I had a great lesson request from a Sax School Member recently…I love getting lesson requests from members because then I can help Sax School members learn exactly what they are interested in.
Plus it’s a great opportunity to discover some new AMAZING solos.
Learning how to play pop solos on saxophone is a big part of Sax School, because they are so much fun to play AND a great way to develop your skills. Check out our lesson on Baker Street here
This request was for help learning the original solo from Private Dancer, as recorded by Tina Turner on her reissue album.
It’s brilliant, but I thought I would do something even cooler.
Taking this Sax Solo one step further
This week in Sax School I’ve created two new lessons where I pull apart the original solo from “Private Dancer” and show you 3 Building Blocks that you can use to create your own solos.
What are Building Blocks and how will they help me improvise on sax?
Great question!
In Sax School we often use Building Blocks as a way to capture the essence of a phrase or style.
A Building Block is a little melody “chunk” that can be played by itself, or as part of a phrase.
You could also think of these as “licks” but if you approach them the right way, building blocks can be so much more than just something you learn “parrot fashion” and regurgitate on a gig.
How to use building blocks the right way
In this set of lessons for alto and tenor sax, I show you how to play these Building Blocks, PLUS we discuss how to break down and use elements from them in your own improvising.
It’s a brilliant way to create awesome sounding solos that sound great, and are really easy to do.
These are great skills to have, especially if you are preparing to play at your own gig or a jam session soon.
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