Invented in the early 1840s, the saxophone was a relative latecomer to music—and to jazz. But starting in the mid-1920s, with the rise of the big bands, the instrument slowly but steadily evolved from ...

The Standard's journalism is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. From the dulcet tones of Kenny G to the infectious hook to ...

The tenor sax is a jazz instrument. The paradigmatic jazz instrument, if I may thrown in a $50 word. How many tenor sax sonatas or concertos can you think of that feature the tenor as a solo, or even ...

When jazz fans talk about the Texas Tenor saxophone sound, they're talking about a sound which is very robust, sometimes raw, and which mixes the musical vocabularies of swing, bebop, blues and R&B.

When tenor saxophonist John Coltrane recorded his composition "Giant Steps" in 1959, he created something that changed the way musicians thought about improvisation and harmony. Decades earlier, the ...

Sonny Rollins, one of the greatest living practitioners of jazz, bought the saxophone he still uses today on West 48th Street in Manhattan in the 1970s. Back then, the small block was dotted with so ...

IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more. This saxophone was made by C. G. Conn ...