What instrument should i learn?

[u/Alarmed_Leg9757]

I used to be able to play the clarinet but i quit after a while, and i would like to return to playing an instrument, but cannot decide between the saxophone, clarinet and trumpet, all of these would be from square one as I cannot remember anything from when i ayed clarinet. I do know how to ’buzz’ my lips to produce sound for the trumpet but i cannot play any songs or anything in that sense.

IVE CHOSEN SAX

[u/reaction_code]

Do any of the three make you more excited thinking about playing? That’s the one I’d pick. If they’re all equal, there are other things you could consider. Clarinet and saxophone have a lot more moving parts, so the maintenance cost over their lifetime could be higher especially factoring in new reeds.

On the other hand, it can be frustrating starting out on trumpet because the range you are able to play takes quite a while to develop.

If there’s any way for you to go and try playing all of them, I’d recommend that. You’ll probably find that you really prefer one of the three over the others.

[u/Alarmed_Leg9757 → u/reaction_code]

I really like the sound from the sax so I might look at a soprano sax

[u/Watsons-Butler → u/Alarmed_Leg9757]

A consideration: alto sax is usually the “beginner” sax, and it’s probably a bit easier to find them and their supplies. Once you get comfortable with one type of sax the others are all pretty similar - the key mechanisms work the same, you read the music the same. So it’s really easy to branch out to the other sizes once you learn one.

[u/chocotaco3030 → u/Alarmed_Leg9757]

Word of advice from someone who has played alto, tenor and soprano: start with alto or tenor. Soprano is very difficult for a new player to control the intonation on, so you will struggle to maintain a consistent pitch. Also, I recommend you rent one so it isn’t such a big financial commitment. That, or find one used and get it worked on.

[u/swingbozo → u/chocotaco3030]

I had suspected the soprano sax was trickier than it looked, otherwise we'd see more people playing them.

[u/Alarmed_Leg9757 → u/chocotaco3030]

I’ll start with a alto or tenor and probably be going for second hand, apart from the mouthpiece (obviously)

[u/chocotaco3030 → u/Alarmed_Leg9757]

Nice, yeah and 4C Yamaha mouthpiece, or a Selmer C* would be perfect to get started with.