Lately, we’ve heard a rumor around town that our professional repairs are done by Institute students. Let’s set the record straight: students don’t do our professional repairs. They are here to learn, not to work on customer instruments. A CIOMIT student spends their time in training, developing their skills on practice instruments—not on instruments that belong to schools, customers, or businesses. Our professional repair facility, Music Makers, is completely separate from the Institute. Read our blog about our profession repair here. So, what does a day at CIOMIT actually look like? Let’s take a closer look at how our in-person students spend their time and how they build the skills needed for a musical instrument repair career.
A Day in the Life of a Student
Learning the Craft
The day starts with instruction from experienced technicians. Whether students are training in brass, woodwinds, or strings, they begin by reviewing repair techniques, tools, and best practices. Some mornings include demonstrations, where instructors show step-by-step processes for common repairs. Other days, students jump right into hands-on practice, applying what they’ve learned to real instruments.
But these aren’t customer instruments. Instead, students work on what we call the “boneyard”—a collection of heavily damaged instruments set aside for training. These are horns with crushed bells, clarinets with missing keys, and flutes that wouldn’t play a single note.
This is a major way we serve school music programs: by giving repair credit ($$$!) for instruments that are beyond repair or lack the quality to justify the cost of a repair. We give the school program a credit that they can use towards paying for other repairs and we take the instrument off their hands. Those instruments end up in a 1,000 square foot warehouse space (that is at this time FILLED) as ‘institute inventory’–the “boneyard” instruments we use to train our students. This has provided us the opportunity to support school programs with budget assistance and provide curated and consistent education for our institute students.
These “boneyard” instruments are here for one reason: so students can practice without risk. By working on these instruments, students gain confidence and skill. They learn how to diagnose problems, disassemble instruments, and make repairs. If mistakes happen—and they do—it’s all part of the learning process.
Hands-On Training
We have a very carefully developed curriculum that we use to train our students. Students are encouraged to get deep into hands-on practice. This is where they apply their training, whether it’s re-padding a saxophone, soldering a brass brace, or straightening a bent flute key.
Instructors review each step, providing feedback and ensuring students are using the correct techniques. Mistakes become learning opportunities, and students refine their skills through repetition and guidance.
Before a repair is considered complete, it goes through an evaluation process. Instructors inspect each instrument, checking the quality of work and providing detailed feedback. If something needs adjustment, students make corrections under supervision.
This is a crucial part of the learning process. Students don’t just repair instruments—they learn how to repair them correctly. The goal is not just to fix an instrument but to understand why each step matters.
Why We Keep the Institute and Repair Business Separate
Part of the reason we separated CIOMIT and Music Makers was to clarify the difference between our repair training institute and our professional repair facility. While they operate under the same leadership, they serve different purposes.
- CIOMIT (the Institute) exists to train students in musical instrument repair. It is a place for education, hands-on learning, and skill-building.
- Music Makers (the Repair Facility) is where professional, certified staff technicians repair instruments for schools, musicians, and customers.
Keeping these two areas separate ensures quality and accountability. Customers can trust that their instruments are being handled by experienced professionals, while students get the hands-on experience they need without the pressure of working on real customer repairs.
This separation benefits everyone. It guarantees that customer repairs are always handled by experts, and it allows students to learn in an environment where they can grow, make mistakes, and improve without consequences.
The Truth About CIOMIT Students
If you’ve ever heard the rumor that students at CIOMIT are responsible for professional customer repairs, now you know the truth: students don’t do our professional repairs. They spend their time learning, practicing, and preparing for a future in musical instrument repair. Every day, they work hard to master their craft, but their training is separate from the professional work happening in our professional repair facility.
If you’re interested in learning more about our programs or want to explore a musical instrument repair career, visit our Institute page. We’re proud of the work our students do, and we’re always excited to welcome new learners into the world of instrument repair!