The 160-year history of the saxophone comes to brilliant life in Michael Segell's wonderfully researched, beautifully told The Devil's Horn. Beginning with "a sound never heard before," Segell's portrait follows the iconographic instrument as it is lauded for its sensuality, then outlawed for its influence, and finally credited with changing the face of popular culture. A deeply personal story of one man's love for music-making, a universal story of artistic and political revolution, and a trenchant critique of the global forces that stand in art's way, The Devil's Horn is music writing at its very finest.
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
The saxophone has come to be synonymous with 20th-century music, not to mention all things cool: jazz, cocktail lounges, hip cats and the like. Segell (Standup Guy: Manhood After Feminism) traces the instrument back to its eccentric Belgian creator, Adolphe Sax, an acoustical craftsman who survived disease, accidents and even assassination attempts from his instrument-making competitors. Just 10 years after Sax completed the first prototype of the saxophone in 1843, the shining horn had traveled all over the U.S. and throughout Europe. Music would never be the same again. Like its creator, the sax was revolutionary, an instrument whose very sound—which has been described as "carnal" and "voluptuous"—caused it to be banned by Nazis and Communists; religious leaders—including the Vatican—deemed the instrument "profane." As Segell recounts the saxophone's history, he simultaneously illuminates many of its renowned players, namely jazz greats Benny Carter, Sonny Rollins, Lee Konitz and Branford Marsalis. An amateur musician himself, Segell has a personal relationship with the horn, which adds a stirring sense of immediacy to the narrative.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
"Would someone please forward Segell the memo that states that books about jazz are supposed to be academic and soporific? . . . [A] freewheeling tribute . . . [with] exuberance that is everywhere to be found."--The New York Times Book Review
"[A] historical and deeply personal tribute to the saxophone . . . [The Devil's Horn] will reward and surprise readers who may have thought they knew something about the horn simply because they've spent a lifetime listening."--Baltimore Sun
"Segell has produced a minor miracle: a book on jazz that does not rely on largely unrevealing anecdotal tidbits, hip talk, one-upmanship . . . and dazzling (but superfluous) adjectives. . . . It is humorous, enlightening, instructive, and revealing to a degree that it may forever change your attitude toward the sax."--The Roanoke Times
"An excellent short course on the saxophone in jazz . . . [A] beguiling story."--Chicago Sun-Times
"[Segell is] adept at spreading the contagion of his own curiosities."--The News & Observer
"[A] historical and deeply personal tribute to the saxophone . . . [The Devil's Horn] will reward and surprise readers who may have thought they knew something about the horn simply because they've spent a lifetime listening."--Baltimore Sun
"Segell has produced a minor miracle: a book on jazz that does not rely on largely unrevealing anecdotal tidbits, hip talk, one-upmanship . . . and dazzling (but superfluous) adjectives. . . . It is humorous, enlightening, instructive, and revealing to a degree that it may forever change your attitude toward the sax."--The Roanoke Times
"An excellent short course on the saxophone in jazz . . . [A] beguiling story."--Chicago Sun-Times
"[Segell is] adept at spreading the contagion of his own curiosities."--The News & Observer
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great story on the saxophone,
By
This review is from: The Devil's Horn: The Story of the Saxophone, from Noisy Novelty to King of Cool (Hardcover)
Am about 80% done with this book. Great book shows history of the saxophone from Adolphe Sax's humble beginnings to the latest sax variation called the aulochrome (double-soprano sax welded together?). I liked the Personal Sound section of the book. Very informative and helpful. Buy it!
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Love that Sax!,
By
This review is from: The Devil's Horn: The Story of the Saxophone, from Noisy Novelty to King of Cool (Hardcover)
Michael Segell has written a book which is brimming over not just with the enthusiasm of a convert but also with some very solid scholarship. The reader can't help but be caught up in the world which has evolved around this much maligned but fascinating instrument. What the book needs is a bit of condescension to those not familiar with the saxophone's parts and some jazz terminology left me in the dark. A glossary and diagram of the instrument's parts would help.
10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
saxophonia proliferated,
By
This review is from: The Devil's Horn: The Story of the Saxophone, from Noisy Novelty to King of Cool (Hardcover)
As an "old pro" who has played my Selmers next to lots of familiar names, I feel this book is MUST reading for anyone serious about the instrument (...even just as a listener). I had to laugh out loud at some of the 'holy' schemes hatched against Adolphe Sax and his legacy, and I loved the passionate quotes and reminiscences gathered from many of the top hornmen around Manhattan.More surprising yet are sensously scientific details about how quickly the new brassy/windy sound caught on, forcing innumerable clarinetists and violinists everywhere to switch instruments, or quit. Reading the book out here in the middle of the Pacific, I suppose even my own album, "sax hawaiian style", proves the author's point that this sultry 'devilish' voice was destined to invade practically every musical style and culture worldwide. I can hardly wait until some saxophonist conquers a juicy stake in Rap, or in middle-eastern music, or in whatever genres someday arise!
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Inside This Book
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs):
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saxophone instruction, concert saxophone, altissimo range, saxophone craze, tone holes, saxophone section, octave key, bass saxophone, saxophone quartet, soprano saxophone, tenor player, personal sound, saxophone solo Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Adolphe Sax, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Lester Young, San Francisco, Sonny Rollins, New Orleans, Brown Brothers, Stan Getz, United States, Coleman Hawkins, Los Angeles, Marcel Mule, Duke Ellington, King Curtis, Miles Davis, Paul Whiteman, World War, Benny Carter, Joe Lovano, Michael Brecker, Paris Conservatory, Sigurd Rascher, Benny Goodman New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
saxophone instruction, concert saxophone, altissimo range, saxophone craze, tone holes, saxophone section, octave key, bass saxophone, saxophone quartet, soprano saxophone, tenor player, personal sound, saxophone solo Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Adolphe Sax, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Lester Young, San Francisco, Sonny Rollins, New Orleans, Brown Brothers, Stan Getz, United States, Coleman Hawkins, Los Angeles, Marcel Mule, Duke Ellington, King Curtis, Miles Davis, Paul Whiteman, World War, Benny Carter, Joe Lovano, Michael Brecker, Paris Conservatory, Sigurd Rascher, Benny Goodman New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 35
books:
See all 35 books this book cites
- Bass Saxophone by Skvorecky on page 77, and Back Matter
- Rhapsody in Blue: Solo Piano (Original) by George Gershwin on page 80, and page 92
- As Serious As Your Life: The Story of the New Jazz (Old Edition) by Valeria Wilmer on page 130, and Back Matter
- Peter Gunn: Percussion Ensemble (Book & CD) by Henry Mancini on page 145, and page 237
- As serious as your life: The story of the new jazz by Valerie Wilmer on page 130, and Back Matter
See all 35 books this book cites
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