Klarinet Archive - Posting 001090.txt from 1998/10

From: "MARY A. VINQUIST" <kenshaw@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] Slippery Keys
Date: Mon, 26 Oct 1998 06:51:17 -0500

Benedict Lockwood asks how to keep his fingers from slipping off the keys=

in fast passages.

If your keys are plated with nickel or, worse, chrome, the best you can d=
o
is be sure they're completely clean and dry. Dampen the corner of a cott=
on
swab with water or alcohol and remove all the accumulated oil and grease.=
=

Then wash your hands with plenty of soap, to get off any oil.

If there is now too much friction, rub your fingertip beside your nose or=

behind your ear to pick up a little oil and rub it on the keys.

As a last resort, you could roughen up the surfaces by rubbing VERY light=
ly
with medium-fine grit sandpaper (perhaps 320). =

For many years (and maybe today), the Boosey & Hawkes student instruments=

had a cross-hatch pattern on the finger touch for the left little finger
low F, to prevent slipping. Perhaps you (or a repair shop) could take the=

slippery key off, lay it on a work surface, cover it with a piece of
fine-weave metal screening and tap it with a light hammer to impress the
pattern on the metal.

Another possibility is that there is tension in your hands and fingers,
which makes you press hard on the keys. Do your fingertips show a distin=
ct
impression from the holes and rings? If so, you probably need to work on=

minimizing finger motion and keeping them feeling light rather than heavy=
=2E

Good luck.

Ken Shaw

-------------------------------------------------------------------------