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Traveling with your saxophone should be as smooth as the music that comes out of it. But unfortunately, that’s not always the case.
Travel can be unexpectedly rough, on both you and your instrument. But whether you hit a bump in the road, turbulence in the air, or take a spill on the way to rehearsal, a good case is there to make sure your sax doesn’t get dented, bent, or knocked around too much.
What You Need To Know About Saxophone Cases
As with any instrument case, the best one for you depends on what you’ll be using it for. If you’re a touring musician who frequently flies to gigs, a hard case is an absolute necessity — preferably one that fits snug in the overhead bins. Soft-shells can work too, but if you’re not able to carry it on-board, you’ll need something that can take a beating if it’s thrown around by luggage handlers and moving through baggage machines. If you’ll be staying local with gentler travel, however, or you plan on storing your sax mostly in your house, a soft-shell case should suit you just fine.
Sax cases generally need to be pretty bulky in order to provide adequate protection, and as a result, room for extra stuff seems to be fairly limited across the board. Some cases carve out small but convenient compartments inside for things like a mouthpiece and extra reeds, but larger items and accessories like music books may require an additional bag. There are some clever “sax-hacks” tips from the pros though, such as safely stashing your sax stand inside the bell part of your horn for a little extra carry space.
Just like how there are endless makes and models of saxes, every saxophonist has their own needs in what a case should provide. We’ve selected our three favorites here to get you started searching for the right one to keep your sax safe and sound.
