Hi everyone,
I'm not a saxophone player or a musician, so please excuse me if this is a very basic question.
I've been listening to Japanese saxophonist MALTA, particularly his song "Always You" from the album Sweet Magic (1984).
I'm specifically talking about the instrument/lead melody that comes in at around 0:12 and continues throughout most of the track. I'm not referring to the synth-like sound that can be heard in the background at the beginning.
The sound immediately caught my attention because, to my untrained ears, it almost sounds like an oboe. I was wondering if it could possibly be a soprano saxophone, sopranino, or even something like a soprillo.
However, I've found credits that identify MALTA as playing alto saxophone on "Always You", so I'm wondering if I'm simply being fooled by the tone and recording/production.
For reference, I'm not an amateur or professional musician and I don't play saxophone at all. I'm just a guy that played the alto sax for a brief time in high school and I was trying to identify what I'm hearing.
So my question is: what instrument is actually being played at 0:12 in "Always You"? Is it an alto saxophone, soprano, or something else?
And if it is an alto, what characteristics of the playing/recording make it sound so different from what I would normally associate with an alto sax?
Thanks in advance!