June 17: Alto Sax 1

Thursday night I attended my first practice of the Rockport Legion Band. I brought my bari sax and my alto sax, because the conductor wasn't sure what he needed me to play because he didn't know exactly who was going to be joining the sax section. When I showed up, there was already a bari sax player (a Rockport High School student), and another alto sax was also in the section, but she was a beginner and played Alto Sax 2, so the conductor had me play Alto Sax 1. Alto Sax 1 is a totally different animal than what I usually play. Ever since I've lived in Gloucester, I have played bari sax in concert band, which is mostly low notes in an easy bass or harmony part. Alto Sax 1 is the leader of the sax section, with melodies and high notes and solos, which was definitely a new and delightful (though somewhat nervewracking) experience for me (though to be honest, in high school and college I played Bassoon 1 in concert band which the led the section and had some melodies and solos, but that was many years ago, and even bassoon sometimes just plays the easy bass lines). 

This was the first time I had seen most of this music, so I had to do a lot of sight reading. Thankfully, I was familiar with some tunes, like selections from Les Miserables (in which I have a gorgeous solo) and Funiculi Funicula (in which I have most of the melody). For not having played Alto in awhile, and never having played Alto Sax 1 in a concert band, I thought I did fairly well, and I'm looking forward to future practices and eventual outdoor performances. It is delightful to play music in a group again (especially because I loathe practicing all by myself!) and it's definitely feeling like life is getting back to normal!

With delight,

♥Jamie