Saxophone, Soprano
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The Soprano Saxophone is the smallest of the four saxophones in common use. Unlike its bigger relations, it normally has no U-bend in the tube, but is a straight cone. The soprano saxophone plays the top line in the saxophone quartet. However, it is most often used to lead small jazz bands, and often features in jazz-rock fusion groups.
| Family |
| Woodwinds |
| Pitch range |
| Two-and-a-half octaves. |
| Material |
| Brass. |
| Size |
| 23 in (64 cm) long. |
| Origins |
| The soprano saxophone is one of a family of instruments invented by the Belgian instrument-maker Adolphe Sax (1814-1894), in Brussels in 1840. |
| Classification |
| Aerophone: an instrument that produces its sound by the vibration of a column of air. |
| And also... |
| Due to its straight, tapering shape, French musicians sometimes refer to the soprano saxophone as "la carrotte" (the carrot). However , some sopranos are made in the same shape as the alto, resembling a giant tobacco pipe. |
