Meet the Bassoon | Omaha Symphony Virtual Instruments

Learn about the bassoon, including its parts and use, from Omaha Symphony’s Nick Nelson. Nelson, the assistant principal bassoonist, walks through the main parts of the instrument: the boot joint, long joint, bell, bocal, and the seat strap that helps support the instrument with a long, wooden body that’s folded in half so it’s easier to hold. If it were to be unfolded it would be about 9 feet long. It makes sound using a double reed, just like the oboe, and has more than 20 keys. It’s usually made of wood, like maple, and has silver-colored keys and a metal tube called a “bocal” that connects the reed to the rest of the instrument.

The bassoon has a deep, warm, and sometimes silly sound. In the orchestra, the bassoon plays the lower notes in the wood-wind section and helps support the harmony, but it can also play beautiful solos. The bassoon is sometimes called the “clown of the orchestra” because of its funny, expressive sounds.

This resource provides learning tools such as a tour of the bassoon in 3D, vocabulary and examples of the instrument.