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Quote by Eleanor Catton

“The saxophone does not speak that language. The saxophone speaks the language of the underground, the jaded melancholy of the half-light—grimy and sexy and sweaty and hard. It is the language of orphans and bastards and whores.”

Quote by Eleanor Catton

Book:The Rehearsal
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The Rehearsal

This book delves into the complexities of acting and the blurred lines between reality and performance, examining the impact of the theater on the lives of its participants. more

Author

Eleanor Catton
Eleanor Catton

Eleanor Catton is a New Zealand author born on September 24, 1985, in Wellington. She gained international recognition when her second novel "The Luminaries" won the Man Booker Prize in 2013, making her one of the youngest winners in the prize's history at age 28. Known for her intricate narrative structures and historical settings, Catton's writing combines mystery, history, and literary experimentation, establishing her as one of contemporary literature's most innovative voices. more

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“A memory of her father flitted through her consciousness. The time he played a slow, melodic tune on the saxophone in the misty rain of the yard on a summer’s night, surrounded by the patio’s twinkling lights. She remembered peering out the window and feeling like she was catching a glimpse of another world. One that was timeless and majestic. She touched his saxophone after that as if she were touching the hand of God, wishing to hold onto that feeling forever.”

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Book:Ann, Not Annie
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“Physical Attributes Are there physical attributes that make one person more successful at playing the saxophone than another? In a word, no. A fuller bottom lip may need to be tucked farther over the bottom teeth, and an underbite or overbite will require some adjustment of the top teeth on the mouthpiece, but I have never felt a student was further ahead or behind based upon physical attributes. . . .”

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Book:A Practical Guide for Teaching the Saxophone to Beginners
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“Is It Easy to Play? Weeelll. Yes. And No. It is easy to produce a sound on a saxophone. That is part of its popularity. Seldom does a student not produce a sound in the first lesson. . . . And therein lies part of the challenge for the saxophone. It plays too easily. . . . The saxophone will respond to a wimpy puff of air—and will sound like it. Developing a good tone means developing a good ear that demands the necessary air speed to create that sound. . . .”

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Book:A Practical Guide for Teaching the Saxophone to Beginners
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“Pads Leaking If students are having trouble with notes not speaking, especially as they go down the horn, chances are they have one or more leaky pads. A leak light will confirm this, and the work I’m going to describe here really can’t be done without a leak light. If one side of the pad is sealing and the other side is leaking, the key is slightly bent. First check the bases of the posts these keys are connected to, making sure there are no bends or dents causing the keys to be out of alignment. I also like to take the neckpiece off and look down the inside wall of the body. If the horn has been dropped or knocked off a chair, there may not be visible dents, but by looking down the inside you may see that the body is bending to one side or the other. In either case, the horn will need to be sent to a qualified repairman for some major work. If no damage is visible, you can adjust the key back to being flat with a couple of simple tools.”

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Book:A Practical Guide for Teaching the Saxophone to Beginners
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“Did you reflect on Cook's arrival and rue the day we were discovered and curse the coming of foreign sailors with bodies soaked in the blights of London sewers? Giving this cruel treasure to our unblemished women? Did you think of this and rage and want to kill? Did you remember all the insults down the years from French, British and American alike Did you remember the threat of their guns? I was not there during those dark days of anguish and confusion when the palace shook with intrigue and rumor that the greedy determined men downtown were plotting your ruin and demise of our nation. --from "Manawaʻino”

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Book:Hanai: A Poem for Queen Liliuokalani
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