6. Multiphonics 2

Fingerings/Classifications

After discovering how and why multiphonics are produced on the saxophone, the next step is to discover all the possibilities (fingerings/air pressure/volume/ timbre etc.) and then learn/classify them in a way which allows you to think about them and apply them in a musical context.

In my search, I was encouraged by German saxophonist Frank Gratkowski to purchase a copy of the book “The Techniques of Saxophone Playing” by Georgio Netti & Marcus Weiss which is a book for performers and composers outlining the extended possibilities of the instrument and how different techniques can be utilised, performed and expressed on paper. Amongst other things, this book contains an extremely useful and comprehensive catalogue of multiphonics (on soprano, alto, tenor and baritone) including fingerings and classifications based on timbre/volume/ease of production/intervalic relationships etc.

These classifications are as follows:

• First Level
  • A – layer of natural overtones over a fundamental (i.e. overtones – regular fingerings, no disruption in tube)
    **All other categories have fingerings which disrupt the air-column – effectively making two tubes.
  • B – sound with strong oscillation
  • C – wide dyad (two notes), stable
  • D – aggregate of two or more partials over a fundamental
  • E – narrow dyad
    
• Second Level
  • Ba – detuned octave and twelfth, creating stable oscillation, open and fast; p-ff
  • CE – dyad between a fourth and fifth, stable; pp-p
  • Ce – dyad between a minor sixth and seventh, stable; pp-p
  • Cb – approximately one octave, with the possible presence of a twelfth, usually unstable; pp-p
  • C – between a minor ninth and an eleventh, stable; pp-mp
  • D/B – wide multiphonic, usually built on a minor ninth, partly oscillating; mp-ff
  • Da – wide multiphonic, usually built on a ninth (also tenth, third or fourth), stable; p-ff
  • E – thirds; ppp-p
  • Eb – seconds, as minor seconds usually oscillating strongly with the possible presence of a low fundamental tone; ppp-mp
    
    Netti, G & Weiss, M, “The Techniques of Saxophone Playing”, 2010, Bärenreiter-Verlag Karl Vötterle GmbH & Co. KG, Kassel.

As you can see by the written representation, there is a lot of useful information. The fingering is represented in two ways: firstly in the diagram which shows shaded circles for keys closed and “Bb” indicating the low Bb key is closed, and secondly with the code “S/Bb-7” which tells us – Soprano Saxophone, Low Bb fingering, take away the 7th finger (i.e. the low C key). Then the multiphonic is displayed visually in terms of its intervals in the staff and then its classification (listed above) and what volume is required to make the multiphonic speak.

The Bärenreite website (which published the book) contains audio examples of the first 10 multiphonics for each instrument which is useful but not fully comprehensive. This is something I would like to document in my own practice.

Whilst this is an extremely useful tool, an extra step is still needed in order to fully grasp these sounds. Whilst it is nice to have all the possibilities laid out in front of you, it is overwhelming to see how any of these sounds could fit together considering they are in order from lowest fundamental to highest instead of grouped by their classification – resulting in no pattern or uniformity in sound as you go through each one. I prefer – and will produce – my own groupings of certain multiphonics in a later post.

Norwegian saxophonist Torben Snekkestad in his research paper “The Poetics of a Multiphonic Landscape” 2016 suggests that the best way to do this is to experiment and make personal classifications for these sounds. This is because all saxophones and mouthpiece/reed set-ups are different and affect how the multiphonic is produced. This is something I will keep in mind as I delve further into this field.

PS. This website of Bret Pimental is a great resource which allows you to make your own fingering diagrams and download them as PNG files so you can use them in digital scores etc.