Klarinet Archive - Posting 001013.txt from 1998/05

From: "Cox, Graeme" <Graeme.Cox@-----.nz>
Subj: RE: [kl] re: don't get sick from playing students equipment
Date: Mon, 18 May 1998 00:57:08 -0400

Hi Carl and others,

Just a comment on your method of having your students check for leaks.
Some leaks can be so slight that they make a differences in tone that
students are not able to detect easily. A method that I regularly use to
check that my clarinet and my daughter's oboe is sealing correctly is to
put a cork in the end of a joint, press all the keys (you only need one
hand) and suck. If all the seals are right, then you feel a solid vacuum
resistance that persists. If not, you have the other hand to press the
pads until you find the offending one. With very little practice, it
becomes very quick and easy to do. If you teach this to your students,
they should be able to pick up problems and maybe fix them without
waiting until the next lesson.

Cheers,

Graeme Cox

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Carl Schexnayder [SMTP:carlsche@-----.com]
> Sent: Sunday, May 17, 1998 7:58 PM
> To: klarinet@-----.org
> Subject: Re: [kl] re: don't get sick from playing students
> equipment
>
> (Snip) - However, you *can* catch other people's colds by playing on
> their
> reeds...
> >Which irritates the hell out of me since I often grab a student's
> setup to
> >play on it. There's just no other way to tell what their reed setup
> is,
> >especially with new students with unknown mouthpieces... Now I know I
> can
> get
> >some disinfectant spray, but I also know that when I'm teaching I'm
> just
> too
> >impatient and can't be bothered.
>
>
> Hi David:
>
> For many years, I also picked up and played student's instruments and
> felt
> exactly the same as you do about it. However, I've been fighting
> Lymphoma
> since 1986 and, since I became sick, I was much more concerned about
> catching something that would add to my problems. What I do now is to
> have
> the student play for me, checking the reed for balance, etc. himself,
> (or
> herself), and then I'll work on the reed. If it's a problem with a
> leak, I
> have them start on an open g, (on the clarinet), and go down the
> chromatic
> scale until the problem surfaces. If the g won't come out, then I
> know that
> the problem is higher up. At first, I felt lost....as though I
> wouldn't be
> able to fix the problem if I didn't play the instrument, but I now
> feel just
> as confident as ever that I can find and fix the problem just as well
> as I
> could before.
>
> In the past, I used Dr. Tichner's Anticeptic, (I don't know if that's
> the
> correct spelling), but I know that the Woodwind & the Brasswind sells
> something that you can either spray the mouthpiece with or dip it in.
>
> When I've seen how filthy some kid's mouthpieces are, I wonder how I
> lived
> through playing on them. Of course, I would usually check before
> blowing on
> one, but I can remember getting burnt by thinking, "This kid keeps his
> mouthpiece clean", and just trusting that, only to find out I was
> wrong.
>
> For What It's Worth,
>
> Carl Schexnayder
>
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
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