As a instrument maker specializing in wooden flutes, I often get questions about proper care for the various instruments I make. Interacting with various instrument communities, I also see that many people are apprehensive about the care of wooden instruments in general. Taking this into account, I have approached my instrument craft to make my instruments as maintenance free as possible for the user, combining durability, aesthetics, and food safety. Working with high quality and stable woods makes a difference, but taking care in the attention to finishing is also a big factor. Because I live in the northeastern USA, we experience extreme fluctuations through the seasons – from very cold and bone-dry winters to sweltering hot and humid summers. My own instruments have stood the test of time sitting out on the shelf with virtually no additional need for humidity control or protection. Like any fine woodwind however, basic care and attention is essential to ensure a lifetime of music making.
OCARINAS
The ocarinas at Bretti Musical Instruments are unique in that I have decided to implement multiple finishes in one to balance durability, protection, and food safety. All parts of the instrument that interact with the player’s windway directly (the cedar or redwood mouthpieces) as well as indirectly such as the inside of the ocarina chamber (which due to the nature of the physics of its oscillation and geometry causes recirculating air airflow that can actually reach back to the mouth – trust me, I have gotten a mouthful of sawdust countless times during voicing!) are sealed with high grade shellac dissolved in 200 proof food grade ethanol. The outside of the body of the ocarinas however are finished with numerous layers of a hand-applied oil-based varnish, which penetrates into the wood and not only brings out the richness of the colors, but adds and extra layer of protection for normal use. Although using these two finishes makes the finishing process much longer and more expensive, it allows me to get a full natural gloss that I want to achieve across the whole instrument while combining durability on the parts that are handled the most during playing and keeping a fully safe and completely non-toxic finish for the parts that go in he player’s mouth.
Because each ocarina is fully sealed on the inside and outside, no additional oiling is required, and it is not recommended to apply any oil at all. After each playing session, you should let the ocarina air dry, keeping the ocarina standing vertical or horizontal, especially before storing away in a protective case for an extended period of time. Mold can affect any woodwind, and can occur if the instrument is still damp and kept sealed away in an enclosed space, so it is always important to make sure an instrument is fully dry. While the shellac and varnish finishes both provides extra moisture protection, please refrain from getting the instrument excessively wet. Since the shellac finish on the mouthpiece is made from a mixture dissolved in alcohol, the coating is highly soluble in alcohol, and you should never wipe the ocarina down with any alcohol, and even refrain from playing immediately after drinking alcoholic beverages. The outside of the mouthpiece and body may be sterilized with a lightly dampened cloth or paper towel using a dilute mixture of water and dish detergent. While the shellac provides some level of protection it is a relatively soft coating and can be scratched or dented.
Care should be exercised to prevent damage or chipping to the blowing edge, which is carefully shaped for voicing and tone. Like any wooden flute, it is best to keep the ocarina out of excessively cold or hot environments for extended periods of time. The danger to wooden instruments is not necessarily temperature directly, but a combination of a rapid shift in temperature and humidity. The worst thing you can do is take a wooden ocarina outside in the cold winter air and play it – the cold dry air on the outside and warm damp air on the inside can cause large stresses on the wood, even sealed woods, which can cause cracking.
Each ocarina is also painstakingly voiced, and the windway is the heart and soul of the instrument. The windway is the single most important part of the entire ocarina. Being made from a very soft wood, it can be easily damaged, and is therefore recommended to never put anything through the mouthpiece unless major cleaning is required. If cleaning is required, do not use anything that can scratch the surface (metal wire from pipe cleaners) or things that can leave behind lint, bits of paper, etc. It is also recommended to not get the windway excessively wet. While both aromatic cedar and redwood are highly stable woods, they are still organic materials that can warp under improper care or extreme conditions.
To help keep the windway clean, it is recommended to observe these following steps, which is very similar advice that you would see for any fine woodwind (such as wooden recorders). First, in order to maintain optimal absorbency of the cedar or redwood windway, the windway should be kept clean and oil-free at all times. As a result, please refrain from playing after eating oily/greasy foods, and is recommended you rinse or brush your teeth prior to playing if consuming such foods. Second, do not place anything in the windway itself. If traveling with the ocarina, be sure to protect it from changes in the environment. When you are finished playing, you can give the mouthpiece a good puff or suck to help clear out some accumulated moisture, and always let it air dry before storing it away.
Finally, it is recommended to follow an acclimation and “breaking-in” period for your wooden ocarina, similar to that of a wooden recorder. This will not only help acclimate the wood to its new environment, but also help condition the windway for your playing habits, and familiarize you more closely with the response of the instrument. This requires you to play the ocarina a little bit a day, and slowly increase playing times over the course of several weeks. An example routine may include 10 minutes a day for the first week and let the ocarina fully dry for a day. On the second week, increase the playing time by 5-10 minutes, and repeat for a few weeks increasing the playing time every week (or playing with a consistent routine). If the windway becomes heavily saturated during a playing session, and high notes become difficult, give the ocarina a bit of a rest and let it dry completely before resuming. That being said, my ocarinas undergo very rigorous testing during the voicing process, and are put under more stress than typical playing sessions.
XUN
All of my wooden xun are finished on the outside and inside with numerous layers of hand-rubbed layers of an oil-based varnish, bringing out the beauty of the wood with a beautiful glossy sheen, and providing extra moisture and scratch protection from everyday use. Because each xun is finished on the outside and inside with several layers of varnish, no additional oiling is required, and it is not recommended to apply any oil at all. After each playing session, you should shake the instrument out and let the xun air dry before storing away for an extended period of time to prevent potential mold growth. The inside can be swabbed with a thin stick and piece of cloth through the mouthpiece to sterilized with a lightly damp swab of diluted dish detergent or isopropyl alcohol if needed. While the varnish provides extra moisture protection, please refrain from submerging in water or excessive moisture. Care should be exercised to prevent damage or chipping to the blowing edge, which is carefully shaped for voicing and tone.
Like any wooden flute, it is best to keep the xun out of excessively cold or hot environments for extended periods of time, and like my ocarinas, it is not recommended to play the xun outside on very cold winter days. The danger to wooden instruments is not necessarily temperature directly, but a combination of a rapid shift in temperature and humidity. The worst thing you can do is take a wooden flute outside in the cold winter air and play it – the cold dry air on the outside and warm damp air on the inside can cause large stresses on the wood, even sealed woods, which can cause cracking. High heat combined with sweat can dull the finish (i.e. keeping the instrument in your pants pocket while hiking on a hot day might cause issues with the varnish if you happen to sweat a lot – also something learned through personal experience!) However, these xun are very simple instruments, and are extremely solid and robust, crafted with very thick walls, making them exceptionally durable woodwinds.