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Forum » Jazz Saxophone » Pre Concert Rituals?? by YanagisawA-901 (312 posts) 20 years ago Pre Concert Rituals?? Just wondering what other people do to warm up before a big concert. any rituals? patterns? anything u do with ur horn or ur accesories?? me personally i clean my mouthpiece and my neck out good.. sometimes i polish the horn, not always.. but the day of the concert i get there bout 2 hours before hand and get my horn out.. i just 'air' thru some scales so i dont outplay my mouth.. then maybe 1 hour to 30 minutes before set i actually run thru my parts and tune with the section and then the whole section does a makeshift crappy improv thing where the bari picks a non sensable bass line and we all just play obnoxiously loud and disgusting.. then before hte concert the whole sax section turns around and we like to act as motivation and we tell e verybody "show me somthin.. hey! hey!.. you! show me somthin.." and then we look at eachother and we tell each and every person in the section "your the shit!" we like it.. blah Reply To Post [Report Abuse] Report Abuse Web Address * Your Name Your Email Address Comment
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by sax_maniac (984 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? My pre-concert ritual is 9 hours of sleep and a protein shake in the morning. And no donuts of mysterious origin. Sorry for the somewhat obsure cinematic reference... I check my horns over the night before with a leak light just to be sure everything is ready to go. I then run through the material once just to keep it fresh on my fingers. The day of the performance, I just relax and warm up as usual - with screwdriver and glue close by - just in case. Reply To Post by connsaxman_jim (2336 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? I always keep my reeds in a LaVos holder and swab out my mouthpieces after a gig and wipe down my horn with a soft rag, so it's ready for my next gig. I never let my horn sit in a cold car, but still I like to get to a gig early and let the horn adjust to room temperature for a few minutes before tuning and playing. I soak the reed in warm water for a few minutes while I'm waiting, and then I set up whatever mouthpiece I want to use. Then I check all the keys to make sure none are sticking. If a pad is sticking, I put a little Charlie's Magic Gig Dust on it, or a dab of trombone slide oil. I tune, and then run through a couple scales and exercise my fingers a little. Then I check my tuning again. I make whatever last minute adjustments I need to make. Sometimes, I'll take a shot of brandy or something to clear my throat. Then, when I grab the sax I'm ready to go! Reply To Post Yahoo! by phathorn (165 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? just becareful who makes the protein shake...."OOOOOO it burns!!!!!" Reply To Post by definition (963 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? My mates and I, since High school have had the tradition of taking a GP before we perform Reply To Post Yahoo! AIM by TrentG (15 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? what do you polish a sax with? Reply To Post by definition (963 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? usually laquer polish or silver polish, dependiong on the finish of your horn Reply To Post Yahoo! AIM by Dirty_Reggae (55 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? I always find myself having to pee really bad right before we go on. Its pretty funny. Also, me and my tenor friend like to play Alice in Wonderland. Reply To Post by YanagisawA-901 (312 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? i polish my horn with just an old torn up 100% cotton undershirt or somthin.. or a cotton terry cloth like one youd wax your car with.. if thers a spit spot i fog it up with my mouth and it does the trick.. Reply To Post Yahoo! AIM ICQ by martysax (148 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? I usually show up 15 minutes before the lights come up, fresh from driving crazy from home or day job, and change into my tux or stage clothes in the car. I carry in two saxes, a flute, a gig bag, and my mic case and dump them on the stage. I retrieve my alto and tenor mouthpieces and take the reeds from the previous gig and check for damage, then stick them in my mouth while I go to the bar and get a double scotch, straight no chaser. I then take ~8-10 minutes to put it all together and greet the crowd. I state to the audience "This next set brought to you by the makers of Johnny Walker Black." I turn to the guitarist and count off "Pick up the pieces" and it's showtime! Reply To Post by SaxMan88 (318 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? The last concert I had to dig around for a tenor to use...I had to use my director's Selmer S80...that was fun grins. I just warm up, maybe play along with some of the ensemble members, and my warm up is just scales and etc. Various stuff. Nuttin fancy. When I get my new tenor I might just have to polish it, swab mouthpiece, soak reeds, check for leaks, keep emergency repair kit on standby, but for now I'm keepin KISS style. Sorry I had no funny quirks in here. One ritual I did and hope not to do again is get locked in a charter bus bathroom! Oh wait, that happened AFTER the concerts laughs. Take care. Reply To Post by kennyj (24 posts) 20 years ago Re: Pre Concert Rituals?? When hired as a sideman, I had the habit of calling the leader around noon, and reviewing with him the rules for the evening, and mess with his brain. I would tell him, ok - we start at 7.... brown suit... dixie clarinet, right? .... while knowing that it was an 8pm gig in tuxes on jazz tenor. I used to love doing that. But for the past .... uh.... lots of years, being a leader, I have come to repent of that practice..... Now, my ritual consists of arriving one hour early, and scoping the stage and restrooms.... and if a sit-down gig, finding the best chair. (sorry -- no lucky reeds, favorite argyle socks, or any of that.... reality beat that stuff out of me in the '70's) ii-V-I KennyJ kennyj Reply To Post