Ventiel — Brass, woodwind & repairs 271

What is on the shelf in Bellville right now

Trumpet & flugel

Student Bb Trumpet, Lacquered

Bb with an 11.65 mm bore, which is the middle of the road and exactly why it suits a beginner — enough back-pressure to build a sound on, not so much that a Grade 8 runs out of air in the second line. This is the horn we hand most of them on their first day, because it takes a knock in a school bag and still plays in tune afterwards. Every one is set up, oiled and blown through the full range on the bench before it leaves the shop, and the first valve service six months later is on us.

R6 900.00Add to cart

Trumpet & flugel

Flugelhorn, Rose Brass Bell

A 152 mm rose brass bell, and that is where the darker, rounder sound comes from — the one players are usually after when they step across from the trumpet for a ballad. We set the third valve trigger light enough to pull mid-phrase without fighting it, which is the first thing anybody complains about on a flugel out of a box. Comes with a gig bag, a flugel mouthpiece and a bottle of oil. There is one on the shelf and one on order.

R14 500.00Add to cart

Saxophone

Alto Saxophone, Serviced

An Eb alto that came in as a trade-in and went right through the bench: new pads throughout, corks and felts replaced, springs re-tensioned and the whole action regulated so the low B flat speaks without being leaned on. It comes with the case, a mouthpiece and the service record from the day Thandeka signed the work off. One only — when it goes, the photograph comes down and we do not pretend there is another.

R18 900.00Add to cart

Clarinet & flute

Bb Clarinet, Grenadilla

Solid grenadilla rather than resin, with a 65 mm barrel, so it warms up properly and holds its pitch through a two-hour rehearsal instead of drifting sharp in the first twenty minutes. We oil the bore before it goes out and then again for nothing after the first six months, because a dry bore is what cracks them. Keep it out of a car in a Bellville January and it will outlast the player.

R9 400.00Add to cart

Mouthpieces & care

Mouthpiece, 5C

Silver-plated, medium cup, medium rim — the middle of the road that suits nearly every school player, easy up high without going thin on you halfway through a march. Bring the horn in and try three of them at the counter before you decide; we would far rather you walked out with the right one than the one on the poster. If you already know what you want, it goes on the courier the same afternoon.

R850.00Add to cart

Mouthpieces & care

Valve Oil, Slide Grease & Cloth Set

60 ml of valve oil, 15 g of slide grease and a 300 mm microfibre cloth — everything a horn actually needs between services, and enough of it to see out a school year. Oil the valves weekly, grease the slides once a term, and wipe it down every single time it goes back in the case. Half of what comes up our stairs would never have needed the bench if somebody had done those three things.

R320.00Add to cart

A horn leaves this bench playing, not just polished