alto sax
Many years ago, when I was in seventh-grade at Delaware Township High School (Della-Twip) in south Jersey, I was directed into the band program.
The Della-Twip band program was in its infancy, as was Della-Twip, which we had moved into although only one building of four was completed: D-building, the classroom building. (The remainder of the school, A through C, opened in fall of 1957: A = shops and mechanical-drawing; B = auditorium and music rooms; and C = cafeteria, gym and administrative offices.)
I was interviewed by the band director and directed to the alto saxophone. The director was blown away by my classical-music background.
Band practice at first was held in a cramped basement room. I remember sousaphones pasted to a back wall.
We then moved to Delaware, requiring resolution of my instrument-problem. My first saxophone was a Della-Twip instrument. Moving meant no instrument, or use of the el-cheapo A.I. instruments, silver Conns.
My father decided to get me a good sax, and dredged up a Selmer in the want-ads. It cost $250: at that time a huge amount (by now, such an instrument might cost $4,000).
As soon as I appeared I was made first-chair first-sax, displacing a scion of the local establishment. Scion left the band in a huff.
I blew sax all through high school, and fell into using harder reeds: #4, the hardest. As I recall, I bought my reeds custom-made, although maybe not.
A harder reed made a more melodic tone; softer reeds were blowsy. Tiny Wes Diemer, the BHS band-director, loved it. He’d pick pieces where he could have me solo.
My sax also found its way to Sandy Hill. Any number of times I was called upon to solo in chapel, and once I soloed on Morning Cheer.
One morning I was enlisted to blow reveille. If they could have, the campers would have thrown tomatoes.
My senior-year at BHS I was replaced myself. A young up-and-comer was made first-chair first-sax, and I was made first-chair second-sax. (There were four alto saxes.)
It was probably just as well. By then I had lost interest. I was hardly blowing anyway, and I dropped out of concert-band to help Bruce Stewart build his huge HO-layout, thus precipitating the great piano-bench incident.
At Houghton I stopped playing altogether. I went back to boogie-woogie piano, preferably on a Steinway concert grand with a broken sound-board which had been retired to a practice-room.
There also was a Hammond Model D in another practice-room. Once in a while I’d steal into the Houghton Church and fire up their pipe-organ.
(Once the college pastor confronted me after hearing “Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring” segued into “Louie-LouEYE.”)
Who knows whatever happened to that saxophone. It was probably sold to buy groceries.
The Della-Twip band program was in its infancy, as was Della-Twip, which we had moved into although only one building of four was completed: D-building, the classroom building. (The remainder of the school, A through C, opened in fall of 1957: A = shops and mechanical-drawing; B = auditorium and music rooms; and C = cafeteria, gym and administrative offices.)
I was interviewed by the band director and directed to the alto saxophone. The director was blown away by my classical-music background.
Band practice at first was held in a cramped basement room. I remember sousaphones pasted to a back wall.
We then moved to Delaware, requiring resolution of my instrument-problem. My first saxophone was a Della-Twip instrument. Moving meant no instrument, or use of the el-cheapo A.I. instruments, silver Conns.
My father decided to get me a good sax, and dredged up a Selmer in the want-ads. It cost $250: at that time a huge amount (by now, such an instrument might cost $4,000).
As soon as I appeared I was made first-chair first-sax, displacing a scion of the local establishment. Scion left the band in a huff.
I blew sax all through high school, and fell into using harder reeds: #4, the hardest. As I recall, I bought my reeds custom-made, although maybe not.
A harder reed made a more melodic tone; softer reeds were blowsy. Tiny Wes Diemer, the BHS band-director, loved it. He’d pick pieces where he could have me solo.
My sax also found its way to Sandy Hill. Any number of times I was called upon to solo in chapel, and once I soloed on Morning Cheer.
One morning I was enlisted to blow reveille. If they could have, the campers would have thrown tomatoes.
My senior-year at BHS I was replaced myself. A young up-and-comer was made first-chair first-sax, and I was made first-chair second-sax. (There were four alto saxes.)
It was probably just as well. By then I had lost interest. I was hardly blowing anyway, and I dropped out of concert-band to help Bruce Stewart build his huge HO-layout, thus precipitating the great piano-bench incident.
At Houghton I stopped playing altogether. I went back to boogie-woogie piano, preferably on a Steinway concert grand with a broken sound-board which had been retired to a practice-room.
There also was a Hammond Model D in another practice-room. Once in a while I’d steal into the Houghton Church and fire up their pipe-organ.
(Once the college pastor confronted me after hearing “Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring” segued into “Louie-LouEYE.”)
Who knows whatever happened to that saxophone. It was probably sold to buy groceries.
posted by BobbaLew at 6:29 PM
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