The Bass Saxophone was Adolphe’ original Sax, the first member of the family to be created.
It is the largest Sax which is manufactured widely. It never really succeeded in taking off as a popular Jazz band instrument like the smaller saxes. It has however found it’s place into some unique combos. An amazing story about this heavy instrument being the first ever saxophone was that its creator, Adolphe Sax, walked 186 miles (300 kilometres) from Brussels to Paris to present it to the world. Adolph’s intention behind the creation of the bass was to design and then build an instrument that would resemble the power of the ophicleide (member of the tuba family). Adolph also wanted this Sax to be as agile as the bass clarinet.
Pitched in B-flat, it has played a role in jazz combos during the era between World War I and II, being used primarily for bass lines. It was first heard in concert on February 3rd in 1844, the bass is larger in size than the baritone and smaller than the contrabass. The instrument is not widely used or incredibly popular today.
Similar in design to the baritone sax, the main visual difference is that loop of the bass extends further.
Return from Bass Saxophone to Saxophone Family
Return from Bass Saxophone to Saxophone Players Guide
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