Popular musician Craig Crofton is your guide through Latin Series 1. In this series, you'll learn all the fundamentals of playing Latin styles on your saxophone, but also pick up a lot of knowledge that will help you play within other genres as well as improvise. Although many of the lessons are based around basic sax techniques, you'll need to spend time and be concentrated on what you're doing 100% if you want to teach yourself this style to a good level. Latin Series 1 is ideal for beginner and intermediate sax players.
Craig Crofton is a popular and world-renowned saxophonist, and has played with up and coming jazz artists as well as many of the greats, including our own Pee Wee Ellis. Craig is in high demand as a session musician, and also has his own jazz quintet, who are a popular presence on the UK club scene. He is also one of our leading tutors here at Pro Music Tutor, bringing all the knowledge he has learned from jazz pioneers through history and combining it with his own unique style to brilliant effect.
In Latin Series Lesson 1, Craig introduces you to 'call and response' within a distinct and catchy piece of solo music, helping you to quickly pick up this simple lick and understand the importance this technique. Craig slowly goes through both parts of the solo, demonstrating the subtle changes you need to introduce at the end, before putting all licks together so you're able to play this great solo in full.
In lesson 2, Craig starts to expand the rhythmic range, using one of the notes of lesson 1 to ensure you can easily transfer what you learned earlier. Craig focus on playing the notes individually before starting to play them in a Latin rhythmic style, beginning slowly before increasing the pace as you start to become familiar with the sequences. The latter part of the lesson will introduce you to approach tones so you can add depth to your music. Playing approach tones are excellent to have in your repertoire if you want to start improvising when playing your sax.
Lesson 3 uses the Blues scale that you used in lesson 1, but is a much bigger part of the music. Craig begins by taking you through the Blues scale so you know where you're working should you ever want to practice or experiment with this element of playing sax. The lesson then focus on using G sharp to construct a range of phrases, and Craig will share some secrets that will allow you to improvise and construct different pieces of music around one solo.
This is the longest lesson so far, and sees Craig using pentatonic scales to further develop the licks you have already learned in the earlier lessons. Lesson 4 introduces more advanced techniques and will help you to become a more versatile sax player. By Craig's own admission, this is a lesson that might take you a little longer to pick up and master, but once you've done so you're all set to tackle the additional challenges presented in the final lessons.
Lesson 5 is perfect for teaching yourself how to travel effortlessly from one note to another, while continuing to play in between and maximise use of the ‘flat five.’ The main focus of the lesson is a series of glissando practices, which are an essential part of improvising in your sax playing. Craig continues to use call and response to build the solo featured in this lesson, which combines Latin style with traditional Jazz and Blues sounds. Once more, you can practice at your own pace before increasing the speed to play along with the backing track.
In lesson 6 part one, Craig puts together all of the tricks and techniques you've used so far, with an emphasis on call and response as well as further discussing the importance of using musical breaks and silence to create more distinct Latin solo phrases. As a result, the solo in this lesson places a lot of focus on these areas. If you haven't yet perfected your sax rhythm, you'll need to go back through the earlier lessons and ensure you understand the importance of silence in creating a groove.
Lesson 6 part two brings you the longest solo of the series, and while Craig goes through everything you need to know to play the solo in full, the emphasis is really on your own skills and taking what you can out of the lesson and add to your own playing style. Craig continues to emphasize the importance of maintaining Latin rhythm, and by the end of the lesson you'll be proficient in playing Latin style sax solo or working within a group.
In this video, Craig takes you through the equipment he uses to generate the great sounds you've learned throughout Latin Series 1, while also talking you through some useful advice for choosing the right instrument for your own personal style and taste. As well as telling you about the equipment he uses and why he uses it, he shares some resources and places where you'll be able to find a range of equipment. After watching this video, you'll have a clear idea of the type of equipment you want to use when playing Latin style sax.
Craig takes you through each of the four scales that have featured throughout Latin Series 1. These are the D Blues scale, D minor Pentatonic scale, A minor Pentatonic scale, and the Diatonic scale. All four of these scales are great for sax players at any level, and having them in your skill set will ensure you're ready to tackle a variety of different styles. Learning these scales will give you an additional opportunity to practice your breathing and general playing technique and will leave you able to play a specific style or improvise however you wish.
This backing track has been put together for you to use while learning all of the sax techniques featured in Latin Series 1. Perfect for getting a feel for the type of style you should be playing, or learning the groove and rhythm of Latin music, this track is an ideal accompaniment to this series, whether you're looking to play sax solo or as part of an ensemble arrangement.
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