The influence of jazz on the evolution of the academic art of playing the saxophone

The period of the 30s - 40s of the XX century became a landmark for academic saxophone art, as new social standards, due to the tremendous influence of jazz music, are making adjustments to its specifics. Life realities of this time compel the performer of this specialization to play not only in all styles and genres, but also in various hypostases to be able to fit into all kinds of compositions - from the variety ensemble to the symphony orchestra. Such an extensive field of activity contributes to the frantic popularization of the saxophone, a huge range of applications that causes a sharp increase in the performance level, and the variety of musical practice implies high skill, which is possible only if there is a serious vocational education. Such significant transformations significantly increased interest and activated the attention of musicians of different directions to this instrument, but jazz played a decisive role in its fate, no matter what. Indeed, jazz musicians were the first to show the wide dynamic and sound capabilities of the saxophone. However, identification within the jazz composition, primarily because of the inherent arsenal of methods of sound production, leads to the fact that he, as an academic orchestral and, moreover, as a solo instrument, was pushed into the “historical shadow” (S. Rappoport). Nevertheless, in the 30s of the twentieth century, by a strange coincidence, he, thanks to the fame gained in jazz music, again arouses interest and revives in the work of musicians of the classical direction. From this moment, saxophone art begins to assimilate the characteristic features of the process of “diffusion” of the professional academic and popular variety-jazz spheres, and its evolution proceeds in close relationship with creative experiments and various searches of performers of both directions. Important for the development of the art of playing the saxophone becomes his recognition as an elite musical community, which entailed changes in this sphere. During this period musicians, whose creative and pedagogical activity influenced not only the performance on the saxophone, but also the formation of artistic and methodical repertoire for him, were nominated. Very important for the art of playing this instrument are the methodological principles of H. Lindemann. He is the first to address the issue of the need for the skilled development of the saxophone and substantiates the basic principles of a rational formulation of the ear cup, the expediency of which, first of all, he argues with its constructive features.

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