The saxophone is the icon at the centre of the poem. It is described using sensual language that hints at its seductive and transgressive properties. The speaker gives the saxophone the power to call up old memories, instill deeper dreams, and even raise the dead. There is also a connection to snake charming, which may be an allusion to the serpent of the garden of Eden. The saxophone therefore represents the transcendent and evocative power of broader music as a whole.