• Music Store

    Band Instruments reeds and more..

    The  same reeds and gear I use for my own professional engagements, along with prices that match the big stores we offer valuable advice. Mouthpieces, stands, tuners, reeds cases, metronomes and instruments.

     

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  • Woodwind Repairs

    Professional Performing Musicians, Band teachers and Discerning Amateurs send their instruments to us.  Expert repairs and advice that only a first class performer and repairman can give. Since 1991 serving the North from Prince George. Repair and service for your instruments so they and you play at 100% all the time. 

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  • Music Lessons

    voice, piano, flute, saxophone oboe or clarinet  all ages and styles.
     Yes our students all do well on their exams get recommended to provincials or play in the symphony and in community events but more importantly they will have music as a fun and rewarding part of their lives- forever.

    Recommended by band teachers.

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  • Yamaha CSG Clarinets

     Simon Cole principal clarinet Prince George Symphony 

    A refined and ringing tone, superb intonation and response.

  • Sponsors of

     the New Horizons Senior Band For adults with no or long ago musical experience. Join us Mondays at 530-730 1st Baptist Church in PG for more info call the Director Simon Cole at 250-563-4693 or email him.

    Read More at  Alban Classical

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  • for your event

    By Simon Cole / 2007-12-16 22:23:53
    We have done background music for most of the big companies and associations. We are very easy to deal with and our product is very high quality Live Music Small groups of 2-5 up to a small band .…
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  • Saxophones NEW

    By Simon Cole / 2007-12-18 00:49:46
      #15007 soprano saxophone, straight body with two necks (straight & angled), clear lacquered body and keys, high F# key, low C# lock, pivoting low Bb spatula, engraved bell, high quality leather pads with metal resonators, roomy wood-shell case.…
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  • Nobel Flutes

    By Erica / 2009-06-11 06:11:38
    Nobel Flute #11230 high quality student flute, silver plated throughout, closed holes (plateaux), offset G key, C footjoint. This flute is a best seller within the Nobel catalogue. It outperforms many brands of flutes in this category.…
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  • Music Store

    By Simon Cole / 2011-06-13 08:30:12
    Band Instruments reeds and more.. The  same reeds and gear I use for my own professional engagements, along with prices that match the big stores we offer valuable advice. Mouthpieces, stands, tuners, reeds cases, metronomes and instruments.  
    Read More +
  • Woodwind Repairs

    By Simon Cole / 2011-06-13 09:30:22
    Professional Performing Musicians, Band teachers and Discerning Amateurs send their instruments to us.  Expert repairs and advice that only a first class performer and repairman can give. Since 1991 serving the North from Prince George. Repair and service for…
    Read More +
  • Music Lessons

    By Simon Cole / 2011-06-13 08:30:12
    voice, piano, flute, saxophone oboe or clarinet  all ages and styles. Yes our students all do well on their exams get recommended to provincials or play in the symphony and in community events but more importantly they will have music…
    Read More +
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Popular Features

  • Crack Repair
  • Bent Flute
  • Tone hole Repair
  • Cork pads on clarinet
  • New dent removal tools
Having lived and played in a Northern city for close to 20 years I have become a minor expert on cracked woodwinds. Not only is it cold and dry but we often have to play in drafty or cold halls a sure recipe for woodwind cracks. Read More
Uh........ Dad I think I sat on my Flute!Read More
We can replace broken tone holes Read More
ImageThis is a Selmer series 10S clarinet and a Selmer recital  they are beautiful clarinets in great condition.
 The A in particular does not play as one would expect however, response tuning and tone are poor.
 These are usually very good clarinets. A quick check reveals that the pads do not cover, they are skin pads which have warped over time.

I am going to repad the top joint with cork pads on all keys which are usually in the closed position.
 The other 2 keys will have traditional skin pads.
Read More
Image
We have added MDR
 (magnetic dent removal tools) to our repertoire.
Read More

Quick Fixes for Tenon corks.

The cork covering the tenons of woodwinds is usually natural sheet cork. This not something you are likely to find at your local hardware store. It is very fine and close grained. Over time it will dry and compress. This can make the joints wobble and likely make them leak as well.

If you leave you instrument assembled all the time this will happen faster. If it is dry where you live and you do not use cork grease this will also make them need replacing sooner. regardless it should be part of regular maintenance
 
I do my tenon and mouthpiece corks once a year. I always notice an improvement in the clarinet after doing this. Your instrument is just like any machine it needs regular service in order to perform well.Care of instrument tenons or joints is an overlooked item, it applies equally to flute head and foot joints and saxophones necks, all which must be perfectly, round where they connect. We use a series of pin gages to check this, but I digress.

If you use cork grease the corks will generally last longer as it slows their drying out. Though some greases seem to actually make the cork disintegrate. The grease also fills in the any small imperfections in the cork and compensates somewhat for minor out of roundness of the joint.
{mostip} No crazy glue it will make a horrible mess{/mostip}
If your cork is just loose there are a few things you can try;

first put a lot of cork grease on the joint and then heat it. The safest way to do this is heat a flat bit of metal that is about the same width as the cork or smaller and put it on the cork to melt the grease into the cork and expand it. Obviously if you heat it too much you will burn the cork.
 
I don’t recommend holding the instrument it over a flame either, as it is too easy to damage it.

So to reiterate heat the metal strip and use it to melt the grease. You don’t have to heat it very much

. If the cork is really loose or falling off, your next best bet is waxed dental floss. Wrap it around the tenon like you are wrapping a fishing fly. The wax will compress and you will have fix that will last for a while.

What about replacing it yourself?

That’s a possibility, though usually when I explain how to do this people realize it’s a lot easier and cheaper to take it to the repair shop. As I said earlier the first you thing you need is the cork. The cork is quite pricey at least $4-5 us for a 6x4 piece

There are lots of how to articles on the web here are 2 of them.
Links: How to By Steve Fowler for clarinet http://www.fowlermusic.com/clarcork.html http://www.fowlermusic.com/sax_neck.html and for saxophone

Alban Classical


Private performance April 14

PGSO April 21

Wind World Alban classical school show April 23 and 30