 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: ffrr
Date: 2005-03-15 10:57
I have purchased a stand so I can leave my clarinet assembled and ready to go - thus encouraging more practice (I hope). How long should I leave it assembled and on the stand? Should I pull it apart every week or so, and grease the corks and reassemble it? How long can I leave it?
Similarly, for the reed. Can I leave a reed on the clarinet, or should I loosen the ligature and remove the reed each time?
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Author: John Stackpole
Date: 2005-03-15 11:40
My personal experience with an (oldish - 1975) R-13 was that I had the devil of a time getting the bell off after just a few hours of sitting, after practice. So I take it down right away.
But I look forward to other's answers as well.
(Having to assemble the thing every time is a splendid excuse to skip or delay practice...)
JDS
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Author: ohsuzan
Date: 2005-03-15 13:19
If I am intending to practice later in the day, I will leave my instrument assembled on the stand, so I can come and go without having to reassemble it. I do try to put it away every night, and I ALWAYS swab before, during, and after each playing session.
As for reeds, I personally have never been fond of leaving a wet reed to dry on the mouthpiece. It seems to me to somehow change the reed for the worse. I ALWAYS wipe the reed and put it in its case if I am going to be away from the instrument for more than a few minutes (like, five), even if I am leaving the instrument out. You are going to have to take it off to rewet it when you come back, anyway. Why take the chance of leaving it on the mouthpiece to dry out and warp?
Susan
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-03-15 14:57
Bad mistake. What you think you will do with "more practicing" will actually be a reason why your Clarinet gets significantly more wear and quickly.
Because leaving it "on the stand" will encourage and basically guarantee that you won't swab it after playing.
It happens almost every time. A stand should be used for a player who is playing A and Bb in a Concert / practice session, and then both Clarinets get swabbed and put away.
Only if you promise yourself that you will swab it out completely EVERY TIME that you finish, and put the Clarinet under a pillow case to keep it from getting dusty will you have any success with it.
And then all you will have to worry about is keeping the Clarinet humidified while on the stand.
:)
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Author: hans
Date: 2005-03-15 15:11
Leaving it on the stand = allowing it to sit with water in the joints. IMO that is asking for problems, assuming your clarinet is made of wood.
It is better to get into the habit of taking it apart and cleaning it thoroughly when you don't intend to play again in the next hour.
Hans
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Author: Arnoldstang
Date: 2005-03-15 15:15
No really serious damage can be done. Corks will compress a lot perhaps making joints a bit wobbly and dust will collect on the instrument. You can cover the clarinet or use a small soft brush to remove dust periodically. If the humidity in the storage room is very dry the clarinet will obviously dry out. You can put a humidifier in the room if you want. Try it for awhile and see if keeping it out actually makes you practice more. If it does......then do it. You won't get better if the clarinet is always in the case. If you decide to put the clarinet in the case after practicing...then you might change the place that you store the clarinet. eg. If you keep it in your practice room you won't see it until you enter that room. Try storing it in your bedroom so that as soon as you get up the clarinet case is staring you in the face. Having it visible will probably encourage practicing. Regarding reeds....if you leave the reed on.....one of two things happen 1. It will play ok when you pick it up 2. It won't. You will need to warm up before the reed starts to sound good. If #2 occurs then you might as well save time and take the reed off and wet it and flatten it.
Freelance woodwind performer
Post Edited (2005-03-15 15:23)
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2005-03-15 15:27
Rite, Bob D, we used to reply to an imponderable question, "how long is the [your] piece of string"? I go both ways, sometimes assembled overnite, but with reed drying/lig-loosening, noting some difficulties in disassembly. On my great bass cl, after comm band, I immediately "handkerchief" swab the glass mp, lip-dry the reed, then chamois swab both joints , cloth swab the neck and at home leave the case open overnite to equilibrate temp and humidity. I leave reeds on mps for "airing-out". Have had no problems !! Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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Author: clarinetwife
Date: 2005-03-15 17:09
As a very busy mom, I usually do not get the horn out again if i put it back in the case. So leaving it on the stand if I think I'm going to pick it up again in a reasonable time leads to more playing for me. Hans' and David's cautions are very well taken, though. One must swab, and i also dry where moisture collects in the barrel and at least the top tenon of the upper joint while the barrel is removed, if I'm going to be away more than a few minutes.
If the reed is left on, the edges of the reed tend to dry to the rails of the mouthpiece while the cane is drying and contracting. If students get frequent splits down the middle of their reeds it is usually because they leave the reed on.
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Author: BassetHorn
Date: 2005-03-15 18:09
As long as you swap thoroughly, I don't see a problem.
The corks do compress over time thus increasing the frequency of cork replacement. But convenience always comes with a cost.
It is a good practice though to remove the mouthpiece and reeds, clean them, and store them. This also expose the internal bore of the clarinet to the atmosphere and allows for quicker drying.
I personally do not leave my sopranos on the stand overnight. They retire into their cases before I do. I do, however, leave my larger size clarinets on their stands to avoid the additional work. My bass and contras pretty much live on their stands until I need them for a gig. I make sure they stay in a constant temperature room, away from household traffics and potential disturbances. They are all made of non-wood materials, so I feel quite safe about this practice. So far, so good. But I would recommend putting all your wood instruments back into their cases at the end of the day.
Cheers,
Willy
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Author: Dano
Date: 2005-03-15 18:18
I use my stand at home only when I must use the phone or go where the clarinet can't or should not go. I think that the longest I have ever left it on the stand without playing it once in a while was about 1 1/2 hours or so and that was after swabing it out and removing the reed. I can't imagine leaving it on a stand overnight or even all day. My clarinets are way too important to me to be left out where they may dry out or be bumped onto the floor or something like that. I don't even like those cases that force you to keep the bell on the lower joint when you put your clarinet in the case. Much less out of the case. I never leave a reed on a mouthpiece because it seems to dry it out way too much and it also gets warped. I just simply put it in a reed holder. It is so easy to care for a clarinet that it seems silly for me to not to care for it.
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Author: ffrr
Date: 2005-03-15 20:52
So many good thoughts and much advice... thank you all
So, in response to, at least, some of the issues raised.
My clarinet is not made of wood, and I live near the coast, so humidity is normally fairly high. Drying out, in fact, is harder to achieve, and I try to leave the case open, after swabbing, to allow it to dry properly.
Last night, I left the clarinet on the stand, but I did swab it out first. As you have to at least remove the reed to do this, that settles the issue for me with regard to the reed. That, plus I have previously received advice to cycle the use of my reeds (I have 4 in rotation), means I will remove the reed after use and store it in my reed holder.
Although I purchased it used, my clarinet is quite tight to assemble/disassemble. The corks look very good. I don't think it will get too loose due to compression of the cork - but if it does, they can be replaced. I think I might make it a once a week job to take it apart and add some cork grease. I bought it cheaply, and it is a student model (Vito, Leblanc) so on balance, I think I'll try leaving it on the stand for a while.
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Author: BobD
Date: 2005-03-16 12:39
Way to go ffrr....that's the only way you'll ever find out. Unless you have a dog, in which case you'll find out sooner.
Bob Draznik
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2005-03-16 12:52
I've found it to be good discipline (after 45 years of playing clarinet) to make it a rule to always take my clarinet apart and swab it out after playing and replace it in its case. That is the best protection for the instrument that you can give it. Leaving a clarinet on a stand is a very bad habit.
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Author: CPW
Date: 2005-03-16 15:58
OK
Send me several matched sets of Chadash or H. Wurlizer clarinets.
Both will be played, swabbed, sockets dried, greased, etc. ... and one will be stored in a case, the other on a stand.
At the end of several years, I will have an independent tech. examine them and I will post the comments here.
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Author: fredackerman
Date: 2005-03-16 23:11
Just like I take care to put away my extremely expensive photography equipment I treat my Clarinets likewise. When your "stuff" is left out sooner or later it will get damaged.. this is a sure bet! It really doesn't take long to clean and properly put away your instrument.
Fred
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-03-16 23:19
"Both will be played, swabbed, sockets dried, greased, etc. ... and one will be stored in a case, the other on a stand."
Ah, but the one on the stand most likely won't be taken care of. Because anyone lazy enough to want to leave their Clarinet on the stand all day is probably too lazy to take good care of swabbing their instrument out correctly and doing the maintenance of it properly.
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Author: ffrr
Date: 2005-03-17 03:07
Just a reminder, my question was nothing to do with laziness or unwillingness to clean and put it away.
I am simply looking for ways to encourage practice. Now, if I am watching TV, I can reach over and grab the clarinet, and practice during the ad breaks. That's 20 minutes practive every hour on average, 40 minutes practice, at least, per movie !!
If I don't do it, it sits there making me feel guilty. :-)
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Author: BobD
Date: 2005-03-17 22:38
That's just noodling in my opinion........although there's nothing wrong with that.
Bob Draznik
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Author: mags
Date: 2005-03-17 22:53
Right...Well my clarinet is made of ebonite...I always have it set up...all the time. I quite often have a go on it throughout the day. Maybe for an hour....then 20 mins later...play for half an hour.....perhaps 2 hours later..play for 10 mins...and so on. I just grab it between jobs in the house. Now..I do have to say that it has clattered to the floor when knocked a few times....(don't laugh). When I get my new wooden one in the next 5(?) years...I won't leave it up. Now I do have to say...that at the end of the day I take it apart...clean it all..dry off the joints and put the reed away...but then I set up the clarinet again and leave it there. I put the reed on the next day.I also leave my saxophone up. Whether its right or wrong....or bad practice...I will still do it for now. Mgt x
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Author: psychotic lil clarinet girl (don't as
Date: 2005-03-17 23:03
I really have no personal experience, but I suppose as long as you swabbed after each time you played it, it would be alright to leave it together... Generally, I leave my clarinet together mostly on weekends, where it's right in front of me and as easy to access as a piano is... If you have to put it together, than that discourages practicing, because that's always a dread to do...
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-03-18 03:52
psychotic lil clarinet girl (don't ask) wrote:
> If you have to put it together, than
> that discourages practicing, because that's always a dread to
> do...
Yeah... Those extra 3 minutes are a real inconvenience ![[right]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie8.gif) ...GBK
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2005-03-18 05:16
I once left my clarinet on the stand a lot, and many times I didn't even swab. The result - Cracked bell and barrel. For a few days I couldn't even take the bell and barrel apart from the joints. Without disassembling your clarinet you can't really swab it (swabing while your clarinet is assembled is not really swabing). Then putting the clarinet back together and keeping it on the stand might not matter, but you already disassembled it to swab so better just keep it in the case.
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Author: OpusII
Date: 2005-03-18 09:21
how long can I leave my Clarinet on a stand?
Not long if it is a pro instrument...because after a couple of weeks it could crack you know.... But, in the worst case you can make a lamp from a clarinet
The wood of a student clarinet is less fragile, but it is still not a smart thing to keep the clarinet on the stand.....
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Author: majakr
Date: 2005-03-18 15:36
Come on, puting the clarinet together or taking it apart is really no big deal. If this is the reason not to practice then it will be easy to find 1000 other reasons not to practice even when the clarinet stays assembled.
For me the assembly and disassembly the clarinet belongs to each playing session. During the assembly I prepare myself mentally, I think about what I intend to play and what goals I want to achieve. In addition I automatically take a closer look at the instrument to check if everything is o.k. After the practice session, when I disassemble the clarinet I have the time to think about how I played, things like "did I make any progress?", "what can I do better?", "what shall I practise the next time?" come into my mind. It also gives me the possiblility to relax.
Cheers,
Martin
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Author: mags
Date: 2005-03-18 15:49
Martin...that's a good answer....ok....you've convinced me.....I will put it away each time....but only at the end of the day. Mgt x
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Author: Avie
Date: 2005-03-18 17:28
Much good advice. Many will dissagree with the following procedure and maybe rightfully so. After each practice session I disassemble and dry out the tenons, swab out the bore and wipe down the exterior completely, cork grease all tenons to allow for a smooth assembly of all sections except a reed and ligature. It remains assembled for periodic playing and swabing and usually only goes to the case only when traveling. I have found that if the clarinet is visible it is more ascessable so I will probably engage in more practice time. The cork will probably wear a lot longer and there is less stress on the clarinet. Just my particular routine but not necessarily the best one.
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Author: rc_clarinetlady
Date: 2005-03-18 18:56
The years I made my most progress as a player were the years I put my clarinet together as soon as I got home from school, left it assembled and practiced it all through out the evening. After homework, after dinner, before bed and I would finger chromatic scales silently during family TV shows since no one wanted to hear me in our small house. I'd then practice for about an hour and always, always, always, swab it out and put it away. The case is the place it's the safest. If you do leave it on a stand in the evening or whenever you practice.........
It brings up an issue that we discussed in another thread. Use a very heavy duty stand only. The light weight ones are a huge accident waiting to happen. It doesn't matter if you have a wooden or plastic horn on that issue. Broken is broken when it lands on the floor in a crash. Get a heavy duty stand.
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Author: GoatTnder
Date: 2005-03-18 19:01
I think it's just fine to take your clarinet out and leave it on a stand if you're not going to play right away, provided it's a safe place. Sometimes, I have time to do that, but not enough time to practice. Once it's out, I'll decide mayby I do have some time, but usually not. Later, however, when I do have spare time, picking up the clarinet is just as easy as flicking on the TV. Hence, I practice more. When I'm done though, I put it away after drying completely.
So, I guess, before you play, you can leave it on there as long as you need. Just keep animals, small children, and earthquakes away.
Andres Cabrera
South Bay Wind Ensemble
www.SouthBayWinds.com
sbwe@sbmusic.org
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Author: BassetHorn
Date: 2005-03-18 19:02
I find the peg setup on saxophone stand works very well with clarinet. The tripod is sturdy and won't get knocked over easily or at all.
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Author: psychotic lil clarinet girl (don't as
Date: 2005-03-18 20:41
>Yeah... Those extra 3 minutes are a real inconvenience ...GBK
^_^ HAHA! Indeed they are... If you spent 3 minutes a day assembling your clarinet, everyday for 70 years, it would take up 53 days of your life! And so, those 53 days,you could have done something besides put together your clarinet... You could have been practicing for 53 days, instead of putting your clarinet together... That is why, it's more convenient to have it already assembled... 53 days is nearly 2 months! which is 1/6 of a year!
There you have it!
Oh, and for me... I usually assemble mine at least twice a day sometimes 3 or 4 times, but I keep it assembled during the weekend 1. so I won't forget about it, and 2. It's more convenient :p!
Post Edited (2005-03-18 20:46)
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Author: hans
Date: 2005-03-18 21:01
Mary,
Thanks for my humour du jour.
I predict that you will have a career as an accountant :-))
Regards,
Hans
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Author: psychotic lil clarinet girl (don't as
Date: 2005-03-19 00:51
>Mary,
>Thanks for my humour du jour.
>I predict that you will have a career as an accountant :-))
>Regards,
>Hans
^_^ possibly... ya never know though... May I do your taxes for you? Don't know how to, and will probably get you in a lot of trouble, BUT it's free! ^_^
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Author: ffrr
Date: 2005-03-20 03:16
"It brings up an issue that we discussed in another thread. Use a very heavy duty stand only. The light weight ones are a huge accident waiting to happen. "
Yes, I got a very heavy one. The base is a large disc of cast iron, and it has a screwed in peg with a flared collar. It is very difficult to knock over.
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2005-03-20 11:45
Leave it on its stand, so that you practice more, but how about making/getting a clear plastic-bag cover to slip over it to keep the dust off.
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Author: Guido
Date: 2005-03-20 20:04
My finest instruments enjoy the best of care, protected by case, care and respect.
But I keep a plastic Leblanc Vito on the peg of a saxophone stand 24/7, right next to the sound system for the house --- where both see lots of use.
The reed and lig stay attached -- scrubbed out as needed, swabbed infrequently, truth be told.
That Vito is a workhorse, meant to be ridden at a moment's notice as mood, song, thought or weakness invites.
Then again, I keep a B12 in the trunk of my car for the hills, parks or any will to wander - this, in the Northeast where life freezes 100 days a year.
Your mileage may vary....
Guido
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