Question about recorder (flute)

[Nancy Edwards]

I am asking a couple of questions about the recorder on this site because I don’t know anyone to ask, and everyone here has a lot of knowledge on all things musical, I have received many helpful suggestions in the past in harp related questions.
I have a new maple wood alto recorder. It’s not a real expensive one, but it plays well and has good sound. Someone gave it to me as a gift, and they thought it would be nicer to give it to me put together. They said they had a realllllly hard time getting the head piece put on the barrel joint, made of cork, it was so tight. They used some petroleum jelly to try to put them together more easily. Now I can’t get them apart. So I have two questions:

1. How might I be able to get the two pieces apart without breaking or cracking the wood or injuring the recorder?

and

2. Is it even necessary to get them apart? I can take off the foot piece (it’s not too tight) and use a long cleaning rod to be able to reach all the way inside to the top of it with a cleaning cloth after playing it. Since I can clean all of the inside this way, would keeping the pieces together allow it to dry out enough?

Thank you for any suggestions!
Nancy

[wil-weten]

Hi Nancy, when something like this happens to clarinet players, they get the advice to put the (wooden!) instrument in the cellar for perhaps two hours and then carefully try to make rotating movements. If the parts still don’t move at all, wait another hour and try again. Often, this seems to do the trick. I don’t know about your second question.
Good luck.

[balfour-knight]

Hi, Nancy,

This is not my field of expertise, but I do not see any reason that you would need to take the recorder apart at that tight joint. I used to play the regular flute, and it came apart so that it could be fitted into its carrying case. Many times I would only take apart what I needed to in order to clean it out and dry it after playing, then reassemble it so it was ready to play the next time. Does your recorder need to fit in a case?

Good to see your post, too, Wil.

Harp Hugs,
Balfour

[wil-weten]

When playing a duet with another recorderist who has a recorder that sounds a bit lower than yours, you may need to pull out the headjoint a bit in order to be in tune with the other recorderist.

[charles-nix]

@wil-weten is right: regardless of cleaning, the headjoint must be movable to tune. Typical position for standard pitch is usually set at pulled out 2-3 mm, else if the room were cold, one would never be able to move sharp to match continuo instruments.

A wood recorder needs to be swabbed thoroughly, including the block–every time it is played. Leaving it wet might mean a cracked block over time; unless the instrument is at least semi-pro level, that repair would probably equal its value. It is challenging to properly access the block to swab it with the body attached.

If you are in the USA, suggest you contact David Green at Antique Sound Workshop. They have a website. And they have a huge amount of information on the website in the information bulletins section. They can also recommend the proper lubricant. I use a regular woodwind grease, which is much more solid than petroleum jelly.

[Nancy Edwards]

Thank you all for your responses! Wil, I took your advice and put the recorder in a cold place (a freezer, I don’t have a cellar) for about 2 hours. My husband had to use a strap tool that is used to wrap around jar lids to open jars to get a good grip, we let it sit for about 15 minutes and at first it wouldn’t move, but after a few minutes of trying it started to turn and he got it apart. Now he is going to try sanding the cork down to allow the pieces to go together so it can be put together and taken apart with proper ease. Just a few small scratches but no damage. And thank you Balfour and Charles for your help, also. I very much appreciate it.
Nancy

[wil-weten]

I wouldn’t have dared putting it in a freezer, but great to hear it came out ok.

As to cork: it tends to get compressed a bit after some use, so that’s why cork tenons come rather stiff fitting when new. Mostly they just need lots and lots of lubrification every time after use.
So, perhaps the cork tenon is so stiff that sanding off a bit is necessary, but most of the time this is not the case. It should remain a tight fit. When you remove the headjoint from the body, do it with a careful, rotating movement. When the headjoint comes off easily, you’ll probably already have some air leakage. I’m by no means an expert on this topic, but you could find a lot a valuable information on forums for the clarinet (like the recorder a wooden instrument with cork tenons).

[Saul Davis Zlatkovski]

You need to ask a recorder player. Wax of a type is used on the cork, not vaseline, that I can recall. It likely swelled up too much.

[Alison]

There are active recorder groups on facebook, probably more than one:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/recorderplayersenthusiasts

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