Nice Vito Yamaha YAS-23 alto saxophone that just went through the shop for a thorough tune up. It plays great and also comes with a nice lightweight contoured case for easy transport. The made in Japan ones are arguably even better made than the current YAS-26. Pretty much all the pros I meet around here started on a YAS-23. My first alto was one exactly like this as well. Lasted me until near the end of high school when I saved up for a year and got a Yanagisawa A900. If you’re looking for a really nice student alto that holds its value well, doesn’t need a lot of maintenance, and does pretty much everything well, that’s the YAS-23 like this. The ‘Vito’ on the bell, in case you’re wondering, is just the way many of these were sold in the USA – Vito was the more established brand of woodwind instruments, and Yamaha made them to be sold under the Vito name. Yanagisawa, Beaugnier, Leblanc, others did the same thing over the years.
If you want to get a great tone, you might consider pairing this with the GS New York alto mouthpiece in a 4 or 5 tip opening, and your student will be off to a strong start. Heck, I would play that setup even now. It really is quite good.
