Bassoon is an instrument that serves as the bass voice of the woodwind section of many orchestras and bands. The bassoon has a double reed attached to the end of a curved metal pipe called a crook. The other end of the crook is inserted in a wooden tube. The tube consists of four sections that would measure about 8 feet (2.4 meters) long if placed end to end.
A musician blows through the double reed and presses keys on the tube. The keys open and close tone holes to produce different notes and tones. The contra bassoon is twice as long as the bassoon and is pitched one octave lower.
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The early history of the bassoon is obscure, but the instrument dates back to the 1300’s. The bassoon as we know it today was developed in Paris during the 1600’s.
