Proper Care and Assembly of Buffet Crampon and Schreiber Woodwinds

By. Francios Kloc

Author: François Klo

A master woodwind maker, François Kloc, is a graduate of the Institut Technologique Europeen des Metiers de la Musique, a European School for the instruction of musical instrument makers and technicians. François began his apprenticeships at age 15, receiving his introduction to oboe manufacturing at Mignot and Rigoutat, both in Paris. Upon completion of his apprenticeships, François worked at Bertet in Grenoble, a musical instrument retail store and in 1991, became instrument technician and final finisher for oboes at F. Loree de Gourdon in Paris. In 1995, François joined Buffet Crampon of Boosey & Hawkes and began working with Reasearch and Development Manager, René Lesieux, on innovations within the clarinet and oboe families. In addition, he traveled to Germany to view and assess the manufacturing of bassoons and saxophones at Schreiber and Keilwerth.

François moved to the United States in January of 1997 to work as Woodwind Product Specialist at Boosey & Hawkes Musical Instruments, Inc. (since 2003 The Music Group Ltd.) the North American distributorship for The Music Group products. He continues to be a major creative force, implementing the Platinum Service quality control program and providing effective feedback to the Buffet Crampon and Schreiber factories.

First of all, I would like to talk about the daily care of our woodwind instruments: soprano clarinets, harmony clarinets, bassoons, and oboes. I would recommend the players of woodwinds take care of their instruments everyday to keep it in top performance condition. Also, if you have a problem with your instrument, please contact a trained repair technician or contact us for advisement or a referral.

Swab your instrument every time you play it. Use a new or relatively new swab. If the swab is soiled or fluffy, resulting from over washing, you may collect dust in the tone holes. Never place a wet swab in a closed case where it can cause the spring to rust and discolor the keys.

Wipe the keys with a dry cloth after each use to help prevent corrosion. You can use a silver polishing cloth once a week to keep the plating shiny. After using the silver cloth, be sure to go over the keys a second time with a dry cloth. Never use cleaning solvents or anti-corrosive treatments on your instrument.

If your instrument is new, swab it every 15 to 20 minutes during play. Do not play the instrument continuously for more than 30 minutes at a time for the first month. Avoid rapid changes of temperature or humidity. You don't need to oil the bore of a new instrument. When the instruments are made, they are immersed in a vat of oil to treat the wood and prevent cracks. Do not leave your instrument out of doors in extreme heat or cold.

Before assembling your instrument, apply a thin layer of cork grease to the tenon corks to make the joints fit together easier. You need to apply cork grease every time assembly of your instrument is difficult. Never use force, which may cause your instrument to crack. If you repeatedly experience problems when assembling your instrument, see your band director, teacher, professor or a trained repair technician.

When you assemble the top and bottom joints, hold the top joint with the left hand and the bottom joint with the right hand and insert. Take care not to apply any excessive pressure on the keys. Make sure that the logos line up with one another

For Soprano clarinet - Hold the bell with the left hand and the bottom joint with the right hand and assemble. Line up the Buffet Crampon logo on the bell with the logos on the clarinet

For Bass clarinet - when assembling the bottom joint and bell, hold the joint part of the bell with your left hand and the bottom joint with your right and insert. For bass or alto clarinets that have a key on their bells, hold the key on the bell down, so the key of the bottom joint does not hit it.