The Sorry State of Saxophone Education

I had an interesting conversation with a prominent saxophone educator last week. He (who shall remain nameless) is a well known university professor, who is director of jazz studies at a large university with a well established music program. He's also a clinician for a prominent French saxophone manufacturer, a former columnist for The Saxophone Journal, and a highly regarded performer and studio musician. A pretty qualified guy!

We were talking about what happens to his students upon graduation. We agree that there are far more graduates than there are jobs. We also agree that we don't know of a single university program that adequately prepares its students for a viable career as a performer. What's wrong with this picture?

As I ply the trade show and dealer appearance circuit, I meet hundreds if not thousands of young people walking around with stars in their eyes and saxophone cases on their backs. I worry about them. How are they going to earn a living? Are most of them going to have to learn to say "do you want fries with that?"

These kids are being done a major dis-service by our colleges and universities. They graduate knowing all about ii/V/I and being able to play lots of transcribed solos of the great masters of the past, but when it comes down to earning a living with a saxophone, they generally don't have a clue where to begin.

From time to time in my performance career, a recent graduate has been on a gig with me, and the results are almost always the same. If the leader is foolish enough to give them some solo time, they invariably quote Brecker/Parker/Coltrane et al regardless of the musical format. They consider themselves musical educators whose reason for being is to raise the musical standards of the audience. They try to force feed straight ahead jazz to an audience who came to dance and forget their worries. They show up dressed in blue jeans, T shirts, and tennis shoes when the event is semi-formal. They don't know the standard horn parts for the generally accepted dance set repertoire.

These same guys lament long and loud about how they can't make a living playing jazz, and how the buying public has no taste. I don't feel sorry for them, not one little bit.

If you're going to make a living as a performer, first you have to find some people who are willing to part with their money in order to induce you to perform. This requires, of course, figuring out what they want and expect to hear. This is where the educators fail.

The educators are all wrapped up in the mental masturbation of convoluted jazz theory, and forget that we're talking about what is basically an entertainment medium. The public lets us know what they want to hear. All you have to do is read Billboard, or listen to commercial (non-subsidized) radio. People vote with their pocketbooks. Their desires are easy to figure out.

Before a degree in saxophone performance is granted, a student should be required to complete a six month apprenticeship in a dance club, playing at least four sets, five nights a week.

This is not to say that the methods being used fail to teach students how to play. I see quite a few students who possess amazing technique, and have obviously spent many long hours with the Ferling Etudes and the many excellent jazz studies books. Playing skills are only a part of it, however. Entertainment skills are an equally important component. As part of any final examination, all students should be required to demonstrate proficiency in bar walking, hand percussion, stage dress, sound and light system diagnosis and repair, truck packing and driving, sleep deprivation survival, and dealing with club owners and union officials.

It's time for the universities to get a dose of reality.