Saxophones - Bigger was Better

When I was in high school I played the Bari Sax.  I played in the Marching Band, Jazz Band, and Concert Band.  (remember that one time...at band camp :)  Quite a bit of my time was spent after school sitting alone in a practice room with just me and my saxophone named Kristy.

(this is not Kristy, it is just a cool Sax)

One of the worst parts of playing Bari Sax is the reed.  Most people start out playing on an Alto Sax, then a Tenor, then to the Bari.  The Alto has one of the smaller reeds and is rather easy to play on, even when I was in sixth grade.  The tenor is a little bigger, and I played Tenor from seventh grade until ninth grade.  In ninth grade I started out on the Bari which, in comparison to the Alto, is frankly huge.  You have more metal that the air needs to pass through, and a longer, thicker, less flexible reed.  The reed is what actually produces the sound from a Sax.  The air passing through and escaping at various points is what changes the note being played.  Normally you need to replace a reed about every 2 months.

So when you get a reed you have different options of thickness, which determines how hard the reed is to get vibrating.  Reeds start at 1 and go up in hardness by half.  I usually play on a 3 or 3 1/2.  If you pick a reed that is to soft, meaning the number is lower than what you need, then when you begin playing you end up splitting the reed because it can't handle the pressure and stress it is under.  If you get a reed that is too hard, you won't be able to make any music at all, because it takes more wind from your lungs to get it moving.

God chooses His Prophets the same way I would choose a reed.  He puts them to the test as they grow up and throughout their lives.  Sometimes the individual is too soft, and when trials and affliction come around the give way to temptation, and brake.  Sometimes they are too hard, or hard-headed, and refuse to yield to the promptings from the Spirit, and don't do as God commands.

But every now and then, when you find the right reed with the right thickness, you can play for 4 or 5 months without getting a new reed.  With a Prophet, only those who follow the Lord and keep His commandments are chosen and ordained unto this calling.

" For many are called, but few are chosen."

 -- Matthew 22:14

"Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen.

And why are they not chosen?

Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world,

and aspire to the honors of men"

-- Doctrine and Covenants 121:34-35

As I stated the air escaping through various points is what creates different notes and makes the music pretty.  This could be related to each of the Apostles having their own personality.  Each individual will express the gospel in their own words.  So it is all music, but with a little flavor. 

 

Sometimes you might find that someone claims to be telling you the truth when they don't really know.  It's kinda like they are trying to play a certain note but they don't know the fingering.  When you are playing a Sax the worst thing that can happen is not knowing where to put your fingers.  You have to put all your fingers in the right spot or you do not sound very good.

So the feelings you get when someone is talking about the Gospel is how you know what is right, and what is not.  The Spirit testifies of Truth.  (John 15:26)

"Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind

and in your heart,

by the Holy Ghost,

which shall come upon you

and which shall dwell in your heart.

Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation;

behold, this is the spirit by which Moses 

brought the children of Israel

through the Red Sea on dry ground."

-- Doctrine and Covenants 8:2-3

You don't usually have a Saxophone in a Symphony.  Everyone has their own part in life, but in a Symphony they just don't like the sound of a Sax.  I don't really know why they don't put a Sax in a Symphony, and I don't know how exactly this relates to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but all things denote that "there is a Supreme Creator."

"But Alma said unto him: Thou hast had signs enough; will ye tempt your God? Will ye say, Show unto me a sign, when ye have the testimony of all these thy brethren, and also all the holy prophets? The scriptures are laid before thee, yea, and all things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator."

-- Alma 30:44