Woodwind section
The woodwind sections of orchestras and concert bands consist of woodwind instruments, and is one of the main sections of both ensembles.
They contain instruments given Hornbostel-Sachs classifications of 421 (edge-blown aerophones, commonly known as flutes) and 422 (reed aerophones), but excludes 423 (brass instruments).
Orchestra
The woodwind section of the late 19th-century symphony orchestra (for instance, in compositions by Wagner, Brahms, Bruckner, Tchaikovsky, and Richard Strauss) typically includes: flutes (sometimes with one doubling piccolo), oboes (sometimes with one doubling cor anglais), clarinets (sometimes with one doubling bass clarinet), bassoons (sometimes with one doubling contrabassoon).[1] The section might also on occasion be supplemented with saxophones.[1] In the early part of the 20th century the woodwinds (as well as other sections) were often considerably expanded. For example, Mahler in his Symphony No. 8 (1910) employs 2 piccolos, 4 flutes, 4 oboes, cor anglais, 2 E-flat clarinets, 3 B-flat clarinets, bass clarinet, 4 bassoons, and contrabassoon.[1] After World War I, the number of instruments was often reduced, approaching the size of a chamber orchestra, with individual instrument combinations differing for each composition. The change can be illustrated by comparing two works by Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring (1911–1913) with a large woodwinds section similar to the above and his Histoire du soldat (1918), which only utilizes one clarinet and one bassoon.[1]
The woodwind section of the orchestra, at its most basic, commonly consists of:
- Two oboes
- Two flutes
- One or more bassoons
- Two soprano clarinets
For early classical music, the clarinets may be omitted. The principal oboist is traditionally the section leader.
The woodwind section of the orchestra may also include:
- Piccolo (often played by the second or third flute)
- Alto flute (often played by a flute player)
- Bass flute (often played by a flute player)
- Cor anglais (sometimes played by an oboist but commonly by a specialist cor anglais player)
- Basset horn (often played by a clarinet player)
- Bass clarinet (often played by a clarinet player)
- Contrabassoon (often played by a bassoon player)
- Soprano saxophone
- Alto saxophone
- Tenor saxophone
- Baritone saxophone
Concert band
The woodwind section of the concert band is generally much larger than the woodwind section of the orchestra. Also, the concert band generally has a larger variety of woodwind instruments than the orchestra.
The woodwind section of the concert band commonly contains:
- Piccolo(s)
- Flutes
- Oboes
- B♭ clarinets
- Bass clarinet(s)
- Bassoons
- Alto saxophones
- Tenor saxophone(s)
- Baritone saxophone(s)
Other woodwinds that are used in the concert band, but not as frequently as the ones listed above:
- Cor anglais (usually played by an oboist)
- Contrabassoon (usually played by a bassoonist)
- E♭ clarinet (usually played by a B♭ clarinetist)
- Alto clarinet (usually played by a B♭ clarinetist)
- Contra-alto clarinet or contrabass clarinet (usually played by a bass clarinetist)
- Soprano saxophone (usually played by the principle alto saxophonist)
Woodwinds that are rarely used in the concert band:
See also
References
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