Titus writes:
Ladynsax
is the stage name of Russian Saxophonist Anastasia Vysotskaya, known
for her excellent performances, and her ability to fuse electronic and
saxophone music. I first spotted her videos a couple of years ago
online, and it reminded me of my Dad’s love of the saxophone. He was
also a saxophonist and part of the big band era in the 1930’s &
40’s, (the late Glenn Miller being perhaps the most famous band
leader). He had his own band The New Lyndons, in which my mom was the
vocalist...... the message on their publicity cards was “Smile, darn
you, smile” ....... but that’s another story for maybe another time!
Ladynsax’s
music, as far as I know, is only available online in this country,
and some of her popular tunes are ‘Ameno’, ‘Sacrifice’, ‘For You’ and
‘Space’ – all released on albums from 2020 to 2025. I understand that
she was born on 28 April 1989 in Novokuznetsk. Not a lot of people
know that the saxophone was invented in 1841 by a guy called Adolphe
Sax, who wanted to create an instrument that would be the loudest of
the woodwinds and the most versatile of the brass, and would therefore
fill the then vacant middle ground between the two sections. Listening
to Ladynsax, I feel that she has more than fulfilled this role. I
shared a track with Anne a couple of years ago, and although I don’t
think she shares my love of female bands and artists, I believe that
she appreciates that here we have a genuinely good musician.
The
most well known albums that Ladynsax has released in this country are
‘Ameno’ (2021), ‘The Ameno Remixes’ (2022), ‘For You’ (2021), and
‘Sacrifice’ (2020), although she collaborated with Alexander Barabash in
2025 to produce ‘Lounge Zone’ and A-Mase in 2023 with ‘Dreamhouse’.
She also went into a joint venture with Sergey Filippov, and in
particular their track ‘Whisper’, wherein I absolutely adore the mix
between guitar and saxophone. I’m sure you can appreciate that
research..... much as I enjoy it..... into the work of this extremely
talented artist is difficult. Information about her is brief &
sketchy, although most of her music seems to be available on the
streaming platforms.
Now,
decision time – WTF can I request our intrepid Truroian / Casablancan
to play? I can honestly say that there isn’t one track of Ladynsax’s
that I dislike, and judging from the comments that are written in
English, I don’t think I’m on my own. I said earlier on that ‘For You’
is perhaps one of her most well-loved tracks, and for this reason I
have chosen the studio version, which can be found here.
There is a live version of this track that in my opinion is equally as
good as the studio one, (so seek it out!), but looking at the video,
it extends several minutes into applause and appreciative presentations
of flowers.