The most important factor in brass and woodwind performance is breathing. If you aren’t breathing well, it is very difficult to achieve a great sound on a wind instrument. The best instruments in the world won’t sound great unless you are breathing well! Here is a short exercise that will enhance your awareness of your breathing:
It’s not too late, but time is running out. Contest Season is almost here! January through April is a really busy time of year for school music students. Many of the annual contests and festivals happen during this time of the year. These include: Solo & Ensemble Contest Jazz Band Festival Junior/Middle School Organizational Festivals High School Organizational Festivals Your performance level and the success of your organization depend on a properly playing instrument. If your instrument has not been looked over by a technician in the last 6 months you may be overdue. Send your instrument in for proper maintenance to help avoid small problems from turning into something larger at an inappropriate time. It could help you get to the next level during the upcoming contest season. If you’d like to send your instrument in for us to check, we have a step-by-step guide on how to do that right here. As always, please give us a call if you have any questions. 1-800-382-1099
We posted this a few years ago, but this has come up again a few times here recently. So, we thought we’d pass this information along again! CA glue is an ingenious product for certain applications. It is commonly called Super Glue or Krazy Glue, among other labels. For orchestral or any musical instrument, it is dangerous and strictly taboo. A recent violin repair came in with bridge problems. The bridge was “loose” and had been superglued to the top. The result was a poor bond that failed and left a hard mess on the bridge and the violin finish. The bridge had to be replaced. Before this could be done, the CA glue on the finish needed to be removed. This is a tediously complicated and expensive task that is nearly impossible to accomplish without damage to the finish. The bridge is meant to be held in place with string pressure and must not be glued to the top. CA glue, used anywhere on instruments will cause damage that is nearly always permanent, and is unnecessary. Please never, ever use CA glue on your instrument. We also have band instruments come in quite often that have been super
Your bridge is an important component on your stringed instrument. It is critically important to the sound, and playability. It is a beautiful thing when it is right and an obstacle when it is not. A warped bridge is not correct. Even a slight warp will cause intonation problems. The front of the bridge gives the impression of a lean toward the tailpiece. It is shaped this way to give it the correct thickness, weight and to add to the beauty of the instrument. The back of the bridge should be perpendicular to the top of the instrument.
At Paige’s Music, we have partnered with many schools throughout the state to become the supplier of school band and orchestra instruments. For many families, the easiest option is to rent. Renting with Paige’s Music is a great opportunity to participate in music-making. We make rental easy and convenient and provide you with peace of mind. All of our band and orchestra rentals include free repair and replacement, free deliveries and pick-up, exchange, return, and early purchase discount options. We have several convenient options for renting an instrument on our Debut Rental plan. The most convenient option for renting an instrument is our online Option. You will select your school and your instrument and our system will autofill everything selected by your director for that instrument. From there, we can deliver the instrument directly to your school or you can pick-up the instrument in our store. Watch the video below for a demonstration:
While searching for the perfect new trumpet, many customers encounter the dilemma of, “Well this horn has a standard leadpipe, but this horn has a reverse leadpipe. What’s that difference?” Thank you for asking! A leadpipe on any trumpet is the main receiver for the instrument in which the mouthpiece fits into, and connects to the main tuning slide. The means in which the leadpipe connects to the main tuning slide is what constitutes the term “standard” (non-reverse) or “reverse”. For standard leadpipes, the main tuning slide fits inside of the leadpipe as pictured below. Players who are mostly playing at loud volumes usually prefer the standard option as there is less variance in the quality of sound at those levels compared to the reverse leadpipe. Reverse leadpipes are simply the opposite, in which the leadpipe fits inside of the main tuning slide. A reverse leadpipe will likely be noticeably longer than the standard option. This factor increases the distance in which there will be any small gap going from leadpipe to tuning slide, resulting in what most players describe as less air resistance and more consistent intonation. Ultimately, what is best for you will require being able to compare
We recently updated the care videos for several of the beginning instruments available on our Debut Rental Program. Below is the general care and maintenance video, with instruction given by Sam Motter of our Retail Sales staff.
We recently updated the care videos for several of the beginning instruments available on our Debut Rental Program. The original videos were done just before HD became popular, so it was time for a redo. Below is the general care and maintenance video for flute, with instruction given by Erin Nichols of the Indy Flute Shop. Indy Flute Shop is a flute-specialty store owned by Paige’s Music. If you’d like to see the rest of the flute videos, you can view them on our Flute Care & Maintenance page.
Has it been a while since your instrument was in for a check-up? If summer is a down time for you and your playing time, then you should send your instrument in for a check-up. We recommend two visits each year to help keep your instrument in proper playing condition and the summer is the perfect time. In fact, schools across the state will be sending in all kinds of school-owned instruments this summer to be cleaned, repaired, and refurbished so that they are ready to go for the next school year. The best way to get your horn serviced during the summer is to bring it to the store. Our District Managers are visiting some schools during the summer, but not all schools and not every week. It’s very sporadic. The safe thing to do is call us first to see if arrangements can be made to drop off a loaner and pick up your instrument. You can call us at 1-800-337-0471. Have a great rest of your summer and don’t forget to practice!
Daily care and maintenance of your instrument is very important to how well your instrument performs. Watch this quick video below for a few, quick tips on caring for your trombone.
We’re excited to announce that we’re now carrying D’addario’s line of Reserve mouthpieces for Alto Saxophone! The MJR-D145, MJR-D150, and MJR-D155 all feature an innovative oval chamber, producing an excellent response and full, dark tone character. While D’addario beta tested the prototype models by shipping them to over 100 artists, teachers, and students, I was fortunate enough to get to spend some time on each one of them personally, and was very impressed by the results.
Daily care and maintenance of your instrument is very important to how well your instrument performs. Watch this quick video below for a few, quick tips on caring for your clarinet.
Today’s blog refers back to a previous blog about cold weather tips for string instruments from December of 2014. Walking through the shop one day last week I noticed all these instruments in clamps due to loose seams and/or cracks. Mostly caused by the bad cold weather spell we had recently. So as a reminder here is a repeat of that blog and some pictures of cause and effect. Winter is here with its cold temps, snow, and low humidity. This scares the bejabbers out of any self-respecting stringed instrument. Can’t you just see or hear wood shrinking, pegs loosening, cracks splitting a top rib in two … These are sights and sounds that one might think would bring a smile to a repairman’s face. Winter time does create special problems for the violin family instruments, but good common sense care will reduce the number of unnecessary repairs.
Tenon rings on woodwind instruments are not there just for decoration. They help support the thinness of the wood in the tenon socket itself. During our dry winter weather it is important to make sure they are on tight and not loose and falling off. If they are loose it can lead to cracks in the wood or even breaking the socket while assembling/disassembling your instrument. If you find that the tenon rings on your instrument are loose, please make sure and send your instrument in to have them refit. This can help prevent a more costly repair down the road. If you’d like to read some more cold weather tips, you can read the article below: https://island.news.paigesmusic.com/be-prepared-for-cold-weather-and-contest-season/
Daily care and maintenance of your instrument is very important to how well your instrument performs. Watch this quick video below for a few, quick tips on caring for your flute.
We’re back with ANOTHER one-day-only sale! We loved the last one so much we thought we’d do it again with another manufacturer. If you’ve had your eye on owning an American-made professional brass instrument, this is your weekend! This time, Conn-Selmer is stopping by on Saturday, December 16th, with a large selection of professional instruments from their line of brands. These include American-made pro horns by Bach, CONN, King, and Holton, also featuring Selmer professional saxophones. HUGE SELECTION Paige’s Music will have a wider selection of Conn-Selmer instruments available with big discounts. Choose from several intermediate and advanced woodwind and brass instruments. All with extra savings! BEAT THE TAX: SAVE AT LEAST 7% All instruments purchased during the pro day will save at least 7% (in stock only). DOUBLE REBATES Earn Double Rebates! Purchase any brass ‘Step-Up’ level instrument between now and December 31, 2017 and receive a $50 mail-in rebate. On Saturday, December 16, 2017 this rebate will double to $100! Purchase any qualified brass ‘Step-Up’ Professional level band instrument between now and December 31, 2017 and receive a $100 mail-in rebate. On Saturday, December 16, 2017 this rebate will Double to $200! This sale is ONLY on Saturday,
That your valves need oil is not in question. If it moves, it should be lubricated. Today we’re talking about piston valves (like on a trumpet) and the different types of valve oils. Let’s get started. There are hundreds of brands of valve oil available. Some are synthetic others are petroleum based and each has its own advantages. For many years petroleum based oils were the standard. They smelled bad and stained your clothing, but worked fine. Some were more refined than others and some had added smells – everything from chocolate to cinnamon! Some even had additives to make them smoother and slicker. However, all petroleum based oils have a tendency to dry out and leave the additives behind to foul your valves. For the majority of our school music instrument repairs we have chosen to use a synthetic oil. It does not smell, does not stain your clothing, is long lasting and works fine. Unlike petroleum products, it comes in thin (for new valves) regular (for student instruments) and heavy for instruments that have worn valves). We think for most players and students that synthetic oil is the best choice. We use Hetman and Accent oils in the
We originally posted this article back in November of 2015. It remains to be good advice to revisit as cold weather approaches. Image credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenpete/5522933139 In case you haven’t noticed it’s here again. COLD WEATHER! Just a reminder that leaving your instrument out in the cold weather can lead to serious repair problems. Especially with woodwind instruments like wooden clarinets, oboes, bassoons and more. If the temperature gets too low it can actually freeze the moisture in the wood and cause it to crack. When a cold instrument is taken inside it should not be put together and played right away. A rapid rise in the temperature can cause the wood to crack also. It needs to acclimate to the inside temperature. The body on the instrument should be held in your hands and blow some warm air through the bore for a few minutes before putting it together to play. Like we mentioned this time last year, string instruments are subject to the same conditions. Cold freezing temperatures can cause the wood to crack and also cause the seams where they are glued together to come apart. Just like the woodwind instruments when taken inside after being out in the
The “Super Sale” at Paige’s Music is one of our biggest sales of the year. If you are thinking of “stepping” up to an intermediate or advanced level instrument this is the best time to do it. We would love to help you find the best instrument for your advancing student or answer any questions about this special promotion. Here’s how it works – Come to the store and draw a coupon that will allow you to “SUPER SIZE” your savings. The coupons range from 5%-50% OFF* our already low prices! OR – If you would rather not use the coupon that you selected, you can use our 12 months same-as-cash* option. There’s no interest as long as your balance is paid in full within 12 months. There are minimum payments due each month and our retail staff can help estimate what those might be.
Daily care and maintenance of your instrument is very important to how well your instrument performs. Watch this quick video below for a few, quick tips on caring for your saxophone. You can find more care and maintenance videos for saxophone by clicking here.
