Flutists: Care and Feeding of Your Instrument

[Paul Rabinov]

This is a work in progress so please be patient as I'm learning as I go. If there is stuff that doesn't make sense or if you feel I haven't covered it all, please let me know. I'd like this to be accurate and as comprehensive as you'd like.

 

Here's some basic stuff flutists should consider in making sure their instrument is the best it can be:

 

Wipe off tenons and inside of barrels (boxes) before assembly and after disassembly. I've seen lots of flutes where the tenons and barrels were scored by some crud that got caught in there. It can be pricey to properly fix! Also, I seriously don't recommend putting anything (cork grease, graphite, etc.) on the tenons to make assembly easier. If things don't fit right when they're clean have your repair tech make it right.

 

Assembly of flute – never hold head joint by lip plate while assembling or disassembling. If you do, you can actually press the plate toward the head tube which changes the angle of your air stream toward the front wall (blowing edge). This will change the way your flute plays...and not neccessarily for the better!

 

Hold foot joint with thumb depressing C key, rotate wrist away from you, twist foot joint onto and off of body.

 

Make it a habit to hold the flute at the barrel (box). Grasping the mechanical part of the flute can bend keys as well as expose the mechanism to sweat and oils from your hands. Some times a flute comes in with corrosion inside the mechanisms. Other than playing in the rain, the most likely reason for this is from sweat. If you think about it, the only place you need to come in contact with the mechanisms is where your fingers touch the keys.  Another reason for holding at the barrel instead of the headjoint, if the headjoint fit is loose this  may cause the body to slide off & hit the floor!

 

Swab inside of flute after playing to remove moisture using cotton cloth on wood or plastic rod, or use Roger Holman's very cool "Flute Flag".

 

Wipe finger prints off tubing with soft (cotton) cloth. Avoid making contact with pad surfaces to prevent pads from wearing. I've seen lots of flutes where everything looks pretty good except....most of the pads are shredding at the front of the key and have to be replaced...Expensivo! Clean key surfaces by wiping from rods to front of keys to avoid bending the keys (they're softer than you think!). Occasionally (once a month) you can clean your flute using rubbing alcohol on a soft cloth to remove oily residue. Again, Stay Away From The Pads.

 

Storing your flute: Keep interior of case clean and lint free (that stuff really can get into the mechanism). You can put a tarnish strip with the flute; I don't know if they do any good, but they can't hurt. Do Not use Pad Savers (AKA shove-its). Those things do the exact opposite of their name. What you want is to have your pad surfaces dry quickly - from my experience Pad Savers actually keep moisture near the pads for a longer period.

 

Sticky pads: this might be controversial, but I recommend using soft facial tissue (but not the kind with Aloe or other stuff on them). Tamp the key down on the tissue - it seems to really be better than cigarette paper, etc. Some folks recomend powder papers, etc. I've always found them to ultimately make things stickier because they leave residue. If the stickiness really bugs you, have your technician clean the pads. They will disassemble the flute and use lighter fluid on felt pads and a solution of denatured alcohol, water and Lubriderm on Straubingers. NEW: Hubert Laws turned me on to oil blotting papers by Neutrogena. They seem to work very, very well.

 

Use a moist cotton swab (Q-Tip) to clean blow hole walls at least once a week (if you don't get the crud out, the hole actually becomes smaller and your flute doesn't play as well.

 

Have your flute serviced annually by a technician you trust. Work should include disassembly of mechanisms, cleaning and oiling of mechanisms, cleaning pad surfaces, cleaning of tubing, adjustment and regulation of mechanisms. Additional stuff to be checked- head joint cork checked and replaced if needed (some people think the cork should be changed annually), pads checked and replaced as needed, mechanisms checked for wear at connections, head joint and foot joint fit should be checked and corrected as necessary.

 

Your flute should play all the way to the bottom with finger light pressure. If not, it's leaking somewhere. When testing for leaks play slowly a chromatic scale from middle of staff C down. If you notice a color (sound) change from one note to the other, the flute is leaking. Have it checked over.

 

If this is of any help to you, or you have questions that have or haven't been addressed, please feel free to comment.

 

Most important of all, enjoy and make great music!

[Janet K Bordeaux]

Thanks for an interesting article. One comment/suggestion: I had to pull out a dictionary to see what a "tenon" is, then puzzled over "boxes" until I got to the third paragraph (it's where the manufacturer's imprint is?) Same with the reference to "sticky pads" - does this mean the surface of the key is sticky or that the key seems to stick instead of lifting freely when you remove your finger?

 

Overall, there's some very helpful information here.  I do have a question....when I practice, my fingers get sticky where they contact the keys (both the open holes and the closed ones). Any suggestions to dealing with this? I always clean the key surfaces after practicing, and I wash my hands thoroughly before practicing.

 

Here's a link for Roger Holman's Flute Flag:

http://home.nethere.net/roger45/fluteflaga.htm

[Tina Huynh]

Hi Paul! Thanks for cleaning my flute over the summer! I actually got sticky pads again very shortly after I brought it home, so I'll try those Neutrogena wipes that Hubert recommended.

Hope you're doing well!