I am the timpanist in a community orchestra and to date only have one concert under my belt. But I love it. I have been taking percussion lessons for drum set, timp and marimba for as couple of years. We have just started rehearsals for our second concert. My problem is I can't get the timps to tune to the notes I need.
I play on a beautiful set of 4 Ludwig timpani. However, they are owned by a school district and are not properly maintained. I can't get the timps to tune to the notes I need, especially the higher notes. I think the problem is the heads are too loose and are not cleared. Probley because the band director says he "lost" the key for the Ludwigs, and he doesn't know how to do it. I can buy my own key (heck with him), but I don't really know the proper procedure for tuning the heads to the correct pitch range. I don't want to remove the heads as I can't replace them. I just want to tighten the heads and set the range.
Can/will anyone give me advice or instruction on how to do this??
Thank you lots!
I play on a beautiful set of 4 Ludwig timpani. However, they are owned by a school district and are not properly maintained. I can't get the timps to tune to the notes I need, especially the higher notes. I think the problem is the heads are too loose and are not cleared. Probley because the band director says he "lost" the key for the Ludwigs, and he doesn't know how to do it. I can buy my own key (heck with him), but I don't really know the proper procedure for tuning the heads to the correct pitch range. I don't want to remove the heads as I can't replace them. I just want to tighten the heads and set the range.
Can/will anyone give me advice or instruction on how to do this??
Thank you lots!