How often should I get my flute professionally cleaned?
I’ve been playing flute for about two years at this point, and I have yet to take my flute into the shop to get professionally cleaned. I was told by my private lesson teacher that I would need to have my flute cleaned every so often. I was wondering how often do I actually need to have my flute cleaned? How does it affect the health of the flute if I postpone cleaning it? Will the quality of my playing decrease if I don’t? Any advice is appreciated, thanks.
(I should probably clarify; when I say “professionally cleaned” I don’t mean routine swabbing. I am referring to taking the flute into my local music store where they clean it and do routine maintenance.)