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Re: D Noblet Clarinet Care???

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2021-01-28 20:07

Claratheclarinet85 wrote:

> I live in the Virginia Beach Area. I had the pads replaced at
> Music and Arts, but I found that I couldn't find what they
> charge for just a thorough cleaning.

They probably don't have a standard "cleaning" charge, because they (and most shops) don't generally offer the service separately. The instrument is usually cleaned up during a more general adjustment or maintenance service. Except for removing any gunk that could actually be slowing the mechanism down, you seem to be looking for a mostly cosmetic improvement. Better to have it adjusted mechanically at the same, since it has to be disassembled anyway to clean it thoroughly. (Cleaning it without taking the keys off is something you could just as easily do yourself.) That kind of adjustment doesn't *need* to include a complete re-padding, which you shouldn't need if they've been replaced recently. While it's disassembled, the repair person *should* look to see if any pads are damaged and those (few) should be replaced, but recently replaced pads should still be fine.

That said, a place like Music and Arts may provide as good a service as anyone. It really depends on who specifically is doing the work. The M&A I've dealt with when I taught music full-time has three separate divisions in its shop - woodwinds, strings and brass (I don't know who works on percussion). Each division has a foreman. The best person to get to do any clarinet work is the foreman of the woodwind shop. Their shops, though, are set up to move lots of student rental instruments and school-owned instruments (where they have a service contract) through and get them up to "good-playing condition," which may not be the best condition possible. They may balk at committing time to work on an individually owned instrument, especially if you only want cosmetic work.

Does your band teacher at school, or your private clarinet teacher if you have one, have a suggestion for a good shop? I have an old Noblet C clarinet that may well be of the same vintage as your instrument, and it's an excellent clarinet, well worth having the best maintenance available.

Karl

Post Edited (2021-01-28 23:44)

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