It’s been over a decade since I last wrote a post dedicated to saxophonic gear. As I wrote then and I’ll reiterate now, I’m not a gearhead. I’m rarely interested in the latest gadget or who’s playing what. And I have yet to be in the market for a vintage horn.

All that said, I bought quite a bit of new auxiliary hardware the last several years to increase overall convenience, comfort, and efficiency. The end result was worthwhile, my distaste for the process notwithstanding. Spending all that time poring through product reviews, messages boards, and the like was vexing. Part of the frustration stemmed from a lack of specific information regarding several items. So, as a public service of sorts, I thought I’d write a post for anyone in a similar boat.

I wanted to compare how various instrument cases fared regarding storage, transport, and general usability. Many reviews focus primarily or solely on protection, which is understandably paramount, with occasional back-and-forth regarding the enclosure (latch vs. zipper, etc.). The second salient factor tends to be compactness. Consequently, flight cases seem to generate the most attention and discussion, and those searching for different types of cases may come up empty.

Approximately five years ago I acquired BAM Trekking cases for my soprano, alto, and tenor saxophones, replacing my BAM Cabine (alto), Walt Johnson (tenor), and BAM/Selmer double (alto/soprano) cases, respectively. I still have the latter cases should I need to fly with them, and they each served their own purpose. However, given the types of regular gigs I’ve developed, the flight cases were cumbersome. Despite their sturdiness and because of their compactness, I always had to carry along at least one extra bag (sometimes more) to every rehearsal and performance, as the cases lacked space for anything beyond the horn, mouthpiece, reeds, and neck strap. Eventually I wanted to minimize not the size of my individual cases but the quantity of parcels I had to bring with me to any given rehearsal or gig. An instrument case and a backpack or messenger bag are okay, but those plus a music stands and/or an instrument stand plus anything else are obnoxious over time.

For context, I live in the suburbs and drive to all rehearsals and gigs. (I have flown with my horns, but that’s a rare exception.) Additionally, I rarely leave the house with the same gear for consecutive engagements, and rarely do I need only one instrument. Consequently, I don’t like having an auxiliary bag for additional gear that can’t fit in my case, because that can change from day to day. I’d hate to leave with a tenor but have only backup alto reeds in my backpack, for example. To illustrate this, I regularly play with the following groups that require different instrumentation:
– Big band 1: alto, soprano, flute, piccolo, clarinet
– Big band 2: alto, flute, clarinet
– Big band 3: bari, flute, clarinet (& occasional bass clarinet)
– Trad. jazz band: soprano, clarinet
– Cover band: tenor, alto, flute (+ small suitcase for microphones, cables, etc.)

Add instrument stands, music stands, and music to any of the above, and having extra bags for necessary gear (reeds, etc.) is burdensome. At a minimum, I generally need:
– 1 saxophone
– secondary instrument (either a second sax or a flute(s) or clarinet(s))
– instrument supplies (reeds, cleaning materials, etc.)
– misc. supplies (tuner, earplugs)
– instrument stand(s)
– music stand & table attachment & music

The straw that broke this particular camel’s back was a pit gig a several years ago for which I played alto, flute, and clarinet and had enough of all the cases and bags: alto (flight) case, flute case, clarinet case, bag with instrument stands, and backpack with sheet music and supplies. It seemed like an extraneous number of items to carry for only three instruments, and the bag with music and supplies ended up a mess each night.

Enter BAM Trekking cases. I got one for my soprano and loved it, and quickly bought the alto and tenor afterward. Though bulkier than others, the Trekking cases seemed to check off the boxes for me in terms of storage and protection. What was important to me was whether I could streamline my luggage for routine gigs and rehearsals. I originally wanted to have one case per instrument plus, if needed, my carrying case for music, microphone, and instrument stands. These cases have allowed me to mostly always have just one parcel per instrument for all gear except my music stand.

I have the “original” BAM Trekking line. There have been subsequent Trekking variations, each with their own stylistic and slight functional differences, and there are also the New Trekking and Hightech models that are less bulky. But, ultimately, I went with the original model for functionality (storage) and color (solid black).

The BAM Trekking cases have proven to be great investments. Though a seemingly peripheral change–this doesn’t affect what I’m doing on stage or in rehearsal–it’s been a significant quality-of-life improvement when going to and from. I can fit the following in each such case (inner compartment and outer pocket) when also utilizing the instrument’s bell:
– instrument
– mouthpiece in pouch
– cleaning supplies (body + pad swabs), kept in a separate, vented external pocket
– reed cases + extra box of reeds
– harness/strap + backup strap
– tuner
– ear plugs
– Reed Geek
– pencil case: pencils, screwdriver, hand sanitizer, business cards
– instrument stand (single foldable Hercules stand, with the soprano case carrying the Hercules peg & base)
– iPad and/or physical sheet music
– attachable table for music stand

For example, here’s a photo of my tenor case and standard accessories:

Whether I need a single horn or five, I can simply bring one case per instrument plus a music stand. Gone are the days of me rifling through a case and a separate bag to make sure I have everything–or, alternatively, assuming I have something in one bag or another only for me to not have it at all. It’s admittedly redundant. For instance, every case has its own backup neck strap and pencil case (pencils, screwdriver, etc.). But I’d rather not reinvent the wheel multiple times per week because I’m playing with different groups each time. I realize this doesn’t work for everyone, but this has worked wonders for me.

The only downside for me is weight. Because of all the contents, the cases do get heavy. However, I’m happy to trade that for a smaller number of bags and cases.

My testimonial aside, here is a valuable in-depth review of the Trekking Peak model. It was one of the few comprehensive evaluations I learned from years ago,

For all gigs except some pits, I can carry all of my gear between the car and the venue in one trip while having a free hand for a door. It can get heavy, but I’d rather do it in one go than unload via multiple trips and then have to go back to park my car. For anyone who may be looking for a saxophone case to serve a similar purpose, I highly recommend BAM Trekking to enable such a setup.

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[NOTE 1: My bari setup is slightly different. I use the ProTec Micro Zip case, which accommodates all of the above except the instrument stand and music.]

[NOTE 2: Both my flute/piccolo double case and my Bb clarinet case have large external pockets, so a similar logic applies: everything I would need for each instrument (including pegs to attach to sax stands) is in the case. Ditto my bass clarinet case, though the instrument stand is too large to fit in the pocket.]