Should I Be Worried About The Pain In My Thumb During And After Playing My Alto Sax

Does playing the saxophone have any health hazards?

I would go a bit further than the other answers here. Yes, a good neck strap is important, especially for the bigger instruments. Wearing a harness doesn’t look cool when you’re playing a baritone, but I would argue that it’s essential for keeping back problems to a minimum.In terms of germs from mouthpieces etc. there’s a middle ground. You don’t have to be OCD about cleaning your equipment, but I think it’s sensible to clean your mouthpiece now and again with dilute hydrogen peroxide or similar, even if it’s just to stop the crud accumulating and scaring off your bandmates.My saxophone teacher is fond of saying “dirty old sax, dirty old sound”, but beware of germs that might be living in the body of the instrument and have a look in there now and again. I read a story recently of a bagpipe player who was probably killed by exposure to mould spores that lived in his instrument.Other thing s that I notice as I get older is playing with cold hands is sometimes painful and arthritis is a worry. Also note how much pressure you put on your right thumb under the thumb hook. On tenor I rest the bottom of the bell on my hip and it really frees up my right hand.The saxophone player Harvey Pattel has a youtube video giving some postural tips. He’s also a great player.

Would it be difficult to start playing the saxophone again after a long break?

My experience is that it's not too difficult but you won't be at the same level you were until you practice regularly again.My lip always lets me know when it's been a while since I last picked up my sax when I start playing.It aches and throbs after just a few minutes whereas when I'm in practice, it's fine for an hour or more. The longer you wait, the less stamina it will have.For me, fingerings come back faster than breathing as I have to adjust my lungs to long steady pressure again. My fingers fly up and down as if greeting each key with a butterfly kiss, welcoming them back.I trip on managing some of the extreme notes on my alto sax, so it squeaks like I'm a new learner but that never lasts long. Soon the sweetness returns and the vibrato.I've found going to a softer reed helps the process, and playing regularly for short sessions builds stamina but the lip is the body part that really forgets.After one break, I overdid it trying to reclaim Grover Washington, and looked like I'd gone a round with Mike Tyson for the rest of the day.What comes back fastest is the joy, the feeling of flight, that I get from the music.Hmm, time for another practice session I think…

Why are my teeth hurting and being pushed in when I play trumpet?

“Why are my teeth hurting and being pushed in when I play trumpet?”(A2A) You’re using too much pressure, by pressing the mouthpiece onto the lips, causing you pain, and messing up your embouchure.Instead, here’s what I recommend:start with the air. Yes, you’ve heard this before, but I had played for thirty years before actually using my air, and the change was incredible: a two-octave C scale became much easier, because I used air. Air first and always.Since you have to blow more air as you go up, you need to exert more pressure to keep the lips together as you blow. Don’t use mouthpiece pressure to do this, because it’s a gross (not fine) action and it takes the focus away from your chops. Instead, develop your chops so you can use your lip and mouth muscles (your embouchure!) to hold the lips together so they don’t come apart.As you go higher, a smaller area needs to vibrate, to make a higher pitch. You should use your lip muscles to keep the lips together outside this tiny area. The force is essentially up and down (top lip presses down, bottom lip presses up) to keep the lips together. To shrink the vibrating area, you essentially press up/down more of the lip, starting from the outside for low notes, then pressing down more toward the center of the lip for higher notes.One more thing: like some players, I curl the lips in slightly as I go higher. This tool helps me develop this skill: P.E.T.E. - Personal Embouchure Training ExerciserSo, don’t press the horn into your chops: that hurts you, prevents you from learning how to control your own embouchure with fine movements, and makes for crappy playing. You just connect the mouthpiece with the chops in order to stabilize the chops, not to compress them. It should be a light touch, almost not there, as if the horn were suspended from a string, and you move your face onto it. Light, gentle.This works for me. Check out the other folks’ responses and see what works for you.Edit: two more tips come to mind:place as much flesh in the mouthpiece as possible. If you can’t buzz, or it feels cramped, dial it back a bit.it might help you to think of playing with “high chops” all the time. Practise your pedal tones with this embouchure.when you curl your lips inward, think of pretending to be an old person with no lips. That might help.

What is the best alto sax ligature?

Over the years I tried a fair number of ligatures, but really, in choosing one I now believe that their overall ease of use is more important than any (alleged) impact on the sound or ease of response. Here are some guidelines:1) knurled screws are evil. I don’t know about you, but I like my reeds to be fastened really tight, so I can adjust the mp without the reed moving around. Thesewill hurt your thumb. Seriously, last week I went several days with a distinct pain in my right thumb. I was beginning to worry (I used to have a sort of Peripheral neuropathy), then I realized that over the previous days I had tried a bunch of reeds on my alto clarinet with a lig like that. It builds up, and you pay for it later! Always look for flat screwheads.2) Since, as I said, I want my reed to stay tight, I also dislike these sort of contraptionswhich are nice and play well, but really, don’t tell me they give you any sense of stability (also, check out that big-ass indented screw)3) And then, of course, there’s price. I really don’t think spending 100$ on a lig makes any sense. All in all, I think the Vandoren M/O is a nice compromise: quite cheap, you can tighten it a lot, it works. It’s similar to the Optimum, but (much) cheaper and less fussy.If I had money to throw away… erm, to spare, I’d like to get this one, the BG duo:An extra-big, flat screw — check! :)Compared to the M/O, the reed is pushed against the mp along its length, not transversally (across). I believe this does in fact make a bit of difference (for the better).the ridges all around the curved body are the only points of contact with the mouthpiece. This means that basically you get the advantage of the F. Louis ligature above (the one made of thin, flimsy wire), in a much more robust and durable format. The advantage, by the way, being the fact that a “free” mouthpiece can vibrate more… well, freely (in comparison, for example, with the M/O that applies force all around the mp, squeezing it in a death grip). All this, of course, allegedly.the red thingies are not welded to the main body — they have some leeway, ie move around a bit. This help the lig fit perfectly to any size of mouthpiece (within reason)Lastly, it is… “duo”, which means you can use it on alto AND clarinet. Which holds true for… like, each and every alto ligature? But you have to give kudos to BG’s marketing department :DEnjoy your practicing, don’t forget your long notes! And always strive for a nice sound on the whole extension!

How can I stop my mouth from puffing out when I play sax?

I have the answer but it's not easy to accept. The problem is that the muscles that control your embouchure are getting over worked and fatiguing. The best way to fix this is to practice for the same amount of hours that you intend to perform. However, think of it the same way as working out. If you are used to running 3 days a week for 2 miles, then you go do a marathon, you may experience lots of physical issues. Take the time and work up to it. Start with 1 hour. Then after a week of everyday practice for 1 hour, add 30 minutes. And just keep adding time until you get up to the desired amount of time.If you have a performance coming up soon, I would recommend that you don't practice the day before. Rest your chops and drink water. Stay away from hot liquid. On the day of the performance, play for no more than 15 minutes to warmup. Go to the gig and knock 'em dead!I hope this helps. Check out Great Music lessons for Kids and Adults for more info.