His sound is very good compared to most sax players. I can produce the same as kenny g. My sound is great. I almost have the same setup as kenny g. I have a dukoff d7 metal mouthpiece. But my soprano is a Curved yanagisawa soprano and it sounds great. First you have to move your lower jaw up and down for virbrato. DO NOT DO WITH FINGERS- fingers are harder. Move your jaw as moving it in and out of tune. From this a great sound should come out after years of practice.

It is not difficult to do.
A trombonist thought me the method 25 years ago.
If you can, try it on a trombone first, easier on that instrument.
Carry the same method over, including puffed out cheeks.

last post was on circular breathing.
the hard part is staying in tune.

I got to hear KG practice backstage,
and his practicing was amazing.
I am not a KG fan, but he is original and quite skilled.

My favorite saxophone sound is
that of Jan Garbarek.

Kenny G is not Jazz, any true Jazz musician will tell you that. Listen to Joshua Redman, Coltrane, Dennis Diblasio, and who ever else is not Kenny G. He is not a musician.

What are you guys smoking. kenny g has a awesome sound. i would like to see you go make that sound. it is true, he doest really play jazz but his sound is great in slow songs like Songbird and silhouette. When you are BETTER than him then you can talk crap.

There are a lot of smooth jazz player that sound alike to me. Kenny G is
very recognizable. Like comparing
Carly Simon to Britney Spears.
I could find one hundred girls who can sound like Spears. I have to give Kenny G credit for having an individual sound, so he can be compared to Coltrane or Johnny Hodges in that regard. He also is also very good at using dynamics. He will bring up and drop the intensity.
Many others are on nonstop burn.

I have heard many great Jazz players live like Dexter Gordon and I don`t
Kenny G would fit in that style well, but I think he is good at his stlye.

I rarely hear jazz people say any thing good about him, but good grief he has sold over 70 million records.

To respond:
He is definitely a musician.
And Josuha Redman to me has great technique, but not very unique.

I have been playing soprano more lately and my conclusion ow is is the equipment has little to do with Kenny G`s sound. It is in his vibrato, and his style of writing. So I wouldn`t worry much about the equipment. His tenor sound does need a bright mouthpiece though.

ive got a question. is the yamaha yss 875 custom series sop sax and selmer sa80 series III any where near the selmer mark VI or at least how do each one fair?

any body who say kenny g suckes is a jelouse bitch thats stupid and dumb i bet you cant play a single note the way he plays you ass hole son of bitches.

First of all, enough with the hostilities. I`m going to pass along a personal experience that I`ve shared with my students:
When I was first learning the sax, Kenny G seemed to be the most accessible player to listen to. I mean, his music was all over the radio, and his albums were always in the stores. Basically the man is very popular. Kenny G also plays a LOT of notes, and at times very fast. That seems very impressive to a naive young player. Many beginning students fall into this trap, thinking Kenny G must be the best player because of his fame and his bravora licks (I did...remember, personal experience). However, there are a lot of influencial (living) contemporary saxophonists out there now who are far more beneficial to listen to in order to begin to shape your sound: Michael Brecker, Branford Marsalis, Joshua Redman, James Carter....the list goes on and on. These players all have their unique sounds, yet they still retain the flavor of the "classic" tone. (I also happen to think these people are more accomplished musicians that Mr. G, but everyone has a right to an opinion.) Don`t forget the greats too (Parker, Trane, Stitt...etc), but I`m sure you`ve heard that 1000 times. Remember one thing: it doesn`t pay to waste notes, and that`s what Kenny G does a lot of.

i play the alto sax in a highschool band in smith station, alabama. i thik that kenny g. is a very good player. i also think that anyone who says that he is not a musician needs to re-think their definition of music. i really like his playing and i dont think that he "wastes notes". all he is doing is playing the way he wants to play.

i have a few things to say....

one is that kenny g`s sound does not come from his equipment, nor should yours. while having a good sax will improve your playing, buying one won`t put you on stage...

next, circular breathing isnt as tricky to pick up as many people like to think. a good way to practice the principals of it is try it on a brass instrument like the trumpet. remember your not trying to produce good tone on the trumpet really, just getting the principals down to taketo your sax. the basic idea is you fill your mouth cavity up with air, and when you need to take a breath, you squeeze the air out of your mouth while you breath in your nose. dont get to frustrated on your tone quality and intonation, it takes long practice hours to master


keep practicing!

i have been playing for quite some time, i am also a pro mind you and what got me started was the G man himself. i have always tried to sound like him but in my own way. what i did very successfully was to play along with his recordings and transcribed his solos. i`m in college now people get a kick out of me. my last name is garcia so people think its funny to call me the G man. Kenny g does play alto very well and flute. the guy rocks!!! you might want to hunt down some of the Jeff lorber fussion music. kenny was the flute and sax player their. that is how he started. you`ll love the stuff, you wont even believe its him. dont forget that long tones will always help. through out all my life that people have known me as a sax players i have been known for the G tonality and crisp note accuracy when improving.