 The Oboe BBoard
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Author: GAWN
Date: 2011-07-11 16:32
Hi Everybody,
I'll soon be travelling with my oboe from cold Ireland at the moment around (16 C/60F) to a very tropical place (Burma) where temperatures are above 35 C/ 95 F are common every day and come with an extremely high relative humidity (now, in monsoon season usually between 80 and 90 % !).
How is the instrument going to cope with this? Which measures can I take to protect it and ensure a good acclimatization?
Thank you for your kind advice,
Georg
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-07-11 16:41
Keep your oboe cased up and with the lid closed when you get there and let it slowly acclimatise to the higher temperature and humidity over several hours instead of subjecting it to a sudden change.
Take it on as hand luggage in a single case so it doesn't get chucked about by baggage handlers.
Do the same thing when you return to Ireland with it.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Wes
Date: 2011-07-11 17:26
If I were going, I'd possibly take a sealed plastic container with a bag of silicon dessicant in it to carry the reeds and keep them from getting soaked with too much moisture. While some players soak their reeds all the time, I need to keep the reeds from getting too soaked and hard for my playing. The dessicant eventually absorbs moisture and needs to be dried in an oven, however. Good luck!
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Author: GoodWinds ★2017
Date: 2011-07-12 04:51
the dessicant idea is a good one -- although I never considered Ireland to have a 'dry' climate...
YES, CARRY on the oboe, even if they stop you to inspect it (the security agents always squint at the x-ray when I travel).
Happy travels!
GoodWinds
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Author: RobinDesHautbois
Date: 2011-07-12 17:00
My brother, the forrestry engineer specializing in quality control of lumber for 30+ years, emphassizes and quotes scientific study after another that humidity is the culprit, not temperature. (With temperature changes often come variances in humidity.)
His only advice may not be practical: let the wood rest for 24 hours in the typical environment where it will be used..... It might be more practical to carry a dampening device in your case at all times to keep the moisture high: when you play, moisture from your breath is present in the bore of your instrument.
But if you go to a very dry place, I think you might benefit from a gradual approach: take the instrument out for only a few minutes and play. Put it back for 2-3 hours, and take it out for a half an hour. Put it back for 1-2 hours and practice for an hour etc.
--- I make no guarantees this will prevent cracks! ----
Hopefully, this should help prevent troubles. If you have a few days to acclimatize, spread out that gradual routine over the time you have.
Best of luck!
Robin Tropper
M.A.Sc., B.Mus., B.Ed.
http://RobinDesHautbois.blogspot.ca/music
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Author: jeremyreeds
Date: 2011-07-13 12:26
I remember that discussion last year, I agree (with Robin and his brother) about the wood being affected mostly from humidity and negligibly by temperature but the problem is that oboes are made of wood and metal, and metal is affected by temperature. I am not going to get back on the discussion that we had before but one thing that Georg (GAWN) might take into account is that some keys might get a bit stuffy (hard) ie: the key for low Bb/B/Eb may expand and get stuck (this rod runs along the wood grain), or the Eb/C# pivoted keys (where the actual pads are) may also expand and get stuck (this ones would expand accross the wood grain pushing against the posts). In any case if I was Georg I would carry a small file to be able to correct any mechanical problem that may arrise.
Have a good trip.
Regards
Jeremias
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-07-13 15:52
Most makers will fraise back keys mounted across the body so there's a certain amount of end play to prevent them binding between the pillars with humidity changes. The usual suspects are the 1st 8ve key, the F vent and F vent rocker, the Eb and low C# keys as these are lightly sprung and mounted between pillars where they run across the grain. Wood will shrink and expand widthways far more than it will lengthways with changes in humidity so joints will often be slightly oval.
Metal doesn't have as much thermal expansion as wood and nowhere near as much as plastic, so you needn't worry about long keys on wooden instruments binding solid between pillars when the humidity changes. But be aware that socket linings can split the sockets or become loose if subjected to sudden changes in humidity.
It's a different matter with plastic instruments as the rate of thermal expansion/contraction is considerable, so all keys will need a certain amount of end play relative to their length in order for them not to bind up between pillars when cold - some long keys such as the top joint trill beam and the feather keys will need as much as 1mm of end play (and even more on plastic cors) to ensure they work under all conditions.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2011-07-13 15:53)
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Author: RobinDesHautbois
Date: 2011-07-13 16:51
Jeremy: yes, your comment about wood vs. metal is important.
Chris: as usual, really good extra explanations, thanks!
I didn't know that about plastic. Big thanks for that info! It might explain why my Loree (synthetic top joint) gets loose in the winter and tight in the summer!
Robin Tropper
M.A.Sc., B.Mus., B.Ed.
http://RobinDesHautbois.blogspot.ca/music
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