 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-14 11:53
Imagine this one:
Marching band playing for a football game. It's raining all day and night, yet they go out and sit in the bleachers and play in it.
The Director doesn't bother to tell the students to dry off their instruments completely in side and OUT after the game in the rain as their instruments will start to mold and rust afterwards if put in the case dry.
So a freshman clarinetist with a brain the size of an ostrich puts my plastic clarinet away SOAKING WET.
The pads are shot as well as there is now mold on the clarinet and case.
Good thing her own clarinet was in the shop getting repaired!! ..................
ARRG
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-10-14 12:08
1. Bill the student/parent for the necessary repair to the clarinet.
2. Refrain from being the "nice guy" and do not loan your student grade instruments out.
a) #1
b) #2
c) all of the above
d) none of the above
Life's too short.
Let's move on... GBK
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Author: psychotic lil clarinet girl (don't as
Date: 2005-10-14 12:11
yeah.... reminds me of the time I lent a freshman MY clarinet and a spare mouthpiece.... and what does he do? Chip the mouthpiece.... and it's a HUGE chip!
Always during marching band....
Can't trust the freshmen :p
haha.... I ain't lendin' anyone anymore of my stuff....
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-14 12:22
Usually I never do! This is the first instrument I've lent out in literally years. I knew she was playing it in marching band, but didn't think that she would be blatantly careless enough not to dry the thing off after playing in the rain.
Between the complete pad job and the mold smell on it as well as the case, it's most likely a trash item at this point.
I can't stand mold and you can't really ever completely get rid of the smell no matter what.
It's a warning to players to make sure that their instrument is completely dry after playing in rain. Use a hair dryer on cool setting to dry areas which wouldn't get dry otherwise and cause rust on the screws and springs.
Not a pretty sight.
btw, I'd bet my house with my wife and kids in it that she won't be reading this forum. If she is - FREE LESSONS FOR A YEAR.
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Author: Katrina
Date: 2005-10-14 14:29
LOL, David.
I have one student who refuses to use her plastic clarinet in marching band because it "sounds bad." So she uses HER E11.
I have one instrument out on loan to one student right now, and she's the ONLY student I'd ever consider doing this for. She is the MOST conscientious (sp?) and careful kids I've EVER seen. She's got my Noblet Eb. It's my only Eb and I wasn't playing it anyway...
Katrina
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Author: hans
Date: 2005-10-14 15:13
David,
Re: "I can't stand mold and you can't really ever completely get rid of the smell no matter what."... actually the smell can be removed effectively, based on my recent experience.
One of my cars (a Buick LeSabre) had a mold problem in the air conditioning system and it was cured by a new technology that uses ozone and UV light.
The car dealer that had this equipment was a Saturn dealer; my Buick dealer was unable to do more than spray in something (Lysol?) that was ineffective.
Hans
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Author: Don Poulsen
Date: 2005-10-14 15:56
You can always buy a new case, if necessary, to put the clarinet in. The only thing on the clarinet that could grow mold would be the pads and maybe but not definitely the cork.
But first, I'd try the Lysol on the case and then sitting it open out in the bright sunshine (another effective source of UV light). Sunlight is good for sterilizing things. The Lysol may be more effective in this case than in a car's air conditioner because it is difficult to get it on all surfaces of the air conditioner ductwork.
And if the pads are already ruined, I'd be tempted to remove them then wash the instrument in some hot soapy water, carefully dry it off maybe using a blow dryer and then oiling the keys. Then again, I'm not a repair technician and may be told that this is foolish, but if you're planning on trashing the instrument, this certainly would be worth trying before tossing it in the can.
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Author: Gandalfe
Date: 2005-10-14 16:19
Sounds like another "incredible" eBay deal in the making. :o(
Jim and Suzy
Pacifica Big Band
Seattle, Washington
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Author: redwine
Date: 2005-10-14 16:38
Hello,
This reminds me of the quote that I have taped to the book case above my desk at work (and yes, part of my job at the Naval Academy is marching).
The quote, that I'll probably butcher, is from Albert Einstein who said, in reference to the Germans in the 1930s, but which I freely transfer to the marching band:
"The man who enjoys marching to the strains of good music falls below my contempt; he inherited his great brain by mistake--a spinal cord would have been amply sufficient".
No offense meant to those of you who like marching band, that's just my sentiment toward the subject. I do understand that without marching band, I probably would not have the job I do!
Ben Redwine, DMA
owner, RJ Music Group
Assistant Professor, The Catholic University of America
Selmer Paris artist
www.rjmusicgroup.com
www.redwinejazz.com
www.reedwizard.com
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Author: marcia
Date: 2005-10-14 17:21
What I don't understand is wny music directors insist that musicians play in the rain when it is known to be damaging to some instruments. Are they totally devoid of common sense??
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Author: Don Poulsen
Date: 2005-10-14 17:36
Although marching band is not the best venue for experiencing quality music, it does have a few advantages. Those of us who have been in marching band can say that we have performed before audiences that numbered well into the thousands. Some of us can even say we performed on live television. The minority who have had the chance to march in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day or the Rose Parade can say that millions have watched them perform.
Plus, you get into (American) football games for free and occasionally get a free bus trip somewhere.
In college, it's a good way to meet students studying other subjects that you would never meet otherwise. Plus, for those who can't be in the university's wind ensemble or other performing group, it may be the only chance to play with a group in the university environment.
And the fact that I got paid a small stipend to be in marching band in college is my only claim to having ever been a professional musician. (I didn't have a union card if that is the real criterion.)
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Author: Merlin
Date: 2005-10-14 17:45
I am again thankful that marching band is generally not a part of the Canadian music education system.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-14 17:47
The problem is that instruments shouldn't be played in the rain.
Especially ones which use pads, but even brass get rust in their keywork, though it is a lot easier to clean and dry.
Even a light mist is unacceptable to me, but I don't have the gold and don't make the rules.....
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-14 17:50
btw - my posting title is a double entendre on purpose.
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Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2005-10-14 19:20
"FREE LESSONS FOR A YEAR"
The first of which, of course, will be entitled "Proper Instrument Care."
BTW, if she had the instrument out in the rain for any significant amount of time, the pads were probably shot before she put the clarinet back in the case. If it was a decent plastic clarinet, a new case can be had for $35 or less (on eBay if nowhere else) and a thorough washing of the body, bell, barrel and keys when the pads are removed for replacement would remove all trace of the mold. Having Valentino or similar synthetic pads installed would leave you with a truly "weatherproof" horn. Of course, you already know all this. I suspect you were just looking for a place to vent rather than advice. Surely you didn't expect sympathy though, did you? From this board? 
I'm also sure you've already determined that eating the cost of the damage may be a lesser evil than losing the student. In your shoes, however, I'd be at least a little disappointed in the student and her parents if they didn't offer to take responsibility for the damage. But, if they can get away with it ...
Best regards,
jnk
Post Edited (2005-10-14 19:21)
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Author: 3dogmom
Date: 2005-10-14 20:54
Sometimes the music director doesn't have the option to make his/her own decision about whether to play. The game is still on, you play.
Sue Tansey
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Author: clarinetmajr
Date: 2005-10-14 21:27
Ahh... I remember the good old high school days of marching band. I remember not wanting to get my clarinet wet so I would put it in the pockets of the rain jackets they made us wear. It always did get wet but i'm sure if you put the case out on a sunny day the smell should go away.
It was required at my high school that we had to do marching band to be in band. Band was the only way I could audition for districts so I was stuck having to march for four years. It was fun at times though.
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Author: marzi
Date: 2005-10-14 21:47
?? wow, i'm pretty sure we were never required to march in the rain,
fog, yes, (so nobody could see us anyway, heck we couldn't see each other !) , blazing heat for july 4th, and freezing cold so you couldn't play during half time, but never rain. although our community band director stretched it a bit when we got a light shower during the last 2 pieces in an outdoor concert, fortunately had a nice cotton bandanna with me to wipe down my clarinet on the outside during rests. and he still had to talk on and on for the intros instead of speeding it up. jeez.
and didn't we all have brains like that as freshmen, we had other priorities!
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-14 22:42
Now how the h*ll would I know that they are playing in the rain and that she would "forget" (as she knew full well to do it!) to dry it out afterwards??........
They will pay for the damage, as they aren't the type to try to skirt that - I wouldn't teach somebody who wouldn't have the decency to make it right.
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Author: Alseg
Date: 2005-10-15 00:42
Here is an idea.
If it works for Britney why not for marching band:
Send out some drillophiles with the obligatory rooster uniforms and fake horns. Let them do the drill. Have the real CONCERT BAND record the marches, and the drillers do the "lip sync" thing.
That way the real band can concentrate on MUSIC instead of learning steps, and the troops get to go to the game, get rained on, and flirt with the cheerleaders, players, playahs, etc.
....oops, just woke up.......it was all a dream.
Former creator of CUSTOM CLARINET TUNING BARRELS by DR. ALLAN SEGAL
-Where the Sound Matters Most(tm)-
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Author: Ed
Date: 2005-10-15 00:47
ANY marching band issue is stupid. The phys ed department should take it over and let the music department teach music.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-15 01:39
But it isn't really a music dept, it's an entertainment dept.........
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-10-15 01:44
[ Please - Let's not go off on the pros and cons of marching band. We've been down that road many times before. If that particular subject interests you, there are numerous threads in the archives to read. Let's not rehash it again - GBK ]
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Author: Ed
Date: 2005-10-15 02:31
Sorry, I couldn't resist! Now I'll go in my backyard to rehearse my solo marching performance of "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun" in the rain as punishment
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-10-15 02:33
Such an easy target, so easy, and always fresh.......
You have to remember that the exploitation of these students takes up hours upon hours of valuable practice time.
Kids practice 3-4 days for 3 hours a day for that school for that friggin marching crap.
That's some serious exploitation as far as I'm concerned.
Post Edited (2005-10-15 12:11)
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2005-10-15 03:12
DavidBlumberg wrote:
> Such an easy target, so easy, and always fresh.......
And so silly for an "adult" to bring up.
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