From Young Composers
The bassoon (left) and contrabassoon (right).
The bassoon is the bass of the woodwind section and a disputed member of the oboe family. It is a double reed instrument with a body which is folded over on itself such that the bell points upwards. Due to its conical bore, it overblows at the octave like the flute and oboe. It is often considered the most difficult woodwind to learn and play, but the most difficult aspects of playing any double reed instrument usually concern only the reed.
Score Placement
The principle bassoonist in an ensemble will aways stay on the 1st bassoon part. Lower chair players are responsible for specializing in auxiliary instruments, such as contrabassoon and tenoroon. The bassoon is placed last in the woodwind choir, below the clarinets and above the brass.
Timbre
The bassoon has a very unique nasal tone quality to it and is hence characterized as the clown of the orchestra. It is very dark and reedy, and has often been compared to the qualities of the male singing voices. When it is played softly it has a delicate tone, yet when it is played very loudly it becomes brassy much in the way that the French horn does. Like other members of the double reed family, the lowest notes of the bassoon tend to sound rather harsh compared to its other registers, while the uppermost notes are particularly sweet with a singing quality to them, though sometimes stuffy when proper care is not taken.
Range
The bassoon is a non-transposing instrument encompassing four octaves of practical playing range from Bb1 to about C5. Though the bassoon plays very readily up to G4, only the more experienced players can reach the higher notes. Like any instrument, the bassoon can be pushed higher, even to G5, but playing in this range becomes very impractical due to awkward fingering and the fact the large reed does not vibrate as well at such a high frequency through such a long tube. The lower end of the instrument is also plagued with awkward fingering. Notes below E2 are played using a combination of thumb keys (nine for the right hand thumb, four for the left), making moving passages in the low range difficult to finger at best.
Illustration of playing ranges for the bassoon.
Left to right: Contrabassoon, bassoon, oboe and English horn reeds.
The Reed
Though one wouldn't deduce it from a concert performance, the reed is the bane of a bassoonist's life. Most double reed players make their own reeds to suit their needs. Reed making is a very delicate procedure, as every detail can have a vast effect of the tone, range, and playing resistance, all of which can constitute trouble for the lesser-experienced bassoonist as well as the professional. Many bassoonist will play one concert using more than one reed, alternating between them as necessary. The is because when a reed is properly balanced to play well in the higher register, its lower register suffers, and vice-versa. Relatively few reeds come along that are capable of playing throughout the low and high range equally as well.
Contrabassoon
Also referred to as the double bassoon, or simply, contra, the contrabassoon is pitched one octave below the standard bassoon and is fitted with a larger reed and metal bell. Due to the sheer length of tubing needed to produce such low frequencies, the body of the contrabassoon is folded over on itself several more times than the bassoon's. Most fingerings between the bassoon and contra are shared, but several about the register break and upper range can be different. The contrabassoon, like the standard bassoon, is also a relatively agile instrument. While it can not play parts as active as an oboe's, most people neglect it's nimble characteristics.
