On stage he plays woodwind instruments, but behind the scenes he repairs them
Dave Edgar spent decades in the business of fixing and repairing musical instruments, at one point running a shop of eight technicians. Now his life’s work fills every corner of a back room in his house, where he continues to fix flutes, clarinets and saxophones.
Edgar remembers one of his earliest saxophone repair jobs: a farmer brought in a 1920s instrument that he had been keeping in the barn to play for the cows.
“It was a disaster when it came in, and it smelled like the barn,” he laughs. “But we got it going.”
Edgar is also a well-known big band performer, but here we get a glimpse into the way he spends his days.
Thumbnail by Laura Stewart
The editor responsible for this article is Nick de Lima, ndelima@cjournal.ca