TromboneChat

Maybe it is coincidence, but I feel like I get sick more often when I'm playing the trombone regularly. Last time this happened, I was cleaning it about once every other week (dish soap in a bathtub, warm water - rod with cheesecloth for the inners, snake for the outers). The cleaning didn't seem to help that much.

I took some time off (a couple months) and then started playing again. BAM! Sore / scratchy throat within a week.

I haven't played in over a year now, and I'm a bit hesitant to pick up the horn again if it will just make me sick. Should I take it in for a chemical cleaning? Will something else help more?

If you've been regularly cleaning your slide as you describe, it's unlikely that "cooties" from the trombone are making you ill.

If you think it needs it for some other reason, a chemical cleaning might be useful - the mild acid bath should take care of any internal growth. And it won't hurt to dampen your cheesecloth (or cotton strips) in rubbing alcohol after the slide bath and clean both inners (carefully, so you don't damage the leadpipe) and outers. Follow with a dry cheesecloth swab, and store the slide "dead dry."

But there is probably some other reason than trombone-caused illness for your sore / scratchy throat.

You should use the rod for the outers and snake for the inners. Too easy to damage the leadpipe with that rod. And of course you still need the snake to get into the crook.

In any case, get a chem clean if you haven't had one in a long while - it's a good idea for various reasons.

As an amateur detective, I don't doubt correlation, but... if you're going through reasonably long periods of playing and not playing, what else (and where) coincides with that particular lifestyle shift?

Are the inner slides clean down to bare metal? Have you cleaned the bell, tuning slide, and neck pipe, assuming that it is a straight horn? I have a trumpet player behind me that hasn’t cleaned his horn since Lincoln’s Gettysburg address. It stinks to high heaven. Just to be thorough, what do you use to lubricate the slide and tuning slide? Have you cleaned the mouthpiece? Chemical cleaning will catch everything but the mouthpiece and case. Does the case have mold in it? Where do you store the trombone between usage?

Relevant:

https://www.npr.org/2010/09/08/12972567 ... 20lung.%22

I usually just bring it out for Community Band in the summer. When it isn't being actively used, it is stored in my music room downstairs, which is pretty dry and cool year round.

No, I haven't cleaned the bell section. It has an F attachment and I don't want to screw with it for fear that I'll mess it up. Yes, I clean the mouthpiece daily after use (rinse with water while brushing out with a mouthpiece brush).

As for the case, I don't think it has mold in it. I'll give it a whiff when I get home and see if something smells funky.

No offense is intended. Professional cleaning is probably your best bet.

I think there is a problem. Is the music room dusty?

El Dorado, Kansas used to keep the show chairs and stands in a damp concrete bunker in the city park. The rehearsals were in a school store room. It was fun to play in in spite of the conditions. Someone with an allergy or asthma could have been impacted.

Definitely get a chemical clean if you haven't gotten one recently. Also use dish soap when cleaning your mouthpiece: don't just rinse it.

You're not going to mess up your bell section by giving it a good bath: warm soapy water followed by rinsing is a very good idea. Just re-lube your rotor after the bell section dries.

Something that would be easy to test: if you leave the horn out of its case, do you get sick? Could be that something funky lives in the case. If the case is old or in bad repair... a new case might be a good idea anyhow.

It would be nice to hear what Bruce and the brass medic have to say about cleaning f attachments. My google search did not net much. I never worried much about putting soap, water, and a snake down them. I can’t say that my lubrication technique met with much approval.

In my opinion, to properly clean the valve you need to remove the rotor from the casing.

Of course you should get your horn cleaned and keep it clean, and use dishwashing liquid when you clean your mouthpiece, don't just rinse with water.

But I'm going to go at this from another angle.
How is your playing in general? Sound? Range?
Does playing high notes make you cough?

Your sore throat may be from your playing technique. Some players use throat muscles to close off to play high notes, and it actually sort of works. But it's not a long term good way to play and it does leave you with a sore throat.

Not all molds smell. The worst, black mold, does have that musty smell. But there are several others that give off toxins but have very little smell. It can actually get worse if you have a semi-successful cleaning - the mold senses the attack and gives off more toxins to fight off the attack. I just went through chasing mold in our household. Culprit? The coffee maker. No smell. Replaced it rather than try to get it totally cleaned out.

Just saw this and want to give another idea to check for.
Some people are allergic to some metals, mostly nickel.
https://www.engelbert-schmid-horns.com/ ... -free-horn

You mentioned cleaning the horn; are you also cleaning the mouthpiece regularly?

Also, I have known people who had issues with certain lubricants. One in particular couldn't stand Yamaha Slide Lubricant; she switched to UltraPure and is much happier now.

Hmmmm. Original post was three months ago.
Just in case the OP is still on board.............

Maybe the problem is not the horn.
Acid reflux (a tiny amount of stomach acid reaching the throat) is a frequent cause of an irritated, scratchy throat.
Sometimes, certain physical activities can cause the reflux.
You might set the horn aside and duplicate the physical activity of playing it to see if that causes the scratchy throat.