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Re: Winter Low Humidity Problems

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2014-10-02 00:43

Are you absolutely sure it's the clarinet that's changing? Often players find they need to use very slightly stiffer reeds in the winter from what they use during the summer.

A clarinet that old might be reacting to the dryness of home heating, but wood that old, especially a dense wood like grenadilla, is pretty stable. Are the tenon rings loosening? That's a first sign of slight wood shrinkage and can be fixed by humidifying the inside of the case when the instrument is put away - Dampits or pieces of orange peel can tighten slightly loose rings overnight, even very loose rings in a few days.

Have you had the repair people look at it in summer or in winter? They need to see it at its worst to be able to find a mechanical problem. If it's pad leaks that are opening only because of wood shrinkage, a repair tech will need to look at it when the leaks are there.

I would absolutely try humidifying the case and experimenting with slightly harder reeds - maybe not even a half- or quarter-strength, just try new ones of the same reeds you normally use and see if some of them play better than the ones you were using during during the pre-heating weather. It may turn out that the harder ones in the same box, the ones that were too stiff in the summertime, may now work better.

Karl

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