Is A Saxophone In A Symphony Orchestra? Why Not?

Is a saxophone in a symphony orchestra

The saxophone is one of the most popular instruments of them all; it’s certainly one of the most recognizable. 

This is why it’s so surprising when most people realize the orchestras will rarely use them, if at all. 

When people find out about this, they often ask me, as a music teacher: Is a saxophone in a symphony orchestra? And why not?

Saxophones are not part of the standard symphony orchestra instrumentation, but they do show up in more modern pieces, especially ones featuring jazz. The orchestra was well-established when the sax came around, and the clarinet and oboe mostly cover its range and voice.

It’s disappointing that such a beautiful and powerful instrument is left out, but the reasons why are at least interesting. 

Let’s discuss why the sax isn’t there in detail and answer some related saxophone questions. 

Why Is There No Saxophone In The Orchestra?

Instrument Maker Competition And Drama

Adolphe Sax was a Belgium instrument maker back in the 1840s. 

At the time, instrument production was a cutthroat business. 

Many makers had deals with people who made parts, musicians, and groups at large. 

For Adolphe Sax to come on the playing field and invent a brand new instrument was offensive to these other makers. 

They didn’t want anyone moving in on their territory. 

Many other manufacturers (mostly from Paris) had contracts with musicians and groups, so they couldn’t even play the instrument without violating a contract. 

Sax also made all the parts himself, which made part-makers mad. 

Adolphe’s workshops would often be broken into with parts and instruments destroyed or stolen. 

This made it hard for the sax to get traction, let alone a chance to be played in public. 

Fit The Range And Sound Type Of Other Instruments

The saxophone is an amazing and versatile instrument, but it’s also doubled by other instruments already established at the time. 

When it plays in a mellow manner, it fits the tone quality of the clarinet or oboe, and when it powers up its metallic nature, it’s similar to brass instruments like the trumpet and trombone. 

Not being able to stand out as unique, it wasn’t paid much attention to for the pieces being played at the time. 

Check out all the members of the saxophone family.

Too New; Lack Of Players

Though the saxophone is similar to a clarinet in how the mouthpiece and fingers work, it’s different enough to require a different skill set. 

As the sax came along, it wasn’t taught in music schools, and there weren’t many musicians who taught lessons on it. 

For this reason, it didn’t spread out into the public the way flute and clarinet did (which everyone seemed to play). 

Without this broad popularity, it didn’t worm its way into the orchestra. 

Orchestral Sound Was Well-Established

By the time the saxophone came on the scene, the modern orchestra instrumentation was largely established and had been for about 100 years. 

When composers learned to write music, they did so without the saxophone in the group. 

Without the music calling for the sax, there was no reason to include it. 

Interestingly, Adolphe Sax invented the instrument because some composers and conductors requested a woodwind instrument that could project the whole orchestra (like the brass did). 

Learn why the sax is a woodwind instrument.

But by the time he invented it and came back with it, those same groups had moved on. 

A few composers like Hector Berlioz tried to include it more, but it didn’t gain traction. 

Poor Reputation Early On

The saxophone in the modern day has a reputation for being a great jazz instrument, but it also has a reputation for being “honky” and out of tune in newer players. 

Imagine you’re back when the instrument was invented and everyone who played it was a “newer” player. 

It was quickly written off as a poorly designed instrument inconsistent in its tone and pitch. 

The reputation was tough for it to get over (extra tough since the other instrument makers were doing all they could to stop the saxophone spreading). 

It took 60+ years before the sax gained traction due to the rise of military bands (where the power of the sax made it desirable) and jazz.  

When Did The Saxophone Join The Orchestra?

The saxophone was able to join some orchestras after its creation in the 1840s, but it wasn’t used much at all and still isn’t in orchestras to this day. 

Common Saxophone Pieces In The Orchestra

While the saxophone isn’t used in the orchestra, there are some iconic pieces where it is called for. 

Many orchestras play these with some degree of regularity, and there are a handful of professional saxophone players who specialize in these pieces for high levels of performance. 

  • L’Arlesiénne, suite no. 1
  •  (1872) by Georges Bizet 
  • La jeunesse d’Hercule (1877) by Camille Saint-Saens 
  • Domestic Symphony (1902) by Richard Strauss
  • “The Old Castle,” from Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky 
  • An American in Paris (1928) by George Gershwin
  • Bolero (1928) by Maurice Ravel
  • Job – A Masque for Dancing (1931) by Ralph Vaughan Williams
  • Lieutenant Kijé
  •  (1934) by Sergei Prokofiev
  • “Dance of the Knights,” from Romeo and Juliet (1938) by Sergei Prokofiev 
  • Sinfonia da Requiem (1940) by Benjamin Britten
  • Symphonic Dances, Op. 45 (1940) by Sergei Rachmaninoff 
  • Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin 
  • Symphonics Dance from West Side Story (1961) by Leonard Bernstein

Is The Saxophone A Band Instrument?

The saxophone is one of the instruments commonly found in bands worldwide. It’s most popular in jazz, concert bands, marching bands, military bands, and popular music.

The rise of military bands in the early 1900s saved the saxophone and brought it into the world as a staple instrument. 

Now, it’s one of the most played and common wind instruments of them all. 

When Was The Saxophone Invented?

The saxophone was developed in the 1840s by Belgium instrument manufacturer Adolphe Sax. He made it to provide orchestras with a woodwind instrument with the power to project over the growing size of the ensemble. 

Originally, he envisioned 14 saxes, 2 of each of the 7 sizes in either Bb/Eb or C/F pairings. 

There have been some weird ones over the years, though.

Check out these unheard-of instruments in the saxophone family.

Zach VanderGraaff

Zach VanderGraaff is a K-5 music teacher in Michigan with 12 years of experience. He's the President of the Michigan Kodaly Educators and founder of the Dynamic Music Room.

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