The Bassoon

The Bassoon is a bass double-reed woodwind instrument. It has about 2.4 m of conical wood tubing in a narrow U shape divided into four sections. The slightly flared bell joint is set into the bass, which is set in turn-like the tenor, or wing. The bassoon normally has eight finger holes that are usually controlled by keys, and ten or more additional key-controlled holes. The reed is placed in a curved metal tube, or crook, which is set into the tenor joint. The bassoon has a range of about three octaves upward from the third B-flat below middle C. The modern French bassoon, played in Belgium, France, Spain, and Italy, was developed in the mid-19th century by the French firm of Buffet-Crampon. The German bassoon, played elsewhere and perfected by the 19th-century German manufacturer Wilhelm Heckel, has a more consistent and less flexible tone than the French bassoon.

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