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Introduction
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Each woodwind instrument has particular maintenance problems; Piccolos
are the woodwind instruments most affected by water
build-up due to condensation from the players breath.
The piccolo player must take particular care to avoid
problems caused by the condensation.
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Why condensation occurs
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The air a player blows into a woodwind instrument contains a great deal
of water vapour. The temperature of this air is
approximately 38 degrees Centigrade. The temperature
of the instrument (even when warmed up to room
temperature) is approximately 20 degrees Centigrade.
The water vapour in the player’s breath condensates
on the inner surface of the instrument, which is cool,
compared to the temperature of the air.
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Where condensation occurs |
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The air leaving the player is hot and humid and water vapour immediately
condensates onto the surface area at the top of the
bore. The air continues down the bore becoming drier
and cooler as the water vapour condensates out. The
air finally passes out of the first free open tone
hole.
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What happens to the condensation |
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The condensation at the top of the bore forms equally over the inner
surface of the bore. Gravity forces the microscopic
droplets of condensation to run down the sides of the
bore to meet at the bottom of the bore where a rivulet
of condensation forms. This rivulet runs down the
length of the bore and can drip out the end of the
instrument (as in the case of flutes) or run into a
tone hole (as in the case of the Low D# on
Saxophones).
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Gradually with playing the whole instrument warms up to a playing
temperature and some sort of equilibrium is reached
where the internal surface of the bore is warm enough
so only a minimum of condensation occurs.
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Why
condensation is a problem for piccolo players |
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All woodwind players have to cope with water caused by condensation but
it is a particularly serious problem for piccolo
players for three reasons.
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Firstly, the length of bore between where the players breath enters the
instrument, and the first free open tone hole, is
shortest on a piccolo. On a clarinet most the water
vapour condensates in the mouthpiece and barrel and
the top section of the top joint, and the now drier
air proceeds down the bore. Likewise on a flute and
saxophone there is a reasonable length of bore where
condensation can occur drying out the air before it
reaches the pads. On a piccolo the length of bore is much shorter
- furthermore the bore is much narrower so the surface
area is much less. In fact nearly the whole body of
the piccolo is affected by hot and humid air.
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Secondly with less surface area on which to condensate the condensation
quickly builds up to form droplets. Because the whole
body of the piccolo is affected by hot humid air these
droplets are forming throughout the bore and adjacent
to the tone holes. Water forms the same size droplets
regardless of the size of the instrument. If a droplet
runs into the pad of a saxophone it will get absorbed
and make no noticeable swelling of the pad. On a
piccolo a droplet of water will dramatically affect
the pad making it swell.
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Thirdly the rivulet caused by the condensation is roughly the same for
each woodwind instrument, however, the size of the
piccolo bore is much smaller than for other woodwinds,
the tone holes are much closer to the bottom of the
bore, so there is a much greater chance of water
running into the tone holes.
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What
the player can do to minimise these problems |
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1. Make sure the instrument is thoroughly warmed before playing - NOT by
blowing into it, but by holding it gently in closed
hands for at least 5 minutes.
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2. Careful swabbing out of the instrument after it has been played for a
few minutes - I prefer to use a piece of paper towel
threaded in the end of the tuning rod because this
absorbs moisture rather than pushes it down the bore.
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3. During a performance if the instrument is not being played it should
be held carefully (to keep it warm) and in such a way
that the head joint is slightly higher than the body
so that water can run down the bottom of the bore
without running into the tone holes. If the instrument
cannot be held then place it in its open case with the
head joint slightly higher than the body.
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4. If water does get on to the pads swab out immediately and then hold
the piccolo for a few minutes with all fingers firmly
closing the keys.
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Assembly |
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Use this method to assemble a Piccolo to avoid damaging it.
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1. Make sure the tenon cork is adequately greased.
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2. Grip the head joint in your left hand.
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3. Grip the body, between the trills and the tenon, with the thumb and
forefinger of your right hand.
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4. Gently twist the body of the piccolo onto the head-joint.
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Servicing
and repair |
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The instrument should be serviced once a year to ensure it is operating
correctly. The pads, corks, and felts on the
instrument (and also the adhesives which keeps these
items in place) deteriorate over time. On older or
poorer quality instruments the mechanism itself starts
to wear and keys can become loose or jammed.
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Usually such deterioration is gradual and the player subconsciously
compensates by blowing harder and pressing harder on
the keys. Without servicing the deterioration
continues: the quality of tone diminishes; the
instrument becomes less responsive; the tuning becomes
unreliable. Eventually something major goes wrong and
the instrument becomes unplayable and in need of
considerable repair. Players often blame themselves
for the poor sound they produce when really it is the
condition of the instrument that is causing problems.
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Test your piccolo with the following
exercises. In all cases you should be able to play the notes
without squeezing the keys hard or blowing hard:
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- C to Bb, using the thumb key
- B to A
- A to G
- G to F#
- G to F
- E to D
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