Author: Chris P
Date: 2022-09-24 19:39
I started dabbling with woodwind repair when I was 11 as the school's bassoon was in a serious state of disrepair and they weren't fussed about getting it serviced, so I'd buy the pads, sheet cork and whatnot to replace the perished gasket to get it working.
Then I got an alto sax when I was 12 and as I've always liked tinkering with mechanical stuff (old wind-up gramophones, clocks, etc.) I decided to see if I could at least take it all apart and put it back together again as well as working out the order of which keys go on first which was all a matter of trial and error.
Then when I was 14 I went to Texas and bought a B&H 2-20 clarinet from a market stall for $7.75, bought a set of pads, a tube of liquid shellac and some sheet cork at a music shop in Tyler and got it working for the time I was there.
That clarinet then became the basis of learning repair techniques on when I started working part time at a local music shop and was a perfect candidate for developing other techniques such as replacing tenon corks, bushing toneholes, fitting new tenon rings, crack repair, keywork repair, replacing screws, fitting cork pads and other things which are always useful to get the basic grasp of and then adapt, evolve and perfect them over time.
I also worked as an oboe finisher for Howarth for over a decade and as well as finishing new instruments, I'd also service and overhaul older oboes and clarinets for them. I set up on my own and transitioning from one job to another was very smooth as was building up a customer base and also having customers from my previous job come back to me after a hiatus when I started working for Howarth, plus doing finishing work for another oboe maker more recently.
If you have the aptitude for instrument repair, then follow your ambition. It is a viable career path as there are always musicians needing specialist repair work doing. See if you can work with a local woodwind specialist and they'll help you develop your skills. If you earn a good reputation, you won't be short of work when you're in demand.
Sometimes work can be busy and other times it can be quiet depending on the general financial state affecting everyone. Recessions and especially the recent pandemic impacted heavily on repair work as musicians were hit hard when gigs dried up, so people tended to concentrate on saving money wherever possible to survive and unfortunately, instrument servicing and overhauls were put aside as everyone had more pressing issues to deal with such as feeding themselves and their families, so instrument repairers will feel the adverse knock-on effects when they filter down from the top.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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