The woodwind family is a broad selection of instruments in the wind instrument category:
Flute
The flute is different to the other members of the woodwind family as it does not use a reed, instead sound is produced by the flow of air across the opening, which makes the flute an aerophone instrument. Modern flutes are usually made of metals such as silver or nickle, whereas older flutes were often made of wood or grasses. Those that play the flute may be referred to as a flute play, flutist, or flautist.
Piccolo
The piccolo means “small” in Italian and that’s exactly what the piccolo is: a small flute. The piccolo is a half size flute that produces sound an octave higher than a standard flute. Most modern piccolos offer the same fingerings as the larger flute.
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed woodwind instrument. The sound of an oboe is produced when the player blows air into the reed using enough air pressure to cause it to vibrate. The modern oboe is usually made from wood but may also be made from other synthetic materials, they are just over 2ft long with metal keys.
Cor Anglais
The cor anglais is a double reed woodwind instrument which is part of the oboe family. The cor anglais is also known as the English horn and is typically one and half times the length of a standard oboe with a round bell shaped end. The fingering technique of the cor anglais is very similar to that of the oboe but the cor anglais produces a lower pitch.
Bassoon
The bassoon is a double reed woodwind instrument that produces a warm rich tone. The bassoon is folded upon itself and stands at over 4ft, however if it were straightened out it would stand at nearly 9ft! A person that plays the bassoon is known as a bassoonist, and unlike other instruments they use all ten fingers and thumbs to play. Due to the complicated fingering required to play the bassoon most bassoonists will graduate to the instrument having already learned to play another reed instrument. The contrabassoon is larger version of the bassoon and plays an octave lower. It is so large that it has to be doubled over twice to allow the player to hold it.
Clarinet
The clarinet is a single reed woodwind instrument, it has a straight body with a flared bell. Most modern day clarinets are made from wood but other materials are used such a plastic resin. Clarinet players are known as clarinettists. Clarinets come in a variety of sizes and produce a range of sounds and pitches, with soprano clarinets producing high pitches to the larger bass clarinet which produces a much lower pitch.
Saxophone
The saxophone is played with a single reed mouthpiece similar to the clarinet and are usually made of brass. The saxophone was invented to fill the vacant middle ground between the woodwind and brass instruments. There are nine different types of saxophone, with the soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone being the most commonly used. Those that play the saxophone are known as saxophonists. Find out more about the different types of saxophone here.