Wipe Out Your Flute
Yes, you need to clean out your flute after you play. Your cleaning cloth needs to be a piece of silk, microfibre or other non-lint producing material, not flannel, and needs to be long enough to cover the length of the cleaning rod. If you hear the cleaning rod “clanking” against the inside of the flute, the cloth is not big enough or long enough. You want to cover the rod to avoid scratching the inside of the tube. A cleaning cloth and cleaning rod are included when you buy a flute but are available on line or in your local music store.
To clean your flute, insert the corner of the cleaning cloth into the slot on the cleaning rod. Pull it through just enough so it does not slip back out. Pull the cloth up and over the slot end of the rod and let it hang down. With your hand holding the cloth against the rod, push the rod and cloth into all of the individual flute parts and turn slightly. Wiping it out. Remember to handle your flute so you are not pushing on or twisting the keys.
No, you may not store the cloth inside the case with the flute. The best solution is to have an outside or soft cover for your flute case. You can then store the cloth between the hard case and the soft cover, or put it in your backpack or music bag. Anytime you try to force the cloth into the case you are overly depressing i.e. bending the keys and rods and the moisture in the cleaning cloth is not good for the pads. Even if you choose a “stuff it” or any of the other types of cleaning flags , do not store them inside the flute or in the case with the flute. It is not good for the flute.
It is also good to wipe off the outside of your flute to remove fingerprints. Choose a microfibre or silver cloth for this purpose. Do not wipe or rub the underside of the keys which damages the pads.
Sticky Pads
A sticky pad will make a sort of clicking sound when you lift your finger. The way to clean up a sticky pad has always been to slip a cigarette paper under the key, then gently close the key with slight pressure and slide the paper out. This removes the built up moisture and dust which causes the key to make that sticking sound. You can also use any plain piece of paper, which will sometimes come out with a black circle showing the result of this process. I have known flutists to use a dollar bill. This option is pretty dirty and since we want to avoid adding more “dirt”, probably not the best one.
The first thing on the market to take the place of cigarette papers, was Powder Papers. A small booklet of cigarette type papers that had a powdery substance on them and were specifically for clearing up sticky pads.
A new product is available through Carol Nussbaum Music called Pad Dryers. They are a very absorbent, washable replacement for cigarette papers that leave no residue.