:10,400 --> 00:44:15,520 Speaker 1: playing sacks. So the Musical Instrument Museum they identify the 786 00:44:15,800 --> 00:44:18,960 Speaker 1: late nineteenth and early twentie centuries as the golden age 787 00:44:18,960 --> 00:44:21,600 Speaker 1: of mechanical music. There were a lot of efforts at 788 00:44:21,600 --> 00:44:25,600 Speaker 1: this point to just to take the automation technology and 789 00:44:25,640 --> 00:44:28,680 Speaker 1: apply it to just about anything. And we and this 790 00:44:28,719 --> 00:44:31,799 Speaker 1: is where we see the automatic saxophone. Now, I don't 791 00:44:31,800 --> 00:44:35,000 Speaker 1: think this qualifies as a true Sacks, but you had this, 792 00:44:35,200 --> 00:44:38,759 Speaker 1: uh essentially a toy, a toy instrument known as the 793 00:44:39,360 --> 00:44:44,080 Speaker 1: play a Sacks role operated musical instrument. And it was 794 00:44:44,160 --> 00:44:48,520 Speaker 1: a nineteen thirties invention patented by Henry oh Dratten NG. 795 00:44:48,920 --> 00:44:51,880 Speaker 1: And it was it was mainly intended for amusement. It 796 00:44:51,960 --> 00:44:54,560 Speaker 1: was something of a of a toy. It looks like 797 00:44:54,560 --> 00:44:58,480 Speaker 1: a saxophone wearing a jet pack. Yeah, like a simplified saxophone. 798 00:44:58,520 --> 00:45:02,319 Speaker 1: It looks like a toy sack xophone. Uh and uh. 799 00:45:02,360 --> 00:45:04,920 Speaker 1: And this is some information. This is from the patent 800 00:45:05,400 --> 00:45:09,480 Speaker 1: which is via basic Sacks dot info and Google patents quote. 801 00:45:09,520 --> 00:45:12,319 Speaker 1: The sacks measures twelve inches with a two and three 802 00:45:12,320 --> 00:45:16,239 Speaker 1: fourth inch diameter horn. The music rolls and these, of course, 803 00:45:16,280 --> 00:45:20,480 Speaker 1: so we're talking about rolls of paper that contain the information. Uh. 804 00:45:20,520 --> 00:45:24,640 Speaker 1: These music roles are perforated and measure about four inches wide. 805 00:45:24,840 --> 00:45:26,719 Speaker 1: The rolls wrap around the front of the sacks to 806 00:45:26,800 --> 00:45:30,480 Speaker 1: play sixteen notes through the sixteen slotted openings. Put the 807 00:45:30,560 --> 00:45:33,920 Speaker 1: music roll on, turn the crank, and breathe. The sacks 808 00:45:33,960 --> 00:45:38,480 Speaker 1: play sixteen note perforated music rolls with accompanying chords. Now, wait, 809 00:45:38,520 --> 00:45:41,080 Speaker 1: were you able to find what this sounds like? I 810 00:45:41,120 --> 00:45:44,080 Speaker 1: did not run across the recording of it, but I 811 00:45:44,120 --> 00:45:48,160 Speaker 1: think we can all kind of imagine a mechanical toy 812 00:45:48,239 --> 00:45:51,120 Speaker 1: saxophone sound, probably more in keeping with the sort of 813 00:45:51,160 --> 00:45:56,200 Speaker 1: toy saxophones that a child might possess today. You know, 814 00:45:56,280 --> 00:46:00,279 Speaker 1: if only this like so, imagine the old wests Lune 815 00:46:00,680 --> 00:46:02,960 Speaker 1: where you walk in and the player piano is going 816 00:46:03,520 --> 00:46:07,000 Speaker 1: or wait, is that actually a thing? Usually actually there's 817 00:46:07,040 --> 00:46:10,279 Speaker 1: a human at the piano in the saloon, isn't there, Well, 818 00:46:10,640 --> 00:46:13,040 Speaker 1: unless there's a player piano and okay, well I'm just 819 00:46:13,080 --> 00:46:15,360 Speaker 1: saying maybe that should have been replaced by a player 820 00:46:15,520 --> 00:46:18,640 Speaker 1: like an automatic saxophone. We'll have to come back to 821 00:46:18,719 --> 00:46:21,080 Speaker 1: the player piano. I think there's a whole uh, I mean, 822 00:46:21,080 --> 00:46:22,960 Speaker 1: we can do a whole episode on the pianos as well. 823 00:46:23,239 --> 00:46:27,200 Speaker 1: Imagine automatic saxophone playing in the background in the confrontation 824 00:46:27,239 --> 00:46:32,280 Speaker 1: scene at the end of Unforgiven. Now, of course, today 825 00:46:32,440 --> 00:46:36,040 Speaker 1: we also have digital saxophones, such as one model I 826 00:46:36,120 --> 00:46:40,000 Speaker 1: was looking at the Rowland a ten digital saxophone which 827 00:46:40,000 --> 00:46:44,799 Speaker 1: actually utilizes both accurate fingering and a breath sensor. Um 828 00:46:45,000 --> 00:46:48,200 Speaker 1: this in a so that the idea here's you. You 829 00:46:48,280 --> 00:46:51,000 Speaker 1: get this this instrument and you can play the saxophone 830 00:46:51,040 --> 00:46:54,600 Speaker 1: with headphones on that are you know, that are hooked 831 00:46:54,680 --> 00:46:57,440 Speaker 1: up to the instrument itself. Oh, I see. So it 832 00:46:57,880 --> 00:47:01,640 Speaker 1: looks it looks like a rather interesting piece of technology. 833 00:47:01,680 --> 00:47:03,359 Speaker 1: And this is not a toy. This is a high 834 00:47:03,400 --> 00:47:06,239 Speaker 1: priced item I'm talking about. You can find plenty of 835 00:47:06,320 --> 00:47:10,200 Speaker 1: videos of people demonstrating them online. And of course this 836 00:47:10,239 --> 00:47:13,960 Speaker 1: is in addition to synthetic sacks sounds that one might 837 00:47:14,000 --> 00:47:17,279 Speaker 1: produce via synthesizer. Now we're talking about like high tech 838 00:47:17,400 --> 00:47:19,960 Speaker 1: upgrades to the saxophone. But it goes in the other 839 00:47:19,960 --> 00:47:22,720 Speaker 1: direction to doesn't it? Oh yeah, now remember yeah, remember 840 00:47:22,719 --> 00:47:26,960 Speaker 1: the fact that Sax's original saxophone wasn't brass. But would 841 00:47:27,600 --> 00:47:32,040 Speaker 1: well you find the bamboo variations of the saxophone have 842 00:47:32,160 --> 00:47:34,280 Speaker 1: popped up in parts of the world where the sax's 843 00:47:34,320 --> 00:47:38,480 Speaker 1: influence was felt, but materials or funds prevented everyone from 844 00:47:38,520 --> 00:47:41,759 Speaker 1: from grabbing a horn. And it's not just saxophone. You 845 00:47:41,800 --> 00:47:46,560 Speaker 1: also find uh, um, you know, wooden tubas, wooden trumpets, etcetera. 846 00:47:47,040 --> 00:47:49,640 Speaker 1: And there are several examples of this at the Musical 847 00:47:49,640 --> 00:47:52,160 Speaker 1: Instrument Museum in Phoenix. Now it's easy to think of 848 00:47:52,160 --> 00:47:56,640 Speaker 1: these is just mere um, you know, um crude replicas 849 00:47:57,120 --> 00:48:01,160 Speaker 1: of of the saxophone itself or whatever horn they're they're 850 00:48:01,200 --> 00:48:04,800 Speaker 1: they're modeled on. But there's actually one called the Maui 851 00:48:05,520 --> 00:48:08,719 Speaker 1: Zephoon that has actually picked up quite a following all 852 00:48:08,800 --> 00:48:10,640 Speaker 1: its own. And uh and I actually looked up some 853 00:48:10,760 --> 00:48:13,400 Speaker 1: videos of individuals playing this and it can sound quite 854 00:48:13,440 --> 00:48:17,520 Speaker 1: good in proper hands. It's essentially just a small wooden saxophon. 855 00:48:17,600 --> 00:48:20,840 Speaker 1: Doesn't quite look like a saxophone. It kind of looks 856 00:48:20,840 --> 00:48:24,200 Speaker 1: more like a clarinet, but it has kind of a 857 00:48:24,239 --> 00:48:28,920 Speaker 1: saxophone sound. To it, at least when the individuals uh 858 00:48:29,080 --> 00:48:31,120 Speaker 1: testing it out, we're playing it. You know. One of 859 00:48:31,160 --> 00:48:34,239 Speaker 1: the things we've talked about sometime a few times on 860 00:48:34,280 --> 00:48:38,120 Speaker 1: stuff to plow your mind is um the idea of 861 00:48:40,120 --> 00:48:44,799 Speaker 1: sort of like expanding our sell our self image of 862 00:48:44,920 --> 00:48:48,279 Speaker 1: the schema of the body to include tools that we 863 00:48:48,560 --> 00:48:51,360 Speaker 1: use a lot and really start to incorporate into the self. 864 00:48:51,440 --> 00:48:54,160 Speaker 1: So like, if you you use a tool enough, you 865 00:48:54,200 --> 00:48:56,319 Speaker 1: find ways to start to think of it almost as 866 00:48:56,320 --> 00:48:58,200 Speaker 1: a part of your own body. You think about it 867 00:48:58,239 --> 00:49:00,279 Speaker 1: the same way you think of your hands or your feet, 868 00:49:00,760 --> 00:49:03,280 Speaker 1: And um, yeah, I wonder if the same thing happens 869 00:49:03,320 --> 00:49:07,440 Speaker 1: with people who use musical instruments enough, I would imagine. 870 00:49:07,480 --> 00:49:11,239 Speaker 1: So yeah, you know, I remember hearing UM like an 871 00:49:11,239 --> 00:49:13,840 Speaker 1: interview with who is at Doc Severerson. Uh, there's a 872 00:49:15,000 --> 00:49:16,600 Speaker 1: Tonight show back in the day, and he was talking 873 00:49:16,600 --> 00:49:19,120 Speaker 1: about like just how you know a professional trumpet here, 874 00:49:19,239 --> 00:49:22,120 Speaker 1: like how often they practice, And it's like there's an 875 00:49:22,120 --> 00:49:25,719 Speaker 1: intimacy with it that they only they are privy to, 876 00:49:25,920 --> 00:49:27,759 Speaker 1: like talking about like if they skip, you know, if 877 00:49:27,760 --> 00:49:30,840 Speaker 1: they skip a practice, they skip a day of playing it. 878 00:49:31,400 --> 00:49:33,359 Speaker 1: You get into the zone where no one else can 879 00:49:33,440 --> 00:49:36,200 Speaker 1: notice that you haven't practiced, but you notice it like 880 00:49:36,239 --> 00:49:38,600 Speaker 1: there's an you know, it's just part of the intimacy 881 00:49:38,719 --> 00:49:42,239 Speaker 1: with the tool um. And then when you get into 882 00:49:42,400 --> 00:49:45,319 Speaker 1: the like the neurological zone too, it's it's interesting to 883 00:49:45,320 --> 00:49:48,000 Speaker 1: sort of tease apart like where, you know, where, where 884 00:49:48,040 --> 00:49:51,840 Speaker 1: does the instrumentation really take place in the brain. Uh, 885 00:49:51,880 --> 00:49:54,799 Speaker 1: there's a there's a fascinating study that came out in 886 00:49:56,160 --> 00:49:59,240 Speaker 1: concerning a music teacher by the name of Dan Fabio 887 00:49:59,719 --> 00:50:02,920 Speaker 1: who had a brain tumor removed from part of the 888 00:50:02,960 --> 00:50:07,600 Speaker 1: brain associated with music. And the physicians involved here they 889 00:50:07,600 --> 00:50:11,040 Speaker 1: actually had him play his saxophone during part of the procedure. 890 00:50:11,200 --> 00:50:13,399 Speaker 1: How can you do that? Well, it was apparently quite 891 00:50:13,440 --> 00:50:15,960 Speaker 1: challenging for two main reasons. So first of all, he 892 00:50:16,000 --> 00:50:18,840 Speaker 1: was on his side during the procedure and then also 893 00:50:19,560 --> 00:50:23,440 Speaker 1: deep breathing, as is typical for many sacks numbers. They 894 00:50:23,440 --> 00:50:26,200 Speaker 1: were concerned that it might cause his exposed brain to 895 00:50:26,320 --> 00:50:31,600 Speaker 1: essentially protrude from his skull. What which is alone? What? Yeah? 896 00:50:32,440 --> 00:50:34,719 Speaker 1: That that alone, I was a reason I just had 897 00:50:34,760 --> 00:50:38,800 Speaker 1: to include this, the idea of someone potentially it didn't happen, 898 00:50:38,840 --> 00:50:43,839 Speaker 1: but potentially like playing their saxophones, so passionately that their 899 00:50:43,880 --> 00:50:47,160 Speaker 1: brain pops out of their skull. That is metal. That 900 00:50:47,320 --> 00:50:51,480 Speaker 1: is so good. Yeah. The people in Cannibal Corps now 901 00:50:51,480 --> 00:50:53,359 Speaker 1: were like, well, I want my brain to pop out 902 00:50:53,400 --> 00:50:56,160 Speaker 1: of my skull. Well, you know, I was thinking along 903 00:50:56,200 --> 00:50:57,560 Speaker 1: these lines, and I was like, why don't we hear 904 00:50:57,600 --> 00:51:01,520 Speaker 1: saxophones in metal? The thing is, now, you do hear saxophone, 905 00:51:01,560 --> 00:51:03,560 Speaker 1: and there are a lot of metal acts out. There's 906 00:51:03,560 --> 00:51:06,879 Speaker 1: aetially experimental metal acts that are utilizing the saxophone. There's 907 00:51:06,880 --> 00:51:09,480 Speaker 1: a band for everything. Now, if you can think it up, 908 00:51:09,520 --> 00:51:12,240 Speaker 1: there's a band that does it. Somebody's done it. Anyway, 909 00:51:12,280 --> 00:51:14,840 Speaker 1: They did not want his brain to protrude from his 910 00:51:14,880 --> 00:51:19,800 Speaker 1: skull anymore than it was during the procedure he was awake. Yeah, 911 00:51:19,920 --> 00:51:22,719 Speaker 1: So he actually worked with his surgeon though prior to 912 00:51:22,880 --> 00:51:26,320 Speaker 1: the UH to the to the procedure, and they selected 913 00:51:26,320 --> 00:51:28,520 Speaker 1: a Korean folk song for him to play that would 914 00:51:28,560 --> 00:51:31,440 Speaker 1: only require shallow breaths so he wouldn't have to like 915 00:51:31,560 --> 00:51:35,239 Speaker 1: really you know, belt it in there uh. And he 916 00:51:35,280 --> 00:51:38,520 Speaker 1: would also, in addition to um using the saxophone, he 917 00:51:38,520 --> 00:51:42,319 Speaker 1: would also hum and repeat notes during the procedure, so 918 00:51:42,360 --> 00:51:45,920 Speaker 1: it wasn't just the saxophone. Now, once the tumor was removed, 919 00:51:46,520 --> 00:51:50,200 Speaker 1: the surgeons brought over the sacks. He performed flawlessly, and 920 00:51:50,600 --> 00:51:53,719 Speaker 1: he completely recovered and returned to teaching music within a 921 00:51:53,760 --> 00:51:56,799 Speaker 1: few months. And this procedure has apparently helped define the 922 00:51:56,840 --> 00:51:59,000 Speaker 1: relation between the different parts of the brain that are 923 00:51:59,040 --> 00:52:03,920 Speaker 1: responsible from music and language processing. So, yeah, I just 924 00:52:03,960 --> 00:52:08,759 Speaker 1: had to include an anecdote about neuroscience and the saxophone. Now, 925 00:52:08,840 --> 00:52:11,440 Speaker 1: as we close out here, it's probably time in the 926 00:52:11,440 --> 00:52:14,680 Speaker 1: episode that we discussed kenneg does KENEGI? I'm trying to 927 00:52:14,719 --> 00:52:17,919 Speaker 1: picture him. Does he look a little bit like weird al? Yeah, 928 00:52:17,920 --> 00:52:19,680 Speaker 1: I mean a little bit, I think maybe does he 929 00:52:19,760 --> 00:52:23,960 Speaker 1: have like weird al type hair? Uh? He does? Or did? Yes? 930 00:52:24,440 --> 00:52:26,479 Speaker 1: He's notable here, however, because at least for a while, 931 00:52:26,520 --> 00:52:29,560 Speaker 1: he had the world record for the longest note um 932 00:52:30,600 --> 00:52:35,359 Speaker 1: recorded using the saxophone. So let's do this. So how 933 00:52:35,400 --> 00:52:40,080 Speaker 1: long did it go? Like three minutes? Well, in uh 934 00:52:40,360 --> 00:52:43,680 Speaker 1: Kinegi apparently set the Guinness World record when he held 935 00:52:43,760 --> 00:52:46,080 Speaker 1: his note in e flat for forty five minutes and 936 00:52:46,160 --> 00:52:50,440 Speaker 1: forty seven seconds on his saxophone. Wait a second, how 937 00:52:50,440 --> 00:52:53,480 Speaker 1: do you do that? Well, Vias, Something that's known as 938 00:52:53,560 --> 00:52:56,920 Speaker 1: circular breathing. So this is a method employed by players 939 00:52:56,920 --> 00:53:01,040 Speaker 1: of various wood instruments, saxophone included. Does this a continuous 940 00:53:01,080 --> 00:53:04,120 Speaker 1: tone for a long long time. So they simply store 941 00:53:04,400 --> 00:53:07,040 Speaker 1: air in their cheeks and then slowly release it while 942 00:53:07,080 --> 00:53:10,200 Speaker 1: still breathing at the same time. And it's not it's 943 00:53:10,200 --> 00:53:13,560 Speaker 1: not easy, and it apparently hurts the player's lungs and 944 00:53:13,640 --> 00:53:17,400 Speaker 1: lips to do this, but it's the technique that is 945 00:53:17,440 --> 00:53:19,960 Speaker 1: employed when you see these like crazy world records for 946 00:53:20,040 --> 00:53:23,120 Speaker 1: sustained notes with woodwinds. So for a while this held 947 00:53:23,160 --> 00:53:27,960 Speaker 1: the record, and then February two thousand Van Birchfield set 948 00:53:27,960 --> 00:53:30,880 Speaker 1: a new Guinness World record holding one continuous note for 949 00:53:30,880 --> 00:53:34,439 Speaker 1: forty seven minutes six seconds. And then Mark Atkins played 950 00:53:34,440 --> 00:53:39,960 Speaker 1: the DIGREYD Concerto in for over fifty minutes continuously. And finally, 951 00:53:40,040 --> 00:53:45,759 Speaker 1: in May seventeen, a Nigerian saxophonist, Fimi Kutie broke Mark 952 00:53:45,800 --> 00:53:48,359 Speaker 1: Atkins record by playing a single note for fifty one 953 00:53:48,400 --> 00:53:51,799 Speaker 1: minutes and thirty eight seconds. So that's uh so, who's 954 00:53:51,800 --> 00:53:53,520 Speaker 1: going to be the first to break an hour? Oh? 955 00:53:53,640 --> 00:53:58,000 Speaker 1: I don't know. This This is of seventeen based on 956 00:53:58,280 --> 00:54:01,360 Speaker 1: some of the research that Scott, Benjamin and um carried 957 00:54:01,360 --> 00:54:03,920 Speaker 1: out for us here. So I think this is the 958 00:54:03,920 --> 00:54:07,600 Speaker 1: the current Uh, this is the current data. But by 959 00:54:07,640 --> 00:54:10,080 Speaker 1: the time this this episode is published, who knows, there 960 00:54:10,120 --> 00:54:12,320 Speaker 1: could be a new longest note. Oubt there a new 961 00:54:12,840 --> 00:54:17,359 Speaker 1: record breaking saxophone is changing our understanding of just how 962 00:54:17,440 --> 00:54:23,040 Speaker 1: long a note can be sustained. Thinking about this hurts me. Alright, 963 00:54:23,120 --> 00:54:24,359 Speaker 1: So there you have it. We we kind of got 964 00:54:24,400 --> 00:54:25,879 Speaker 1: into the weeds a little bit here at the end. 965 00:54:25,960 --> 00:54:29,720 Speaker 1: But uh, but but the saxophone, it's again an instrument 966 00:54:29,719 --> 00:54:31,600 Speaker 1: I felt like we had to cover because it has, 967 00:54:31,960 --> 00:54:35,399 Speaker 1: you know, a definite inventor. Um, it's a it's it's 968 00:54:35,400 --> 00:54:37,680 Speaker 1: a it's a recent invention, and yet one that has 969 00:54:37,719 --> 00:54:39,960 Speaker 1: just become such a part of the modern world, the 970 00:54:39,960 --> 00:54:43,520 Speaker 1: modern musical world. You know, certainly in the West, that 971 00:54:43,600 --> 00:54:46,840 Speaker 1: it's difficult to imagine it's absence. Yeah, and uh, and 972 00:54:46,960 --> 00:54:50,920 Speaker 1: just because it has such a contentious history, you would 973 00:54:50,920 --> 00:54:54,600 Speaker 1: not have expected such a thing for a musical instrument. Yeah, 974 00:54:54,600 --> 00:54:57,080 Speaker 1: it seems like this would be this would surely be 975 00:54:57,120 --> 00:55:00,640 Speaker 1: the product of polite society. But it was obvious say anything. 976 00:55:00,640 --> 00:55:03,200 Speaker 1: But now, like I said, we'd love to cover more 977 00:55:03,640 --> 00:55:08,000 Speaker 1: musical inventions in the future, more bits of musical technology, 978 00:55:08,160 --> 00:55:10,239 Speaker 1: and we'd love to hear from everyone out there. You know, 979 00:55:10,280 --> 00:55:11,759 Speaker 1: what would you like it's to cover? Do you want 980 00:55:11,800 --> 00:55:13,960 Speaker 1: you want us to go uh in the direction of 981 00:55:14,000 --> 00:55:16,719 Speaker 1: more ancient musical instruments. Do you want us to go 982 00:55:16,800 --> 00:55:19,880 Speaker 1: with with other more modern creations like the theorem and 983 00:55:19,960 --> 00:55:22,600 Speaker 1: that we mentioned. We're really open for anything. I think 984 00:55:22,600 --> 00:55:24,160 Speaker 1: that's the beauty of the show. Oh, that might be 985 00:55:24,239 --> 00:55:26,520 Speaker 1: a fun one. One of the few inventions I can 986 00:55:26,680 --> 00:55:29,240 Speaker 1: really justify a link to a discussion of ed Wood. 987 00:55:31,320 --> 00:55:33,680 Speaker 1: That's true. Um, and hey, if you want to check 988 00:55:33,719 --> 00:55:36,320 Speaker 1: out other episodes of Invention, head on over to invention 989 00:55:36,360 --> 00:55:40,120 Speaker 1: pod dot com. That's the homepage for this show. But 990 00:55:40,160 --> 00:55:42,600 Speaker 1: you can also find just find the show anywhere you 991 00:55:42,640 --> 00:55:45,360 Speaker 1: get your podcasts if you go using them. What the 992 00:55:45,440 --> 00:55:47,439 Speaker 1: I Heart radio app? You can do it that way. 993 00:55:47,480 --> 00:55:52,000 Speaker 1: You can get it with Apple, podcast, um, Stitcher, Spotify, 994 00:55:52,239 --> 00:55:55,439 Speaker 1: you name it. We're out there, look for Invention. That's 995 00:55:55,440 --> 00:55:58,560 Speaker 1: where we are. Big thanks to Scott Benjamin for research 996 00:55:58,600 --> 00:56:01,960 Speaker 1: assistance on this episode. It into our excellent audio producer, 997 00:56:02,080 --> 00:56:04,520 Speaker 1: Tor Harrison. If you would like to get in touch 998 00:56:04,560 --> 00:56:07,239 Speaker 1: with us directly with feedback on this episode or any other, 999 00:56:07,440 --> 00:56:09,640 Speaker 1: to suggest a topic for the future, or just to 1000 00:56:09,680 --> 00:56:13,920 Speaker 1: say hello. You can email us at contact at invention 1001 00:56:14,000 --> 00:56:17,120 Speaker 1: pod dot com, m