Monterey Jazz festival Horns

[Augman]

I was watching the Monterey jazz festival on KPBS. And I was checking out the gear. I was surprised at how few Selmers where being used. Lots of Yamaha, Kielworth , some Yanagasawa. Also I didnt know Bruce Hornsby could play like that.

[steakboy]

Missed the PBS Monterey Jazz coverage, so I can't speak to the horn choice distribution. But yeah, Bruce Hornsby is formidable; he can cover a range of styles convincingly. My most recent acquisition of his was the duet album he did last year with Ricky Skaggs, which includes a bluegrass cover of Rick James' 'Superfreak' that is not to be believed.

[zorroperro]

Maybe I am wrong, but I think that the price has to do. Of course you can find expensive saxophones at every high end brand, but I don't think everybody is willing to expend 4 k. in a horn if they can expend half of it and sound somehow close to what the want by choosing from all that alternatives that can be found at mouthpieces, reeds and even ligatures.

I truly believe that nothing sounds better than a Selmer, name the model.

For me, having played almost every alto model made by Selmer and many other brands, never have been able to play a horn that beats the Series II. That's me, of course.

All the best,

JI

[Morry]

Also I didnt know Bruce Hornsby could play like that.

I saw a special on TV a couple of years ago about Bruce. His band is made up of some incredible musicians. One of them joked about living in constant fear being on stage with Bruce. It seems that he gets bored playing stuff the same all the time the way most artists do, so all of his tunes are very fluid. They all keep constant eye contact with him, because he'll just get a little glint in his eye and nod, and they know he's going in a totally different direction, and they have to keep up.

[Augman]

Im sorry i meant Newport Jazz Fest.
and Morry I noticed the hornsby eye contact and impromptu directions.

[gary]

A number of years ago I went to an Earth Day in DC. I got out of the metro and just as I walked over a hill to overlook tens of thousands of people, I heard some wonderful playing. I looked to my left and there, at the crest of the hill, were Bruce Hornsby and Branford Marsalis playing together. It was wonderful. Very flexible and musical.