I just joined Neff Music last month. I can’t tell you how excited I’ve been to be able to pick back up on lessons. I’ve been in a rut and you got me out! I’ve especially appreciated the Lesson Path section. It was so clear I knew exactly where to jump in and start. Many many thanks!
Thanks so much for putting all this great learning material out there. I don’t often have the time to take a lesson with a teacher, so the ability to download lessons is really invaluable. My playing has improved enormously (I think :)) – and the lessons are so varied there’s always something to be inspired by. Incredible value too!
Thank you for all the educational information you provide. I am a classically trained musician. Professionally, I am a 4th and 5th grade band teacher. I have played piano and sax for many years, but now I am starting to gig out more. I have always improvised by ear in the past. I have gotten by with my strong sense of pitch, rhythm and melodic contour. However, I want to go deeper. I want to play with a greater variety of melodic and rhythmic ideas to pull from. I have studied to gain a greater knowledge of jazz and improvisational techniques, but I feel like I’m trying to catch-up for years of missed study (which is hard when you have a full time job, a wife, a daughter, a house, etc.) Your approach allows me to go past book knowledge and actually get these lines into my head and fingers. -Ray
Just wanted to send you a quick note to say thank you for being you, your playing, your website and your desire to help others. I’m a professional musician in the US Army and I’ve visited your website almost every day since discovering it a couple of months ago. Your lessons are profound and easy to use. I’ve purchased most of your PDF books and now am starting to delve more into the video and audio lessons. Thank you for being a great resource!
Love your lessons! I have been using your lesson packages for many months now, and am learning a lot. It is so perfect for me with a very busy adult schedule and difficulty in taking jazz/improv music lessons from reputable instructors who live and hour or more away from me.
For anyone living in remote areas away from live jazz sax teachers, Neff is the way to go. In fact this is a great resource for anyone seriously interested in mastering the sax. I’ve never been disappointed in a lesson.
By the way, BIG COMPLIMENTS to you, Steve!
Not only are you a great player, you are also a great teacher!I, too, am a woodwinds player/teacher. I have new inspiration to play and teach because of you.
The concepts and “thinking” is similar to what I already learned in College,
but hearing you explain and PLAY the concepts REALLY MAKES THE DIFFERENCE!Also, your written patterns are more interesting than other books I have seen!
Keep up the good work.
I will be recommending your site to others!
Your major diatonic patterns book is great. I”m studying the first twenty patterns (first twenty pages) each day with different articulation each day and slowly increasing the tempo each week or so. There is a noticeable improvement in finger coordination across all keys and its amazing how much more secure I feel on the difficult keys when attempting to play pieces with 5+ flats/sharps. I’m able to sort out the fingerings for these pieces now much more quickly than before, often in one or two sittings when in the past I would have been lost until I did a significant amount of slow practice on the piece.
Your going to do really well with this book. Keep up the good work. And the idea of putting patterns into single key also great. Thanks, Geoff
Two years later I began a search for a sax teacher and happened to come across Steve Neff when I was searching YouTube for sax teachers. I went to neffmusic.com and was very impressed with the lessons Steve Neff was offering. The concept of selecting lessons was an approach that I thought was unique and purchased a few lessons. I liked the lessons so much that I signed-up for a 6 month package.
I was very happy with all the lessons I selected. I also purchased Steve’s book Mastering the Blues Scale that contains 100 licks or patterns in all 12 keys. I quickly selected the lesson for the overview of the book and the lesson where Steve demonstrates all 100 licks. Hearing them played by Steve was great, since you can hear the various articulations which makes a great difference to the sound of the licks.
Using the book and corresponding 2 lessons made a dramatic improvement in my soloing that is incredible to say the least. Even my wife and daughter said my playing has improved and they rarely make any comments about my sax playing. My daughter even picked out 3 licks that are her favorites – Unbelievable!
I strongly recommend to any one who wants to learn to play sax or play better to try a few of Steve’s lessons. You will not regret it.
I have found your videos and publications inspiring and your contribution to the world of saxophone playing is immense. Paul
I am enjoying your style of teaching, and you’ve done a great job with the videos….good sound quality and
well constructed lessons. Balances the more guitaristic material found on the majority of guitar based programs. Jazz vocab is what I’m all about at this point in the journey. I especially dig the fact that you’ve studied with Bergonzi…helps me see his voluminous output in a more bite sized way.
After reading your story I will never feel quite right about complaining about any of my MINOR health issues!! God bless Steve and I really hope that your health doesn’t stop you from fulfilling your calling. These books have been such a help to open up my jazz vocabulary… Thanks so much for sharing your story and for providing these great teaching tools… John Leclerc Saxophonist / composer/ EWI player and professional working musician of 35 years….
I must say again how much I appreciate all your material. Including the video tutorials. It help keep me focused and knowing what to aim for. And your laid back teaching style appeals to me too.
Thanks
P
I want to say something about Steve Neff’s series of lessons, Beginner Jazz Improvisation. For a couple of years I tried many beginner lessons and my problem was that there was a gap between lessons that were fairly simple and ones that I was not quite ready for and my progress stalled out. That problem was solved with the series Beginner Jazz Improvisation. He guides you step by step along the way and builds a foundation for learning jazz and blues. He leaves no question about what to practice and focus on and the material is very interesting. I think this is the best teaching series available and he continues to add more lessons to the series. I can’t thank him enough for it. May he go on for ever! Pete
I want to let you know that your instructional material is transforming my playing. It is an immense pleasure to learn and play now, and I can’t tell you how grateful I am. The instructional material I got from you is by far the best of any I own (and I have over 100 books, DVDs, and what not). I literally can’t thank you enough!
Deric
Your material is great! I got your New Altissimo Lesson 6 months ago and I have learned more from that than in all my 44 years of playing! I appreciate your down to earth teaching method and I really appreciate the heart that you teach with. I have been a subscriber to your lessons for the past 6 months and I have learned a great deal. Over that period of time I have had some questions and you have never failed to respond. Thanks! I have already recommended your lessons to a number of players in my area. Again, THANKS! Your lessons have been a real blessing!
Sincerely, Michael Byington
I’ve been a member of Steve’s site for about six months now and the difference it has made to my playing is immeasurable. The (many) benefits of this membership are that you can have lessons at time convenient to you, they work out A LOT cheaper than face-to-face lessons with a teacher of the same calibre and you can replay them ad infinitum. I don’t know how many times have I had lessons in the past where I’ve ended up covering the same concepts when really a ‘replay’ of the last lesson would have been fine! I’m not on commission here – just wanted to write a review to encourage people to do this. Without doubt the most time and cost effective investment I’ve made in taking my playing to where it should be…Cheers Steve.
Hello Steve, I’m getting so much out of your lessons and books, amazing how much one may think one knows, there is always a new frontier or new way to view something you think you had somewhat down. You have taken it all to a new level and am so grateful. Your lessons are so down to earth and understandable and clear! Thanks so much Steve! Cheers, Eddie
I am a music book junkie and I have to say that your books are the most clear, user friendly, and helpful books I own. They are my absolute favorites and I only wish I had them years ago. I wouldn’t change a thing about the experience I had in acquiring my degree at Berklee, but my playing has perhaps grown more in the time I’ve spent buried in your books and lessons. Keep up the great work!!!
Thanks,
John
It is so refreshing to have a great player, who can provide lessons and examples in a manner which is understandable to most any enthusiastic saxophonist who is ready to improve. not just the, do this, do that, memorize this, memorize that… while all that is absolutely necessary, you go on to give reasons and examples to explain and validate why you have to do all of these things, the benefits, if you will… that is the key for me, you tell, explain, demonstrate, explain some more, you give personal experience and stories, it all comes together, a complete picture. so many “self-proclaimed ” saxophone teachers believe because they are a professional player, they are automatically a teacher, absolutely not the case. you must have the ability to transfer what you know, and most importantly, in my mind, the DESIRE to teach, and the need to know that your instruction is getting through, the constant search for more and better ways to deliver the instruction. the PASSION to teach. YOU have all these qualities, that is why i am a Neffaholic 🙂
Hi Steve,
I have been shedding your materials for quite a while now and I love them! They are extremely well organized and presented and there are tons of ’em! I really appreciate your methodical approach and find myself referring students to your resources often. Thanks so much!
Your lessons on playing the blues is so clear . I have been through many books on blues playing and not one of them explains as clear as your lessons . Most of them say “Play the same blues scale over all three chords of a 12 bar blues ” Its very misleading . Thanks
Absolutely the best learning experience in my 40 years of playing.These books are awesome!!
Thank you for the wealth of helpful lessons you’ve provided over the years. I truly feel as though it has improved my playing more than the 4 years I spent at Berklee… and that’s not a slight on the school as I loved my experience there.John
Recent Comments