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| History |  |
Instruments | |
The woodwind section sits in the middle of the orchestra and is generally made up of pairs of instruments. Apart from the Flute, all the other instruments use a reed (either single or double) to make the air column of the instrument vibrate and make a sound. The Flute just uses a 'blow hole'.
Each woodwind instrument has its own family of instruments and the standard pairs are often joined by a different member of their own family. These families enable the particular sound of an instrument to extend to both the high and low ranges of the orchestra.
| Main Instrument | High Instrument | Low Instrument |
| Flute | Piccolo | Alto Flute, Bass Flute |
| Oboe | Cor Anglais, Bass Oboe | |
| Clarinet (Bb or A) | Eb Clarinet | Bass Clarinet |
| Bassoon | Contra Bassoon |
Occasionally a saxophone is added to the section and these come in four sizes, soprano, alto, tenor and baritone. The section sits in two rows: on the front flutes and oboes and on the back clarinets and bassoons.
Woodwind instruments often have to play solo's within the music but they also effectively combine with other instruments to create a variety of different orchestral 'colours'.
Did You Know?
The Flute is the only modern woodwind instrument that is not commonly made with wood. The design of most woodwind instruments is based on one invented by Theobold Boehm for the Flute in the 1830s. His system for the Flute was adapted for the other woodwind instruments.