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Re: Cigarette Papers: Any REAL Need?

Author: JRJINSA
Date: 2008-08-18 13:15

Ginger Ramsey of Covey Oboes in Atlanta, GA, gave me her opinion of the importance of cigarette papers. In a nutshell here's what she told me back in January of '07.

When an oboe is brand new and not used to being played, having humid air blown through it, etc., it is most susceptible to cracks. It's very important to break in a new oboe by using a silk swab (not a feather until it's at least two years old) and using cigarette papers in two trill keys at the top joint. After you swab it, be sure and blow air through the oboe while holding these keys open one at a time and take note of how much water comes out of the trill keys and onto the cigarette paper. She was adamant about this -- putting the oboe away with water in the trill keys is deadly!!! The purpose of the cigarette paper is mainly to catch the water and also "show" you how much is in there and how much you need to blow to get it all out. After you do this, swab it one more time just to get that last bit of moisture out that you just blew in there. Lastly, if you really want to be cautious, prop open the two trill keys with cigarette paper and allow the oboe to breathe while in its case.

I used her technique on my brand new wooden Yamaha oboe I purchased in April of last year and have been fortunate not to crack it. Knock on wood!

I get a lot of use out of one piece of cigarette paper -- I usually split them up into quarters and if there's not a lot of moisture on them, I reuse them the next time.

In all honesty, however, I will probably start slacking as my oboe gets older and more "broken in" and stop using them altogether. Who's to say, this could have been the saving grace for my oboe the past year and a half. It surely hasn't done any harm.

PS -- Blowing air through all of the octave keys is equally important as blowing it through the trill keys.

PSS - Ever notice how sometimes the pads stick to the oboe when you first get it out to play? The higher Bb (when playing the two index fingers C) and lower C# come to mind. They never stick if you always blot them with cigarette paper just prior to putting the oboe away. Merely blowing doesn't get all the water off the pads themselves and makes them prone to sticking to the oboe's tone holes. This act of blotting definitely proves a benefit to cigarette papers.

Post Edited (2008-08-18 14:35)

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Cigarette Papers: Any REAL Need? new

Chris P

2008-08-18 00:42