• The oboe is a member of the woodwind family.
• The oboe is a long, slender wooden tube, widening out into a bell shape at the end. Attached to the wood are metal keys which are operated by the musician’s fingers to open and close holes along the length of the tube. 
• A standard oboe is 2 feet long.
• The oboe uses a double reed, two pieces of wood that look like a flattened straw. The two pieces of wood are tied together with string around a small metal tube. This forms the oboe’s mouthpiece, which is inserted into the top end of the instrument.
  
• An oboist plays the instrument by blowing air into the double reed, which causes the two reeds to vibrate against each other, creating a sound. 
• Professional oboists make their own reeds by hand. The wood comes from a type of cane, a relative of the bamboo family. The cane wood is whittled, shaped, and scraped down to a fine, thin layer on one end. 
• There are 2-4 oboes in an orchestra.
• The oboe was probably invented in the French court in the 17th century, where it was called an hautbois, which means “high wood” or “loud wood.”
• The oboe’s ancestor, the shawm, dates back to about 2,800 BC in the Middle East. Because the shawm produced loud tones, during the Medieval period it was generally restricted to outdoor performances.
• The oboe plays a special role in symphony orchestras. When the concertmaster (first violinist) comes on stage before the concert, a signal is given for the oboe to play the note “A.” Each musician in the orchestra will adjust his or her instrument to the oboe. This “A” note is vibrating at about 440 times per second. Orchestras all over the world tune to the oboe’s “A” note.
• The oboe has a uniquely varied voice. It can produce a wistful, sweet sound, and it can also create powerfully high and distinct tones. In Sergei Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf, the oboe plays the part of the duck.
• A close relative of the oboe is the English horn. The English horn is six inches longer than the oboe and has an egg-shaped bell at the end of the tube. It plays lower notes than the oboe. The English horn produces deep, rich tones and is often used to portray moods of sadness and melancholy. 

All members of the woodwind family:  

• have a similar shape—long tubes into which air (breath) is blown. 
• were originally all made of wood. Today, the modern flute is made of metal and other woodwinds have some metal parts.
• make different sounds by covering and uncovering the holes along the tube with the fingers, or by pressing the keys.

Color in the oboe and add a fun background, or draw your own oboe. You are the artist and can use whatever colors or designs you like to make it special!

Click the photo to print and draw

 

Imagine you are in a countryside of green fields and rolling hills. You’re on one hill, and your friend is far away on another one, on the other side of the field. It’s too far to speak with words, so instead you have a conversation with music. Hear the English horn and the oboe call out to each other in their musical conversation. What do you think they’re saying?

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  In this beautiful music, the English horn is like a singer singing a soulful song.