The Daily Reviewer | Sax on the Web

The Finnish Winter War Remembered [YouTube]

Mar 13, 2010 1:57pm

Seventy years ago today, March 13, 1940, ended the Winter war started by Soviet Russia unprovoked. (Music: Finlandia by Jean Sibelius). ...

It takes two to tango and play flute

Mar 12, 2010 3:19pm

Juliette Hurel and Benoit Fromanger co-operating. ...

The Making of the New SOTW Logo – Part 1

Feb 25, 2010 8:24am

This is from Kim Pelletier, the resident Sax on the Web artist. (Earlier Sax on the Web logos.) With Sax On The Web’s 10 year anniversary behind us and now with its recent upgrade and new look, I decided that it’s time for a new logo. I have been pondering...

Sax on the Web Forum upgrade

Jan 25, 2010 6:02pm

Upgrading the Sax on the Web Forum seems to be taking longer thank expected. Although I had a test installation working for a week, I ran into difficulties when converting with the live database. Check out for update here and on the SOTW site. Sorry for the inconvenience, ~Harri Update (Jan-16-10): Sax on the Web...

Improvisation Basics 5: The Right Notes At The Right Time

Dec 17, 2009 6:26pm

I routinely review Sax on the Web older contents checking out link changes and other things which may have changed over time. It was my pleasure to rediscover Andew Campbell's article "The Right Notes At The Right Time" from 2007. Previously we took a look of Teaching Improvisation to Adult...

Improvisation Basics 3: Blues Chord Progressions and other Rules

Dec 17, 2009 3:29pm

Image by haribote via Flickr Blues and Jazz go very much hand in hand. Starting with Blues is the way to get your feet wet in the difficult but rewarding art of improvising. Our approach is three-pronged: First familiarize yourself with Basic Blues Chord Progressions by John Lull. Then absorb the bluesy...

Lennie and Me - How I became a saxophone player?

Dec 17, 2009 5:45am

This is an excerpt of the Interview: Lennie Niehaus (LN) by JazzWax (JW) JW: What was your first instrument? LN: The violin. My dad was my teacher. He was born in Russia and had attended the St. Petersburg Conservatory with Jascha Heifetz. It was a strict place. If a kid played a...

Another One Bites The Dust: Karmann Gone Bust

Dec 17, 2009 5:38am

Ragtop lovers, get out your rags and cry. German maker Karmann, famous for its Karmann Ghia and later for many ragtop versions produced for makers such as Audi, Ford, Mercedes, Porsche, Renault and VW, has declared insolvency, is reported. The company still has 3470 employees. Karmann’s last big job was the...

Field Marshal Mannerheim and Finland's Independence

Dec 17, 2009 5:25am

Carl Gustaf Emil MannerheimThis photograph is in the Public domain On December 6th Finland celebrates her 92nd Independence Day. This week seventy years ago Soviet Russia attacked Finland without declaring a war. This widely condemned aggression became known as the Finnish Winter War. Mannerheim's role was paramount for tiny Finland in...

Karmann Ghia's Clutch repaired

Dec 12, 2009 6:10pm

From a Karmann Ghia Discussion Group: Harri Rautiainen: KG clutch problem.re: Karmann Ghia -58 The clutch wire tube in the shaft tunnel is loose. This prevents adjusting the clutch. Any similar experiences? Andy Holmes: I thought I had a similar problem with my KG - the advice from Luke Theochari at Terry's Beetle...

The greatest invention since sliced bread – A Computer

Dec 10, 2009 2:59pm

My friend sent me this and I found it both amusing and nostalgic. I shortened it to include only the computer companies which I had a personal interest and of course DEC, my previous employer: Image via Wikipedia If IBM made toasters... They would want one big toaster...

Charlie Andrews - BBQ Smoking Hot

Dec 4, 2009 12:01pm

Charlie Andrews was a fine gentleman from the Southern USA, and a friend of the Sax on the Web. Charlie A, was a professional sax player and teacher since the early 1950’s. He was well known for his products that solved the sticky pad problem for saxophonists. Mr. Andrews also introduced...

Drummer Matti Oiling died suddenly

Nov 24, 2009 3:51pm

Published first on October 6, 2009 by YLE; the Finnish Broadcasting Company. A versatile drummer and band leader Kaj-Matti Oiling is dead. Mr. Oiling, born in 1942, died suddenly in Fuengirola, Spain. Matti became known during the decades of Oiling Boiling Rhytm'n Blues Band which he founded in 1969. He began playing...

Improvisation Basics 4: Psyching Out Improv Demons

Nov 3, 2009 2:12am

I participated in mid-1990s in Jazz Studio class taught by Roger Freundlich in Espoo, Finland. Roger later published an article in Down Beat Magazine (1998) about his teaching methods. Here is a summary of it: Look the demons of jazz improvisation straight in the eyes and say, "I'm going to improvise...

DEC and Symbolics History Revisited

Oct 25, 2009 4:51pm

Yes, the title of this blog is referring to Music and Saxophone playing, but I have taken a liberty writing of some personal items occasionally, too. This is a follow up to my previous Blog post dealing with my personal history with Digital Equipment Corp. and Symbolics, Inc. This update stems...

Jon R. Smith: White Trash, Michael Brecker, Philip Glass

Oct 25, 2009 1:17am

"I used to occasionally hang out with Mike Brecker in NYC. We would both be sitting in with Paula Lockhart who had Howie Wyeth playing drums…Brecker told me that two of his favorite players were Jim Pepper and Jon Smith." John Firmin (aka Johnny Nocturne “Jon’s sound is instantaneously recognized, something...

Is Jazz Dead?

Oct 23, 2009 4:06pm

No, it fust smells funny. ~Frank Zappa Alarming News: Can Jazz Be Saved? The audience for America’s great art form is withering awayBy TERRY TEACHOUT (AUGUST 9, 2009, Wall Street Journal) New York In 1987, Congress passed a joint resolution declaring jazz to be “a rare and valuable national treasure.” Nowadays...

Bar Mendocino, Tall Ships, and Horses in the Lobby

Oct 23, 2009 2:45pm

What does this blog title mean? You figure it out, but it was another exhilarating Monday night (October 12, 2009) in the premier Helsinki roots/blues jam venue; Bar Mendocino. There were two reasons for a special celebration. The multi-instrumentalist and, blues/jazz talent Rene Reinikainen was in town. We had an important...

Tim Price on How To Find Your Saxophone Sound

Oct 18, 2009 1:26pm

My good friend, Tim Price authored a comprehensive set of Jazz Lessons and Etudes for my web site, Sax on the Web. Tim is a Selmer Clinician, professional musician, jazz journalist and author. He teaches in New York City and Pennsylvania. While at Berklee, he studied with Charlie Mariano,...

Air Saxophone playing

Oct 10, 2009 4:51pm

Air Sax What guy doesn’t dream of rocking out on a saxophone? Posted using ShareThis ...

Tipitina's, Tall Ships and Horses in the Lobby

Oct 5, 2009 2:57pm

"The Crossroads. That decision every musician must make. It came while sitting in a ramshackle tour bus, squeezed in between the great drummer Jack Pedlar and a 300 pound entertainer..." Part Two Interview Sonny Del-Rio by Neil Sharpe You moved so gracefully across that smoky room, You thought those saxophones were playing...

Color your Saxophone

Oct 4, 2009 4:23am

Once you master your instrument, it is time to get it hand-painted. Look for various designs. Some other ideas: Have fun, ...

Supa dupa fly: Kathleen Kent's The Heretics Daughter, thoughts and memories, sceneries of the mind

Sep 27, 2009 1:27pm

Supa dupa fly: Kathleen Kent's The Heretics Daughter, thoughts and memories, sceneries of the mindJournal entry of a Finnish immigrant brought up in Middlesex County in the Massachussetts Bay Colony who traveled to Sussex County England ...

Check out Evan Tate Interview

Sep 17, 2009 2:36pm

Title: Evan Tate InterviewLink: http://www.saxstation.com/evan-tate-interview.htm ...

Improvisation Basics 2: Blues scales

Aug 26, 2009 2:29pm

John A asks: Can someone tell me how I can play blues and bebop scales? How is each of them different from the original major scales? Thanks!Harri R answers: Start from here: Pentatonic and blues scales and Blues and the Dominant Chord There are more links to scales. good luck, Source:www.saxontheweb.net/ Blues Scale ...