The Woodwind Family

Flute was originally made from wood, clay or bamboo. Modern flutes are made of silver, gold or platinum. A standard flute is a little over 2 feet long and is often featured playing the melody. You play the flute by holding it sideways with both hands and blowing across a hole in the mouthpiece, much like blowing across the top of a bottle. Your fingers open and close the keys, which changes the pitch. 

The oboe is a 2 foot long black cylinder with metal keys covering its holes, and its mouthpiece uses a double reed, which vibrates when you blow through it. This vibration of the reed makes the air inside the oboe move, and thus creates sound. To play it, hold the oboe upright, blow through the double reed and use both hands to press down on the keys to open and close the holes and change the pitch.  

The clarinet could easily be mistaken for an oboe, except for the mouthpiece, which uses a single reed. Clarinets come in a number of different sizes, and the standard B-flat clarinet is just over 2 feet long.  You play the clarinet as you do an oboe, by holding it upright, blowing through the reed, and using your hands to change the pitches by opening and closing the keys with your fingers. 

The bassoon is a long pipe around 9 feet, doubled in half, made of wood. The bend in the pipe makes it possible for musicians to play it comfortably. Like the oboe, the bassoon uses a double reed. There are 2 to 4 bassoons in an orchestra and usually play lower harmonies. You play the bassoon by holding it upright and blowing through the double reed. The air travels down the tube and then makes a u-turn and goes up and out the top. You use both hands to press on the keys to open and close the holes and change the pitch. 

Despite its name, it isn't English and it isn't a horn. The English horn is actually closely related to the oboe, also uses a double reed, and is played in the same manner. It's longer than an oboe and its tube is a bit wider. At the bottom end of the English horn it opens out into a rounded bell shape, which gives it a warmer, fuller sound. Because it's larger, the English horn also has a lower pitch range than an oboe. An oboe player will also play English horn if it is needed. 

The saxophone is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument similar to a clarinet, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to produce a sound wave inside the instrument's body. The pitch is controlled by opening and closing holes in the body to change the effective length of the tube. There are several types of saxophones, each varying in size and pitch. The most common types include: Soprano, Alto, Tenor, and Baritone Saxophone.