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Shared Musical Instruments
By Angela Babin, M.S.
Recently, I received an inquiry about shared musical instruments from a California college. The music program offered a Renaissance music class in which rare antique instruments were shared. One student was subsequently found to be HIV-positive, and there was panic and confusion about the hazards of sharing instruments. This inquiry prompted research on the hazards of shared musical instruments and infectious disease.
Infectious Disease Risks
In a discussion with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), it became apparent that there really is no risk of transmission of HIV (the virus that causes AIDS), or Hepatitis B (HBV). The reasons for these are that these diseases are passed via a blood, sexual fluid, or mucous membrane contact. There has been no case of saliva transmission of HIV. There has been one case of transmission of HBV through oral contact, but in that case, a deep human bite was involved.
In the case of active Herpes, where skin-to-skin transmission is possible, the CDC Bureau of Herpes said that the possibility was extremely unlikely. It seems that there needs to be direct skin-to-skin contact for the virus to be transmitted.
In a dialogue with the CDC's Bureau of Tuberculosis, microbiologist Martin Faverro stated that while theoretically, this bacterial disease could be transmitted via inhalation of sputum that was previously coughed up into an instrument, this situation would be highly unlikely. The Bureau had in fact investigated similar situations, such as shared Communion cups, and also found no evidence of transmission of the tuberculosis bacteria. Specifically, if viable organisms are blown/coughed into a brass or wind instrument, they would either pass all the way through the instrument or stay on the inside surface. The most danger could be transmission of colds or influenza to the musicians sitting right in front of the bells, brass, or horn instruments.
Hygiene for Musical Instruments
While the possibility of transmission of the above bacteria and viruses is not a real consideration, it is apparent that there should be a protocol with regard to shared musical instruments. Sharing of instruments is routine in elementary and secondary schools, where students practice on borrowed instruments for part of the year. As I expected, every infectious disease expert revealed some basic considerations and recommendations for standard operating procedures for music class. These include:
- All musicians or students should have their own instrument if possible.
- All musicians or students should have their own mouthpiece if possible.
- Individual reeds should be kept by all students for reed instruments.
- After each semester use, when instruments are returned to the music program, these should be taken apart and cleaned. This can be done with a variety of products. Take care to not damage the finish or wood of delicate instruments. One school district uses a product made by Person-Hickrill Laboratories, (distributed by Grover/Trophy Music Company at Tel: (216) 391-1188), called Sterisol Germicide for Wind Instruments. It has been shown effective against many common colds, typhoid, some streptococci organisms, etc. Dr. Faverro reviewed the Material Safety Data Sheet on the product and said that a thorough cleaning with soap and water, alcohol, or a 1 to 10 dilution of chlorine bleach solution on sturdy instruments would be equivalently effective, and maybe more cost-effective.
- If instruments must be shared in class, such as the original Renaissance Music class, alcohol wipes, or soap and water solution should be available for use between different people.
- Teach musicians and students how to clean their own instruments and how to empty and scrub clogged valves when needed. Instruments that have not been cleaned properly can be unhygienic, smell or taste bad, and not sound as beautiful as they could!
Art Hazard News, Volume 15, No. 5, 1992
This article was originally printed for Art Hazard News, © copyright Center for Safety in the Arts 1992. It appears on CAR courtesy of the Health in the Arts Program, University of Illinois at Chicago, who have curated a collection of these articles from their archive which are still relevant to artists today.