Oboes are superior to clarinets in every way.

[FatalCabbage]

When I am global dictator clarinet will simply be phased out with a bonfire.

Why anyone would choose to listen to the nasal whine of a clarinet instead of the heady song of an oboe is completely beyond me. Remove the clarinet section from an orchestra and nobody would notice or care. Remove the oboe and the joy would follow. And nobody would be able to tune up.

Which leads me to my other bugbear... Clarinets never ever sound properly tuned, and they slip even flatter within minutes of tuning.

They sound nasty, their reeds are weird and slimy, and they are frumpy. Mozart can FTFO too. Clarinet concerto = hell on earth.

Who's with me? FWIW trombones are stupid but sound bold, and saxophones at least have the cachet of jazz cool. Clarinets should have gone out of fashion decades ago.

Anyone else thinking we should have an MN orchestra? Another cellist here.

YANBU.

Alright Alpacacino. Tell me what I need to listen to and I'll give the clarinet another chance.

According to my colleagues (work with a music college) the rate of applications from student oboe players has been in sharp decline for years. Shame.

I go to sleep listening to classic fm and the amount of clarinet repertoire broadcast is beyond all understanding. The Finzi bagatelles are on every bloody night.

My housemate at university played the harp. It was lovely waking up to her practising.

All saxophones should be melted down in the fires of hell.

I'll just go and lock myself in the bunker with the oboes and the beginner violinists.

(viola player)

Oi! Bassoons are not weird. They are beautiful and massively under rated.

YANBU. Clarinets make great novelty toilet roll holders though.

I do wish I'd been able to learn to play the oboe when I was younger, but we could only learn strings at school so violin it was. I do like the violin, but I spent my teenage years staring at the oboe players across the orchestra with undisguised jealousy- especially the girl who also had a cor anglais.

Love a bit of timpani too.

Okay so lets assume I am about to start to learn a new instrument...what would it be?

Fatal cabbage if euro millions doesn't work out for you I've got the set here..

Ice - recorder, honestly. It only takes a little gentleness to produce a natural, ethereal sound.

Trondheim - but what about the studio?

Ice - recorder, honestly. It only takes a little gentleness to produce a natural, ethereal sound.

Trondheim - but what about the studio?

Icebeing - how about a piccolo? I got one because it was small and cheap. I can almost play Arriettys Theme. If you have good lungs and ribs of steel, go for an oboe.

This thread has really made me

I agree with it all, bar the recorders being manky - they are far better than most give credit for, bit all the year 1s playing Three Blind Mice gives them a bad rap (another one with the full set here).

I am subtly trying to influence dd2's instrument choice at the moment. I've narrowed it down to a choice between harp or French Horn (oboe not available at her school due to not being able to find a teacher - would haves saved on instrument costs as she could have had my beautiful old-style one) but she is having none of it. She currently plays the cello (thanks to a school wide initiative) so it could be worse, but I will continue with my drip-feeding.

When I was at school, my school orchestra had more oboists than flautists or clarinettists . Now those were the days.

bassoonist speaking here, so i can be entirely unbiased about double reeds.

all oboists go loony through the stress of trying to make such a bloody awful instrument sound anything other than bloody awful.

i'd give a little leeway to a cor anglais.

also, as to recorders, best instrument ever, go and buy a cd of Piers Adams playing the David Bedford concerto and it will change your life.

Fuck off. Clarinets produce one of the most wonderful sounds on earth, although not when I try to play admittedly. OP,I'll forgive you if your only experience of the clarinet is my schoolgirl squarking.

I'm late for the party (always), but could i just check. Any room in the soundproof bunker for beginner trumpet players? DS, i'm looking at you.

Loving all the viola players on this thread. I have both violin and viola and have played both in ensembles depending on what was required, but viola is my main instrument and that's what I learned on. Gorgeous deep sound.

Hm. The order of marvellousness depends on whether one is playing or listening.

Listening.
Bassoon
Clarinet
Oboe
Flute
Sax

Whereas playing is more..
Bassoon
Clarinet
Flute
Sax
Oboe

The Bassoon is the finest, most underrated awesome thing that has ever happened EVER. And all my Bassoon pupils are basically the most brilliant people on earth.
So there.

I wish there were more Cor Anglais players in the world too- fabulous instrument.

Oh and it's fab learning the viola. You're always in demand in orchestras but as long as you can read treble clef, you can actually play violin as well, therefore v flexible. Violinists can't automatically play viola because they usually can't read the music, mwa ha ha!

I've forgotten how to do treble clef though and my fingers are too fat for the violin.

I am a dirty viola from violin convert....but I think I have now forgotten alto clef.

I can already play the recorder and I tried the flute but was crap at the breathing....

anyone know anything about northumbrian pipes?