From: de19@umail.umd.edu (Dana S Emery)
Newsgroups: rec.music.early
Subject: Re: recorder care tips
Date: 12 Nov 92 14:13:49 GMT
Followup-To: rec.music.early
Organization: personal

In article <1992Nov6.234429.2177@news.Hawaii.Edu>,
mike@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Mike W. Burger) wrote:
> I believe it is grenadilla wood, 

You should be aware of the possibility of an alergic reaction, not
everyone is susceptible, just take it easy in practice for a while
(better for the instrument that way anyhow).

> 	I would appreciate any advice on care and breaking it in,
> as well as recomendations on bore oil and cork grease.

Cork grease is important to keep the cork supple, but no more should be
used than that requires.  Your climate may have swelled the cork abit, 
some judicious sandpapering may proove usefull (200 grit or finer).


> One book was very, very negative about the cute fluffy swabs that come
> with the instruments, so I purchased a very nice string and
> chamois swab with a brass weight used mainly for clarinets and
> oboes which I plan to cut down to size.  

The boring and reaming of the inside of a recorder leaves short fuzzy 
bits of wood fiber which need to be broken off and removed.  Swabbing 
helps to finish that for the manufacturor, as well as removing excess 
moisture from the bore.  Fluffy swabs in 60% humidity screams mildew to
me, which would not be a good thing.  Your chamois will need occaisional 
cleaning to prevent a similar fate, oil seems appropriate, as it is
leather.

> I was planning to use
> a Kleenex draped over the dry fuzzy swab for the head joint.

No kleenex, unless you want to add lint to the equation.  Lint-free cloth,
perhaps a handkerchief would be more like it.  Be carefull not to scrape
anything
with the wire end.

> The kit that comes with it has a brush and some scary instructions
> about oiling right next to the blade and rather in an arc along
> the center of the base of the blade and on the vertical walls of the
> side of the windhole.

The air you exhale into the recorder has a high moisture content and a 
high temperature.  As it transfers heat to the instrument, it also sheds
moisture.
The head joint thus sees a high moisture gradient, and is exactly where
the instrument needs oil.  It is not a good iddea to encourage drops of
moisture 
to form on central portions of the edge or the mouth, and thus these areas
are often 
left raw, as is the top surface of the block.  A curved block profile
allows moisture
to divert to the sides, where it is less troublesome.

Because of that, debris (mould, food) can form in the windway, and removal
of it is a delicate operation.  I have seen feathers recomended for that,
but
periodic (? yearly?) disassembly seems better to me.  Of course, there is a
slight
risk of splitting the head joint every time one does that, still the risk
of that is
less if you do it regularly.  Read up on technique, and practice on a cheap
instrument
first tho.

> 	One strange tip I have already received, possibly unique
> to Hawaii, is to watch out for mold!  The new "box" has large
> arched cutouts in each end when closed to allow flow through
> ventilation.  

I would make sure that the instrument is located in a room with good air
circulation,
and that you ensure that both ends of all joints are wide open while it
airs out.

Disasembly of all joints helps free circulation of air thru it as well.

Obviously, you will travel to sonme rehearsals, and the return trip must
needs 
close up the case the instrument travels in, but you should remember not to
leave 
it like that for long.

I suspect that Vancover, New England, and Welsh residents are also familiar
with this problem.
--

Dana S Emery <de19@umail.umd.edu>
From: knotts@hpl-opus.hpl.hp.com (Tom Knotts)
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 1992 00:55:06 GMT
Subject: Re: Bach's 2nd keyboard partita, keyboard fingering
Organization: HP Labs, High Speed Electronics Dept., Palo Alto, CA