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[[File:116 Museu de la Música.jpg|thumb|Woodwind instruments at the Museu de la Música de Barcelona.]]
{{short description|Family of musical wind instruments}}
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[[File:TenorSopranoSax.JPG|thumb|upright=.7|Tenor and soprano saxophones]]
'''Woodwind instruments'''  are a family of [[musical instrument]]s within the greater category of [[wind instrument]]s. 

Common examples include [[flute]], [[clarinet]], [[oboe]], [[bassoon]], and [[saxophone]]. There are two main types of woodwind instruments:  [[flutes]] and [[Reed aerophones|reed instruments]] (otherwise called reed pipes). The main distinction between these instruments and other wind instruments is the way in which they produce sound.<ref>"Woodwind" Encyclopedia Britannica Online.</ref> All woodwinds produce sound by splitting the air blown into them on a sharp edge, such as a [[reed (mouthpiece)|reed]] or a [[fipple]]. Despite the name, a woodwind may be made of any material, not just wood. Common examples of other materials include brass, silver, cane, and other metals such as gold and platinum. The saxophone, for example, though made of brass, is considered a woodwind because it requires a reed to produce sound. Occasionally, woodwinds are made of earthen materials, especially [[ocarinas]].
[[File:Saxophone reeds-alto, tenor.jpeg|thumb|upright=.7|[[Alto saxophone|Alto]] and [[Tenor saxophone|tenor]] saxophone [[Reed (instrument)|reeds]]]]

==Flutes==
{{Main|Flute}}

Flutes produce sound by directing a focused stream of air across the edge of a hole in a cylindrical tube.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Flute acoustics: an introduction |url=https://newt.phys.unsw.edu.au/jw/fluteacoustics.html |access-date=2024-02-01 |website=newt.phys.unsw.edu.au}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Instruments of the Orchestra Strings Woodwinds Brass Percussion conductor Devin Patrick Hughes |url=https://www.arapahoe-phil.org/instruments-of-the-orchestra |access-date=2024-02-01 |website=Arapahoe Philharmonic |language=en-US}}</ref> The flute family can be divided into two subfamilies: open flutes and closed flutes.<ref>Carroll, Paul "Baroque Woodwind instruments" p. 45. Aldershot, Hants, England: Ashgate, 1999</ref>

To produce a sound with an open flute, the player is required to blow a stream of air across a sharp edge that then splits the airstream. This split air stream then acts upon the air column contained within the flute's hollow, causing it to vibrate and produce sound.  Examples of open flutes are the [[transverse flute]], [[panpipes]], and [[shakuhachi]].<ref>Carroll, Paul "Baroque Woodwind instruments" p. 45. Aldershot, Hants, England: Ashgate, 1999.</ref> Ancient flutes of this variety, including [[bamboo flutes]], were often made from tubular sections of plants such as grasses, reeds, bamboo, and hollowed-out tree branches. Later, flutes were made of [[metal]]s such as [[tin]], [[copper]], or [[bronze]]. Modern concert flutes are usually made of high-grade [[metal alloy]]s, usually containing [[nickel]], [[silver]], [[copper]], or [[gold]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=San Francisco Symphony - Instrument of the Month: Flute |url=https://www.sfsymphony.org/EducationCommunity/Instrument-of-the-Months/flute |access-date=2024-02-01 |website=San Francisco Symphony |language=en-us}}</ref>

To produce a sound with a closed flute, the player is required to blow air into a duct.  This duct acts as a channel, bringing the air to a sharp edge.  As with the open flutes, the air is then split; this causes the column of air within the closed flute to vibrate and produce sound.  Examples of this type of flute include the [[recorder (instrument)|recorder]], [[ocarina]], and [[organ pipes]].<ref>Carroll, Paul "Baroque Woodwind instruments" p. 45. Aldershot, Hants, England: Ashgate, 1999</ref>

==Reed instruments==
Reed instruments produce sound by focusing air into a mouthpiece, which then causes a [[Reed (instrument)|reed]] (or reeds) to vibrate. Reed pipes are divided into single-reed instruments and double-reed instruments.<ref>"Woodwind" Encyclopædia Britannica Online.</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Woodwinds |url=https://www.uv.es/clil/ePortfolio/html/jorapra/orchestra/woodwinds.html |access-date=2024-02-01 |website=www.uv.es}}</ref>

[[Single-reed]] woodwinds produce sound by attaching a reed to the opening of a mouthpiece (using a [[Ligature (instrument)|ligature]]).  When air is forced between the reed and the mouthpiece, the reed causes the air column in the instrument to vibrate and produce its unique sound. Single reed instruments include the [[clarinet]] and [[saxophone]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Levine |first=Mike |date=2023-05-05 |title=The Woodwind Family, Explained |url=https://hub.yamaha.com/winds/wood/the-woodwind-family-explained/ |access-date=2024-02-01 |website=Yamaha Music - Blog |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[Double reed]] instruments use two precisely cut, small pieces of cane bound together at the base.  This form of sound production has been estimated to have originated in the middle to late [[Neolithic period]]; its discovery has been attributed to the observation of wind blowing through a split rush.   The finished, bound reed is inserted into the instrument and vibrates as air is forced between the two pieces (again, causing the air within the instrument to vibrate as well).<ref>Carroll, Paul "Baroque Woodwind instruments" pp.88. Aldershot, Hants, England: Ashgate, 1999.</ref>  This family of reed pipes is subdivided further into another two subfamilies: exposed double reed, and capped double reed instruments. 
 
Exposed double-reed instruments are played by having the double reed directly between the player's lips.  This family includes instruments such as the [[oboe]], [[cor anglais]] (also called English horn), and [[bassoon]], and many types of [[shawm]]s throughout the world.

Capped double-reed instruments, on the other hand, have the double reed covered by a cap; the player blows through a hole in this cap that then directs the air through the reeds. This family includes the [[crumhorn]].

[[File:Liam Crouse playing at Sunset.JPG|thumb|upright=.7|A piper playing the [[bagpipes]] in Newport, Rhode Island]]

[[Bagpipes]] are unique reed pipe instruments, since they use two or more double or single reeds.  However, bagpipes are functionally the same as a capped double reed instruments, since the reeds are never in direct contact with the player's lips.<ref>"Bagpipes" Encyclopædia Britannica Online.</ref>{{tertiary source inline|date=October 2021}}

[[Free reed aerophone]] instruments are likewise unique since sound is produced by 'free reeds' –  small metal tongues arranged in rows within a metal or wooden frame. The airflow necessary for the instrument's sound is generated either by a player's breath (e.g. [[harmonica]]), or by bellows (e.g. [[accordion]]).<ref>"Harmonica" Encyclopædia Britannica Online</ref><ref>"Accordion" Encyclopædia Britannica Online</ref>{{tertiary source inline|date=October 2021}}

== Modern orchestra and concert band woodwinds ==
{{Main|Woodwind section}}

The modern [[orchestra]]'s woodwind section typically includes [[flute]]s, [[oboe]]s, [[clarinet]]s, and [[bassoon]]s. Supplementary instruments include [[piccolo]], [[cor anglais]], [[bass clarinet]], [[E-flat clarinet]], and [[contrabassoon]]. [[Saxophone]]s are also used on occasion.

The [[concert band]]'s woodwind section is typically much larger and more diverse than the orchestra's. It typically includes [[piccolo]](s), [[flute]]s, [[oboe]]s, [[soprano clarinet|B{{music|flat}} clarinet]]s, [[bass clarinet]](s), [[bassoon]]s, [[alto saxophone]]s, [[tenor saxophone]](s), and [[baritone saxophone]](s). [[Alto flute|Alto]] and [[bass flute]]s, [[cor anglais]], [[e-flat clarinet|E{{music|flat}} clarinet]], 
[[alto clarinet]] or [[basset horn]](s), [[contra-alto clarinet|contra-alto]] or [[contrabass clarinet]](s), [[contrabassoon]], and [[soprano saxophone|soprano]] and [[bass saxophone]]s are also sometimes used.

== See also ==
* [[Brass instrument]]
* [[Wind instrument]]
==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Woodwind instruments}}
* [http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/jw/woodwind.html How do Woodwind Instruments work]
* [http://www.wfg.woodwind.org/fing.html Woodwind Fingering Chart]
* [http://www.classicalmusichomepage.com/reference/woodwind-reference Woodwind Reference &ndash; ClassicalMusicHomepage.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141116045658/http://www.classicalmusichomepage.com/reference/woodwind-reference |date=2014-11-16 }}

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[[Category:Woodwind instruments| ]]
[[Category:Musical instruments]]