A few weeks ago, I was cleaning my oboe with a cloth. that is pulled through the oboe. As the oboe becomes thinner nearer to the top, problems may occur when a knot or some unforeseen increase in thickness of the cloth draws closer to this area. To my distress, a knot had in fact knotted itself (OR BEEN KNOTTED?) in my oboe cloth! This resulted in several attempts to remove it using:
- a small screwdriver
- the red toolbox that is in Mr Squibb's office
- a sparkler (which was in the music staff room - i wonder what they do to celebrate on birthdays)
All these attempts proved fruitless. My oboe was then sent to a specialised oboe-maker/repairer who removed the tattered cloth using a "special tool".
...yes, anyway. I am not sure what the purpose of that story was. It was upsetting at the time. Especially since it was impossible to play it with a cloth sticking out of the place where the reed should go. Also, it could have gotten scratched by the sparkler! What then? Would my oboe no longer sound like an oboe and instead like a clarinet? :( :( :(
Another event occurred in windsymph this morning where i looked in my reed case and discovered several black-green fronds of mould sprouting furrily from my reeds.
it was EXTREMELY HORRIFYING imagine, my currently played on reed had been in such a mouldy environment as this, with the furry fronds possibly touching it! I had stuck in my mouth a possibly diseased and FURRY item of reed!
I felt extremely disturbed.
That is why (after discarding the mouldy reeds) I have decided never to put away reeds while wet. They must always be allowed to dry. This is true for bassoonists as well, and probably clarinetists. And saxophonists. And reed instrument players.
MOULD!
2 comments:
So true. Moudly reeds are not healthy to play with. Used to use that antisceptic stuff everytime after i played the mould away...D:
Wait, what am i saying i never played sax...o.o
Imagine, if you had swallowed the fungus, you would have saved us all from the duck noises.
I <3 oboes.
...not
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