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Andrea
Zermani
A passionate musician and musicologist, his love of
music also extends to repairing and customising wind
instruments and he set up the “Sax Mania” workshop to do so.
After gaining his clarinet diploma from G. Nicolini
Conservatory and a degree in musicology from the University of
Pavia, his love of the saxophone took him throughout both
Europe and the United States, where he met some of the world's
greatest collectors and was able to gather a variety of
material and documentation, most of it unavailable in Italy.
The end result of the project is “Sax, lo strumento del mito”
(Mondadori, March 2003) a book that celebrates the mythical
status of this remarkable instrument. His current musical
collaborations range widely, from big bands to symphony
orchestras.
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From Ice....
Ice-Tech is an extremely
low-temperature, controlled-atmosphere, cryogenic process that
can improve the mechanical characteristics of musical
instruments made from a variety of metal alloys and extend
their vibrational properties. Under computer control, the
fascinating Ice-Tech cryogenic treatment slowly cools your
instrument, after careful examination, down to extremely low
temperatures (-329°F approx.), before gradually restoring it
to ambient conditions.
Ice-Tech uses
microprocessor based controls to regulate the cooling process
by introducing liquid nitrogen mist into the chamber. Your
instrument never comes into direct contact with the liquid
nitrogen.
...to passion.
You'll notice an immediate improvement to your instrument in
terms of the clarity and fluidity of the sounds it produces,
as well as its timbre, harmonics, range, intonation and metal
strength. During their construction, all musical instruments
are treated in ways which
modify their vibrational characteristics to a greater or
lesser degree.
Ice-Tech offers a
sure-fire way to eliminate “grey areas” in even the finest
instruments, as well as relieving the “molecular stresses”
which can hamper the propagation of vibrations along the tube
and improving your instrument's voice.
As a result, your instrument offers less resistance to sound
and is more willing to
vibrate.
“It sounds better!”
This is the most common reaction of musicians who have tried
out the Ice-Tech
treatment. A lot of amateur and professional musicians, in
Europe and the United States, have had their instrument
treated and they have realised the full potential of their
musical instruments thanks to cryogenic extension. The most
commonly acknowledged benefits are sound production which is
more immediate and fluid, richer harmonics (more energy to
produce sound rather than overcome “obstacles”), easier to
produce mellow and soft staccato sounds notes, or notes at the
very end of the low, high or very high registers.
Because instruments which are more sensitive to variations
have a tone that is easier to control.
Risk free
Before treatment, each instrument is examined and its general
conditions assessed. However, unless any cork seals or
bearings are already partially detached, there is absolutely
no risk. The treatment, which lasts from 36 to 48 hours,
doesn't affect varnishing or silver and gold plating, nor is
there any risk of mechanical damage (keys, tone holes, valves,
cylinders, etc.) or dimensional changes.
Of course, cryogenics can't turn a poor instrument into a top
performer or solve problems of intonation due to insufficient
maintenance. Neither can it correct badly placed holes or
incorrect mechanical adjustment. But what it certainly can do
is to “remove all the cobwebs”.
Ice-Tech:
Very low temperatures for very high performance
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