Alfred's Basic Solos and Ensembles, Book 1: Alto Sax, Baritone Sax Book

This collection lives exactly where your students are in their method book journey, eliminating the guesswork of what repertoire fits their current skills. The mix of solos, duets, and trios gives you genuine sectional rehearsal material that feels purposeful rather than like busywork, and the flexible instrumentation means your alto and baritone players actually have something to play together.

Accessible and friendly, with the stamp of genuine classical and folk traditions. These pieces respect the emerging musician without talking down to them, offering enough musical substance that students feel they're playing real repertoire, not just exercises.

Alto and baritone saxophonists working through Units 7, 10, and 14 of Alfred's Basic Band Method, whether in a full band setting or private lessons. Directors and teachers who want supplementary material that matches their students' current technical level without requiring them to hunt through separate books.

• Balance dynamics carefully in the duets and trios; since the pieces are brief, every dynamic marking carries weight and makes the arrangement sound intentional.
• Use these pieces as sectional work between full-band rehearsals to build confidence and independence before students tackle the ensemble parts in context.
• Read through the mini-bios before rehearsal and share a sentence or two about each composer with your section; it transforms a quick solo from an exercise into a musical moment.

Slot these into sectional rehearsal time as confidence builders and ear training for your reed section. They also work well as short performance pieces in informal settings like pep band assemblies or student recitals where you want to highlight different saxophonists in solo roles.

• Playing solo passages with musical control and phrasing
• Balancing and blending in duet and trio textures
• Reading and interpreting composer styles from different periods
• Intonation adjustments when playing with other woodwinds at close range