The Symphonious Saxophone: A History of the Large Saxophone Ensemble With A Quantitative Analysis of Its Original Literature
Abstract
The history of the saxophone ensemble is little understood, even by many of those who lead and participate in the modern iterations of such groups. The aim of this study is to remedy this lack of information and to provide saxophonists with the tools to further explore an important part of the instrument's repertoire. This document will offer a comprehensive history of the genre, from its beginnings in the 1840's, to the near present; and numerical data will be presented on the original works for larger ensembles of saxophones, touching on both instrumentation and the concentration of the production of such literature throughout the saxophone ensemble's history. It is hoped that this study will offer valuable information to the saxophone community on this important, but often overlooked, aspect of the instrument and its literature.