Klarinet Archive - Posting 000154.txt from 1997/02

From: Nathaniel F Johnson <clarinat@-----.com>
Subj: Re: protecting cl.from the cold
Date: Fri, 7 Feb 1997 02:03:18 -0500

On Thu, 6 Feb 1997 21:55:39 EST FROM ME MAN <musicandkeyclub@-----.COM>
writes:
>When I go toNYC and it's really cold, I just make sure that the my
clarinets are >protected enough to prevent rapid temperature change. I
don't think that it's the cold >that cracks the instrument. I read
somewhere that it is the sudden change in >temperature that will cause
the cracking. Somebody please tell me if I'm wrong.

I think that this is correct. I read somewhere that cracking comes from
an object expanding from heat (or contracting from cold) non-uniformly,
that is, the inside expanding/contracting faster or slower than the
outside. The article I read was discussing wine glasses, not clarinets,
but I think the principal is the same. Moral: If your clarinet gets
really cold (like if you leave it in the car overnight as a friend of
mine did with hers), make sure you warm it up SLOWLY.

Nathaniel Johnson
Conductor / Clarinettist
All-Around Good Guy
University of Northern Colorado