Instrument care
The following is an overview of how to take care and maintain your child's instrument. We are lucky at KHPS to have a good supply of instruments available for hire, which have been generally well maintained over the years. Gentle handling and regular cleaning are the keys to looking after instruments, which helps to keep them sounding right and also helps extend their playing lives (which in turn helps keep our hire fees down).
What to do:
- Please ask your child's tutor to spend half of a lesson going over how to handle their instrument correctly, how to put it together and take it apart, how to clean it, what to do each week and what to do a few times a year. Even if this is not your first year in band I think it would benefit most kids to have an annual refresher
- Check out our care sheets for our instruments. You can also find clips of instrument care on youtube
- Care kits available for anyone who wants one - they are $30/35 (depending on the instrument). Email khpsband.inst@gmail.com if you'd like one (you can also find them at most music stores, or ebay)
- If something is wrong with your instrument, please let us know. We understand that there will be occasional damage despite everyone's best intentions, and we'd rather get the instruments cared for and repaired than have your child struggle through and potentially create more damage. If things are sticking, not opening or closing, or just sounding off let me know and we'll see if we can sort it out.
- Finally, please don't take your instrument to be repaired or serviced by anyone other than our regular service technician (Douglas). Its important that we keep up to date records of repairs to our instruments - it helps us work out when they need to be retired, for instance if the problem you have encountered has occurred before
That's it for now. Hope it helps, and please get in touch with any questions.
Clarinet Care
Euphonium Care
Flute Care
Sax Care
Trombone Care
Trumpet Care
Band Instruments for hire
Band instruments are available for hire from the school, however numbers are limited and depend on availability of each instrument. Whilst the school covers payment for repairs of general wear and tear, please note that any damage caused to the instrument through carelessness or misuse is the responsibility of the hirer. Instruments MUST be returned back to the school at the end of each year.
- Parents must sign an instrument hire contract at the time of hire. It is the responsibility of the student to return the hire instrument to the committee upon leaving the band.
- We have a range of instruments available for hire - flutes, clarinets, oboes, saxophones (alto, baritone & tenor), euphonium, tubas, bass clarinets, trombones, French horns and piccolos.
- Cost of hire: $290 for first instrument, and $150 for a second or subsequent instrument. Second instruments are only available when requested by a KHPS conductor. Partial (up to 6 month) hires are occasionally offered for $195
- Percussionists are expected to purchase a mallet kit for $120.
- Percussionists, keyboard players and bass players are also expected to pay an annual fee of $80. This covers the use and maintenance of school instruments.
- Hire instruments are generally given out Term 1, week 2 or 3, and must be returned by Term 4, week 9
- All of our hired instruments are given a full service over the summer - the cost of this is included in the hire
Junior Band Instrument Care evening
How do I collect my instrument?
At the beginning of the year the committee holds an instrument care evening. You will be able to collect your instrument at this time.
- For those new to the band programme, or hiring for the first time, collection will be on the night of. Please arrive on time, as we will have tutors on hand to talk to the kids about instrument care once they have collected their instruments
- for continuing hires, collection time will be confirmed.
- to facilitate the hiring process, it would be appreciated if you could read and complete the hire contract, and email it back to khpsband.inst@gmail.com
- if you are unable to make the above times, please contact khpsband.inst@gmail.com and we will try to find an alternative for you
- it is recommended that you purchase a care kit for your instrument to help with its cleaning and maintenance. We will have some available on the night of the 4th for $30 (cash only), or you can purchase them from Turramurra Music (or other music stores) for around $35
Violins to hire or purchase
Violin students are required to obtain their own instrument when joining the Strings Program. We recommend The Sydney Strings Centre at Chatswood. Our strings conductor Philippa Collins has violins of all sizes to purchase.
Who to contact - khpsband.inst@gmail.com
