 The Oboe BBoard
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Author: cjwright
Date: 2006-12-07 21:54
Check out the Charles Double Reed Site and the Paul Covey oboes site. They both have suggestions on how to break in a wooden oboe. This means a maximum of 5 minutes a day for the first week, and going from there.
From Covey oboes:
For a wooden oboe, a little care in breaking it in is well worth the effort.
The overall objective of the break-in procedure is to introduce moisture, temperature variances, and vibration to the wood of the oboe slowly enough to avoid cracking. Too much moisture inside the bore with too little moisture on the outside of the oboe, or too warm a bore in too cold an oboe will either one put the instrument at risk. We also believe that intense, unaccustomed vibration may be a contributing factor in cracking.
For new wooden instruments, or for instruments that have not been played regularly in some time, we recommend that you adhere to the following standard break-in procedures to help prevent cracking:
1. Warm up the instrument with your hands before playing. Do not blow into the instrument if it is very cold, but warm it in your hands or lap a few minutes first, especially the top joint.
2. Blow warm air through each joint to introduce a little moisture from your breath onto the bore before assembling the oboe, but only after you've warmed the oboe.
3. Play the instrument in a warm room. Try never to play the instrument in a cold room or in a cold draft. Try not to play in hot, dry drafts either, as this will dry the wood.
4. Play the instrument for short periods of time at first; fifteen minutes a day, no more than twice a day for the first week or so, increasing to 20 minutes, then 25 minutes, etc. Regular, steady introduction of moisture and vibrations is the goal, so it is important to play it almost every day during this time, though the argument could well be made that skipping one day every 5-6 days to let it "rest" can't hurt!
5. Play connecting exercises, like long tones, slow scales, and melodies, so that the oboe becomes accustomed to continuous vibration. When doing this, pay special attention to connecting between the notes. This is good for your playing anyhow, obviously, but it is also good for the oboe! ...and use a tuner. Train yourself and your oboe to play at pitch!
6. Thoroughly swab out and dry the instrument after every use. Clear any accumulated water out of the tone holes by blowing air hard through them with the key open. Soak up any additional water with cigarette paper, placing it between the cork pads and the tone holes. Pay special attention to getting the water out of the octaves, the 3rd octave tone hole especially, and the triller tone holes. Also, if you've had any notes "burbling" from water, be sure to soak the water out of that tone hole with your cigarette paper.
7. Consider an instrument "barely broken in" in 2-3 months, and "well broken-in" only after about a year. As you can imagine, this time table is very subjective and depends a lot on how much you as an oboist play.
8. Even after an oboe is well broken in, continue being careful of extreme temperature and moisture conditions. Keep a "Damp-It" in the case in very dry weather, avoid air-conditioning drafts like the plague, avoid outdoor playing where the temperature drops below 70° F, avoid situations where strong sunlight can overly warm one side of the instrument causing it to warp... the list is long, and you can add to it with your own experiences and imagination!
Blog, An Oboe In Paradise
Solo Oboe, Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra
Post Edited (2006-12-08 01:16)
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Oboebabe |
2006-12-07 21:34 |
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cjwright |
2006-12-07 21:54 |
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vboboe |
2006-12-08 00:31 |
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Oboebabe |
2006-12-08 01:58 |
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Craig Matovich |
2006-12-08 02:54 |
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