How on EARTH can you play a top F without it splitting?! It rarely works without a slur from another note (usually E) it actually works better on my plastic Aulos than my ebony Moeck!

Also, couple other queries
1) On the beak, is there a way to prevent it from turning white?
2) The joints on my Moeck are stiff and the Aulos joint grease isn't working long enough! What can you suggest?

I think you must still be getting used to it... my moeck is generally reliable in the upper register so just keep at it. Have a play around with different breath pressures, thumb position etc.
You need cork grease for your moeck! Joints are still fairly stiff though.

Chris, it's a difficult note. I did grade 8 on a plastic aulos rather than a wood recorder (though I didn't have my Moecks then) for precisely that reason. I managed to split the top Fs in my Performer's Certificate exam too - which could well explain why i failed it - and I was actually working for my LGSM before I found out how to do it, which was probably something to do with the fact that i hadn't had any tuition up to grade 8. Thumbnail length is critical and you want the end of your thumb going in to the hole rather than the side of it. This means changing the angle of your thumb on the approach to the top F. But as I said, it IS difficult. Being somewhat rusty now, I am not at all sure that I would want to go and play a solo involving a top F.


Not that i know of.

That could well be a humidity issue but I am not sure there is a lot you can do apart from keep using the grease and never ever be tempted to force the joint.


Liz

IL, your Moeck is a Rottenburg, isn't it?
Admittedly mine is a maple one, but I spent about as many years as you are old thinking I was a very bad player because top F kept splitting, and I wore the thumbhole down to a crater trying to pinch the wretched note. When I bought the Denner I blew top Fs on every instrument I tried to be sure to get a top F which worked...and then I handed the Rottenburg over to get the thumbhole bushed. When it came back, top F worked perfectly, no bother, easy as pie, and I almost thought I'd not needed to buy the Denner (except that I loved how it sounded.)
Since then, I have discovered that the workshop also slipped a little collar of plastic into the bore of the head of the Rottenburg, and that this modification is what has made top F behave itself. Hidden deep in the Nicholas Lander recorder website somewhere is a comment that this works, if you get the plastic in the right place. You may need to send your Rottenburg away to get this done, if it doesn't come right for you once you've got used to it. EMS did the job for me.

Yeah, an ebony Rottenburgh, second hand mind you. I'll be sending it to Dolmetsch for a bell key sometime...so y'know

Try also experimenting with different tonguing syllables to see what works. Actually first find a more experienced recorder player and ask him/her to try the note for you to see if it is you or the recorder.

Use proper cork grease, or use a beeswax based lip balm. If the problem is really bad very gently sanding the cork with fine sandpaper can't do more harm than needing the cork replaced (about £5 a joint last time I had it done) or you can wind your own thread lapping practically free.

If I had a recorder which was turning white I would probably try Renaissance wax on the outside avoiding the labium and making sure the instrument was perfectly dry before I applied it. (see for instance http://www.woodfinishsupply.com/RenWax.html) but I do take a rather hands on approach to my instrument care!