Tech Talk: To bis, or not to bis... (Saxophone)

In my first couple of years of establishing my teaching studio in Coffs I have come to notice a couple of things. Some habits in this town haven’t died hard in terms of music tuition. The first point is that we are still in the situation of teachers being over-protective of their own students. We are not the only town that is guilty of this offence. I have come across other teachers and institutions within the state that belong in the same boat. I raised this point last year after tutoring on the Western Band Camp in July. The second point is that we have teachers quick to come out and point out incorrect technique, applied by students, being taught by another teacher. Especially when the technique taught by the supposed teacher at fault is in fact correct.

I’m not going to come out blasting saying that my technique is perfect and that everyone else is wrong. I could go ahead and justify the technique that I use for teaching and put forward a more-than-satisfactory case that would support my method. As the old saying goes "There's more than one way to skin a cat". In this post, I am going to address two notorious fingerings for the saxophone; the notes “B flat” and “C”.

The Note B Flat/A Sharp

As tutors, it is normally accepted practice for us to examine three different types of performers. These would be the student performer, the professional performer, and our personal performance. It came of interest when I conversed with a performer/composer from Sydney about saxophone technique that I discovered the fingerings used and the comparison of fingerings, they drew upon, with well known performer and teacher Mark Walton. Of main interest in our conversation was the note “B Flat”, but we did mention “C” as well since it can be closely linked to the note being a tone away.

The note B Flat can have up to four fingerings. These include...

*The first two fingers on the left hand and pressing the B Flat key with the right hand

*The first finger on the left hand and any one of the fingers on the right hand

*The same fingering as the bottom B Flat with the octave key added

*The “bis” fingering, having the first finger on the left hand press the first pad, and the pad in between the first and second pads (known as the “bis” key)

Before I go on, the first thing that I will firmly state is that NONE of these fingerings are incorrect. They all play the note B Flat, and some may possibly have some pitch differences and timbre qualities. However, it is how the fingerings are utilised in runs and leaps are where the fingerings should become most effective and put a performing saxophonist in their prime.

The first B Flat fingering that several saxophone teachers introduce to students is using the “bis” key. Now I don’t have a problem with this, even though I don’t use this fingering at all (gasp, shock, horror!!!). No, that doesn’t make me a bad teacher or performer. I simply have not found a justification to use this fingering in a performance that allows for a flowing run or phrase. Virtually any piece of music I have played I have used either of the first two fingerings I have listed. When I first began learning the saxophone, after having being clarinet for six years, I was never shown the “bis” key. Getting back to the current point of the fingerings introduced to students, I have found some teachers will teach the “bis” fingering but never teach the other alternatives.

Mistake number one; always teach students the different options they can potentially utilise in performance practice. The second fingering I list is absolutely key for passages that have a B Flat major arpeggio, an F Sharp major arpeggio, or a piece in B (major or minor) where the dominant harmony (F Sharp major) arpeggiates in the melody and resolves (those that have studied harmony will understand this). The first fingering I listed is the stock-standard one I teach to students when they first learn this note. In fact, you would have a much better chance of getting away with using this fingering all of the time instead of the “bis” fingering. The main issues I have with the “bis” fingering are that finger swapping is involved (which can result in untidy technical work or causing the performer to put gaps in between notes by stopping and starting the air again instead of the notes flowing constantly), and that one finger is being required to cover two pads at the same time. Being of clarinet background, the fingering system we use (Boehm) is partially adopted by the saxophone. There is never a case where we are required to cover two tone holes, or partially cover a second, with one finger. And this is a method I have taken across from my clarinet playing and have gone ahead and applied to my teaching with great results. I have students I have taken over teaching from other tutors that use the “bis” fingering, and they are comfortable to use it. I haven’t gone ahead and told them they are wrong, but I have presented the other options to them. And they do use these every now and then depending on the situation of their phrasing.

The Note C
We have two options of playing the note C (three if you include the bottom fingering with the octave key). The first fingering we teach students is the stock-standard middle finger on the left hand. We first teach these fingerings as the basics for students to master. So don’t panic if the first unit in your method teaches the notes G, A, B, and C and a lot of finger swapping is involved. Allow the basics to settle before moving on a lot later with the alternative way of playing C.

*The fingering for the note B is used (first finger left hand), but add the middle side key used by the right hand known as the “C Key”.



I’m surprised this fingering is not taught enough as common method. In the “Learn As You Play Saxophone” book it is taught as soon as Unit 11. This is roughly when a student is around 2nd Grade standard for AMEB. I have a student currently studying for his 4th Grade saxophone and was told off by an “artisan” teacher that the alternate C fingering method was incorrect, and that he should be finger swapping. He compared the two fingerings and found the alternate was better to use in a situation when he had scale runs, instead of finger swapping, and was more fluent.

The only case where I have found a difficult alternative is in a C melodic minor scale run where the turn is at the tonic note (i.e. B, C, B Flat). Again, there is no incorrect method. But, you should keep as many options open as you can. The “Brasiliera” arrangement from the “Scaramouche Suite” by Milhaud can easily find a student out if they are not prepared technically. Yes, it can be a challenging and demanding piece. If the fingerings are sorted out and organised, there can be a lot less stressful moments in this piece.

Some teach “bis”, and some don’t. It’s not a cardinal sin, but to not teach the different options after the basics can possibly prove to be more of a major flaw in the development of a performer and their fluid technical playing. Keep your options open!