Instrument Care and Maintenance
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Whether you are using a personal, rented, or school owned instrument proper care is necessary to keep your instrument working well and sounding great. It is important to remember that musical instruments are not toys and can cost anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a couple of thousand. Please read through the following guidelines to help keep your instrument working in tip-top shape!
General Care
Woodwind Care
Brass Care
School Owned Instruments
General Care
- Always take your instrument apart and put it away in the case after playing.
- Clean and care for your instrument often. (See specific guidelines below.) Mouthpieces should be cleaned weekly with soap and water at home.
- Never try to repair your instrument yourself! Take it to Mr. Floury or a repair shop–they are professionals trained to work with your instrument.
- Don’t chew gum or food right before you play- the food particles and sugar will build on the inside of your instrument and eventually affect its playability. (Rinse your mouth with water if you have just eaten before playing.)
- Avoid extremes in heat and humidity. Do not leave your instrument in the car for long periods of time.
- Be careful not to drop or dent your instrument. Even the smallest mishap could cause major damage to the key alignment, valve/slide movement, or intonation of your instrument.
Woodwind Care
- Swab your instrument after each time you play. Moisture built up in the instrument can affect the pads and cause them to break down more quickly. (Swabs can be purchased at any local music store.)
- Apply cork grease often and liberally. The parts of your instrument should easily slide together. (Cork grease can be purchased at any local music store.)
- Take care not to squeeze the keys and rods on your instrument while putting it together and taking it apart. They can bend and fall out of alignment. Carefully twist the pieces of your instrument to put them together or take them apart.
- Take your reed off after each time you play and store it in a reed case. You should always have 3 working reeds that you rotate between. (Vandoren Reeds are recommended and can be purchased at any local music store.)
Brass Care
- Oil and lubricate your valves and slides on a regular basis. You should own your own oil/grease. (Valve/Slide oil and grease can be purchased at any local music store.)
- When oiling your valves or greasing your slides be sure to only take one out at a time. This will help you keep track of them and avoid mixing them up.
- Always TWIST your mouthpiece onto your instrument. Pushing it on and making the “popping” sound will cause it to get stuck. If your mouthpiece becomes stuck take it to Mr. Whitlock so he may use the proper tool to remove it. NEVER try to remove your mouthpiece with household tools.
- Clean the inside of your instrument frequently. A “snake” can be purchased at local music stores to help scrub out the inside and the tubes can be flushed with warm water.
School Owned Instruments
- Make sure you have filled out and signed the Chesaning Schools Instrument Agreement Form. This form is our record that you are using the school instrument. If the instrument is lost or damaged due to misuse and neglect, it is the family’s responsibility to pay for the cost of the repair. However, many of our instruments are old and sometimes fall out of adjustment and accidents happen. In that case Chesaning School Bands will take care of repair costs.
- You are still required to purchase all supplies necessary for your instrument from a local music store. Please check the Supplies/Materials Section in your Band Handbook for a list of what is required.
- Treat your school owned instrument as if it is yours and you personally paid for it. While you are using it, you are responsible for its care and maintenance. Also, please let Mr. Floury know immediately of anything is wrong with it.
FLUTES
Flutes require little maintenance other than wiping out the excess moisture with a cloth on the cleaning rod, and wiping the body of the flute with a soft, lint free cloth to remove fingerprints. Silver flutes may be polished with a jeweler's polishing cloth that is meant for use on silver. Do not use liquid or paste type polish. Do not use water on any part of the flute except the head joint (mouthpiece section), and do not use any type of oil or grease. Do not attempt to adjust any of the adjustment screws. If the flute will not go together easily, try cleaning the head and foot joints where they go into the body with a piece of clean, white paper (note book or typing paper) If this does not help, the joint is probably bent and should be repaired by a qualified repairman. Do not put anything in the case that will press against the flute when the case is closed! Many flutes are damaged when students put a folded polishing cloth over the flute before closing the case. Always leave the flute in the case, with the latches secured, when the flute is to be left unattended. Music stands are not for holding flutes! |
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CLARINETS AND SAXOPHONES
Water is the enemy of woodwind instruments. ALWAYS use the swab to remove moisture from the bore after playing. Keep the mouthpiece clean by using mild soap, warm (not hot) water, and a proper mouthpiece brush, at least once a week. Always remove the reed from the mouthpiece when you are finished playing, and keep the reed in a proper reed keeper. All corks should be greased with cork grease when they are new. You may need to grease them several times when they are new. Never use key oil! If your keys stick, take the instrument to the repair shop. Wooden clarinets should have the bore (inside) of the instrument oiled occasionally with a few drops of bore oil on a cloth swab. Do not put books or heavy cloths in the case that will put pressure on the keys when the case is closed. Do not leave wooden clarinets where they will suffer extremes of temperature. Extreme heat or cold can cause the wood to crack. A silk swab can easily pass through all parts on a saxophone including the body, neck, and mouthpiece. |
DOUBLE REEDS
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BRASS INSTRUMENTS
Brass instruments should be kept clean by flushing them with mild liquid detergent and lukewarm water at least once a month. After flushing, all slides should be pulled and greased with tuning slide grease. The valves on trumpets, baritones, and tubas should be removed, wiped with a paper towel, oiled with valve oil and replaced. Valve oil can be used by pulling a valve slide and putting a few drops of oil down the valve slides.
F-Horns have rotary valves which should never be removed except by a repairman. The bearings of F-Horn valves should be oiled with a light oil, such as 3 in 1. To do this, you must unscrew the valve caps and place a drop of oil on each of the bearings. On the side of the valves with the strings, you will need to use a screwdriver to remove the screw in the center of the valve, place a drop of oil in the hole where the screw goes, and replace the screw. Keeping the valve bearings of a French Horn oiled will prevent broken valve strings, a common repair problem.
Move all tuning slides and valve caps often, and clean and grease them if they start to get tough to move. Stuck slides on school instruments is the most common repair problem! Trombones slides should be wiped with a soft, lint free cloth or paper towel, and re-oiled. If slide cream is used, apply a very thin coat to the stockings, work the slide several times, and lightly spray the slide with water.
Cleaning snakes are available for the different instruments. They should be used to clean out all of the slides while you are flushing the instrument. Please be careful when handling brass instruments. Brass is a soft metal which dents easily. Dents are very expensive to remove! If your mouthpiece gets stuck, do not attempt to remove it yourself. Bring the instrument to the band director or repair shop to have it removed.
Brass instruments should be kept clean by flushing them with mild liquid detergent and lukewarm water at least once a month. After flushing, all slides should be pulled and greased with tuning slide grease. The valves on trumpets, baritones, and tubas should be removed, wiped with a paper towel, oiled with valve oil and replaced. Valve oil can be used by pulling a valve slide and putting a few drops of oil down the valve slides.
F-Horns have rotary valves which should never be removed except by a repairman. The bearings of F-Horn valves should be oiled with a light oil, such as 3 in 1. To do this, you must unscrew the valve caps and place a drop of oil on each of the bearings. On the side of the valves with the strings, you will need to use a screwdriver to remove the screw in the center of the valve, place a drop of oil in the hole where the screw goes, and replace the screw. Keeping the valve bearings of a French Horn oiled will prevent broken valve strings, a common repair problem.
Move all tuning slides and valve caps often, and clean and grease them if they start to get tough to move. Stuck slides on school instruments is the most common repair problem! Trombones slides should be wiped with a soft, lint free cloth or paper towel, and re-oiled. If slide cream is used, apply a very thin coat to the stockings, work the slide several times, and lightly spray the slide with water.
Cleaning snakes are available for the different instruments. They should be used to clean out all of the slides while you are flushing the instrument. Please be careful when handling brass instruments. Brass is a soft metal which dents easily. Dents are very expensive to remove! If your mouthpiece gets stuck, do not attempt to remove it yourself. Bring the instrument to the band director or repair shop to have it removed.
High Brass
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Low Brass
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