Monday, March 28, 2022
As summer approaches and we start to look at getting instruments serviced for the upcoming year, one important aspect to look at is how much green do you see on your instruments? This green is called verdigris. It's when oxygen, spit, and other debris combine on the surface of the metal and react over time.
You will see it on woodwind keys and bodies in the "in between" spaces or right on top of the touch piece. You'll also see it on the inside of trumpet valve casings, trombone hand slides, and in the bottom crest of the saxophone bow. If you have ever cleaned a brass instrument, cleaning this stuff out causes the cleaning solution to turn grey, brown, black, and sometimes orange!
Why do we care? Well, it depends on the instrument. Rotors have very little tolerances, so if there's too much build up the rotor won't work smoothly. Low brass pistons, on the other hand, sometimes have a little wiggle room depending on the oil/player combination. There's a lot of variability and it's hard to predict sometimes.
The problem with this is that letting the verdigris build up over time can and will impede the function of your instrument. If you're a woodwind player, that verdigris is causing permanent damage to the plating as well as adding mass to the keys, possibly getting in the way, weakening the solder points, and being generally unpleasant to touch. If you're a brass player, it's slowing down your pistons, rotors, and tuning slides as well as possibly affecting your lacquer.
The yearly cleaning and summer maintenance service of your instruments is so important to reset them back to base level. Yearly servicing--cleaning, drying out, oiling, emptying and repairing cases for the next year--are all essential to the consistent function of those instruments. Your Palen repair shop can get everything back in great playing shape, guaranteed.
 |
Ryan is a Columbia/Boonville native and graduated in 2020 from Western Iowa Tech Community College with an Associate's Degree of Applied Science in Band Instrument Repair. While in school, he worked at Midbell Music in Sioux City, IA and Thompson Music in Omaha, NE. Ryan has been an active musician in the area since 2009 at the University of Missouri School of Music, Columbia Handbell Ensemble, and various other groups and venues. Ryan enjoys hanging out with his wife, cooking, and being in nature. |
New PMC Location in St. Louis
On Wednesday, March 23, 2022, Palen Music Center purchased Mozingo Music, located in St. Louis, MO from brothers Jeff and David Mozingo. Brett Palen, owner and CEO of Palen Music Center says that this has been in the works for a while. "Jeff and I have visited about this possibility for years and it is a blessing to see it happen. The Palen and Mozingo families have been in the music business for decades and we see each other at industry events regularly. They have always been a company that we respect. We are thrilled that Jeff and David are actually joining our staff as part of this transition. Their experience and reputation will strengthen the wonderful things that are already happening for us in St. Louis."
In addition to having an active online presence, Palen Music Center operates eight locations across the Midwest - five stores in Missouri (Springfield, Columbia, Joplin, Liberty, St. Louis), two stores in Oklahoma (Broken Arrow and Oklahoma City), and one store in Arkansas (Springdale). They will be closing their smaller St. Louis location and moving into the space previously occupied by Mozingo Music.
"It makes sense to utilize their location." says Eric Matzat, President of Palen Music Center. "We need room to grow and they have a beautiful store. Our plans are to expand the square footage and increase the level of inventory. We look forward to welcoming previous Palen Music and Mozingo Music customers to come check out everything there is to offer. This is truly an example of the sum being greater than the individual parts."
Mozingo Music was founded back in 1977 by Don Mozingo. Jeff joined the business in 1983 and was joined by brother David in 1987. Together with their team, Mozingo Music has been serving the greater St. Louis area for decades as a full-line dealer with combo sales, school service, repair, and a vibrant lesson program. "What a great business to be in giving people the opportunity to learn and enjoy music throughout a lifetime." says Mozingo Music President Jeff Mozingo. "We have enjoyed the music business and now it's time to join Palen Music Center. Although it is sad to see the Mozingo name go away, we will continue to service this community musically as a unified team."
The new address of the Palen Music Center store is 4689 Highway K, O'Fallon, MO 63368. For more information, please visit palenmusic.com.
| (417) 882-7000 | (573) 256-5555 | (816) 792-8301 |
| (417) 781-3100 | (405) 896-8111 | (479) 464-8877 |
| (918) 286-1555 | (636) 229-1904 | (417) 882-7000 |