![]() I have always felt that one is only as good as the people with whom he/she works. I’m very proud to have such an excellent group of luthiers, manufacturers, craftsmen, and administrators working with me. I’ve also given many workshops at such places as The Juilliard School and the Prague Conservatory of the Performing Arts. I’ve written articles on instrument repair for the ISB Journal and Bass World, and I was a regular columnist for Bass Player Magazine. I’m an ardent advocate of the International Society of Bassists and am on the ISB Board of Directors. The Realist line has expanded to include cello, viola, violin, guitar, banjo, mandolin, and world music instruments, plus we created the Realist Violin, an acoustic violin with the Realist pickup integrated within the top plate. Since those early years I’ve teamed up with famed designer (and good friend) Ned Steinberger to create The Realist™ line of acoustic string instrument transducers. I started designing products for the string bass in the early 1980s, starting with the Gage Case ™ and then the Czech Ease™. Today the shop repairs, restores, rents, and sells world-class instruments for orchestras and players around the globe. In the beginning we did repairs, restoration, and limited sales of string basses for local clientele. In 1978 I opened David Gage String Instrument Repair, Inc. During this time I started to work for (and apprentice with) Chuck Traeger while also studying with acoustic physicist/luthier Carleen Hutchins and luthier Lou DiLeone. In 1976 I moved to New York to study with Dave Holland while continuing to play electric and string bass professionally. At this time I also had the honor of studying with Max Roach for two years in workshop ensembles and advanced composition courses. As a college student I studied string bass at both the Berklee College of Music with John Repucci and at the University of Massachusetts with Reggie Workman and David Neubert. At age 18 I started string bass studies with Bill Blossom, now of the New York Philharmonic. I studied bass with guitarist Joe Gaydos while teaming with other local musicians to play at small venues in the Northeast throughout my high school and college years. We have the skills and finesse at Brass Monkey Music to remove hard to reach dents and reassemble the horn to make it look as though nothing ever happened in the first place.I started playing trumpet at age ten, electric bass at age 12. Occasionally, parts of the horn need to be disassembled and unsoldered just to reach those dents. The tight radius and small diameter of tubing make some dents very hard to reach. We even offer different material to use in replacing stop arm bumpers to accomodate different needs: cork, rubber, silicone, and synthetic foam.ĭents on a French horn are challenging in their own way. The valves are also checked for alignment by lining up witness marks on the back of the bearing plate and cutting rubber stop arm bumpers to fit precisely. At Brass Monkey Music, we replace all rotor strings that show signs of wear and level the finger levers, so they feel comfortable and look straight on the instrument. They can also become loose which can cause a catch in the finger lever. These strings over time can become dry rotted and frayed. Typically on French horns, rotary valves are actuated by string. An ultrasonic cleaning is the best solution and will leave your valves clean and smooth, and most importantly, spinning freely in the instrument. This of course is natural but will affect how freely the rotor spins at a certain point. Eventually, oils within the rotor valve dissipate and the acidity in the moist air that is blown through instrument causes corrosion to form on the surface of the valve and casing. Sluggish or sticky rotary valves are a common problem for French horns. Once our technicians locate the broken joint, we will carefully solder it back together, leaving not a trace of burnt lacquer or blobs of solder. Hearing a buzzing sound while playing is a good indication that somewhere on the horn, a solder joint has broken. This can be challenging to find given the meandering maze of slide tubing. ![]() One of the most common reasons a French horn is brought into the shop is for broken solder joints. Brass Instrument Repair French Horn Repair
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