The Yamaha Baritone Saxophone
For a bari sax player, a Yamaha baritone saxophone represents one of the best playing experience they can have. Yamaha is a Japanese company that makes musical instruments of all types, and is known for saxophones of the highest quality. One model of baritone sax made by Yamaha is the YBS52. This fine instrument retails for $6151, but can be found for a discounted price.
The details of design in the YBS52 Yamaha baritone saxophone are geared to the comfort and ease of the player. For instance, the left hand pinky keys have been positioned and shaped to give the player the best in comfort and response. It also has a thumb rest that can be adjusted to comfortably fit the individual hands that will be playing it. The layout and position of all the keys are designed to improve playability and decrease the chances of needing to use unnatural hand positions. The Yamaha baritone saxophone is reported to be adaptable for playing either jazz and rock with a bright sound or classical music with a darker sound. It is also said to be lighter in weight (an important consideration for bari sax players, since this is a big instrument) than the Selmer series III bari saxes. If you can afford it, it makes a great bari sax to learn on. Many professional saxophonists like the Yamaha saxophone better than any other brand. Others prefer the Selmer, particularly the old Mark VI of the past. A few players have found the key placement on this Yamaha baritone saxophone to be a little hard to get used to after learning on a different bari. Most appreciate the design, however.
Yamaha also makes a YBS62, which retails for a couple of thousand more than the one above. It has an annealed bell which is said to give it a great high-quality sound.
Further reading: Yamaha SaxophonesBaritone Saxophones
Yamaha Saxophones Homepage.
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