The oboe for kids: how it works and what to hear

The oboe is a woodwind instrument with a double reed. It is a black wooden tube about two feet long, and the player holds it straight down in front. Its sound is clear, reedy, and a little nasal, and it carries a long way. Before every concert, the oboe plays one note, and the whole orchestra tunes to it.

Quick facts

• Family: woodwinds
• Size: about 26 inches long
• Made of: black wood
• Sound is made by: two reeds tied together
• In an orchestra: two or three, and one of them often plays the English horn

How it makes sound

The oboe’s reed is two thin blades of cane tied face to face, with a tiny gap between them. The player puts the reed between the lips and blows. The two blades flutter against each other, and that sets the air in the tube shaking.

The gap is small, so the player uses little air and a lot of pressure. Oboists often finish a long phrase with air left over and have to breathe out before breathing in.

The fingers press keys along the tube to change the note.

The reed

The reed is the heart of the oboe. Many oboists carve their own from cane with a small knife. A reed lasts only a short while, so a player is always making or adjusting the next one.

Why the orchestra tunes to the oboe

The oboe’s note is steady and easy to hear above other instruments. So the first oboe plays the note A, and everyone else matches it. The tuning note is the first sound of every concert.

Its job in the orchestra

The oboes sit in the front row of the woodwinds, beside the flutes. Composers give the oboe slow, singing solos, often sad or tender ones. It also plays quick, playful lines and country dance tunes.

The name comes from French words that mean “high wood.”

The English horn

The English horn is a larger oboe with a rounded bulb at the bottom. It plays lower and sounds darker and sadder. It is not English, and it is not a horn. Read the English horn for kids.

Pieces to hear

The duck in Peter and the Wolf, by Prokofiev. A waddling, reedy tune. See the guide.

The swan tune from Swan Lake, by Tchaikovsky. The oboe sings over a harp. See the guide.

Symphony No. 4, second movement, by Tchaikovsky. The movement opens with a long oboe solo.

The rooster at the end of Danse macabre, by Saint-Saëns. One short, bright call. See the guide.

“Morning Mood,” by Grieg. The oboe answers the flute.

Symphony No. 9, second movement, by Dvořák. The English horn plays the slow, homesick tune.

Starting to play

The oboe is a hard instrument to begin on. The reed takes control and patience, and the first sounds can be rough. Many players start on another instrument, such as the recorder, the clarinet, or the flute, and move to the oboe at about ten to twelve. Read oboe vs clarinet.

Few students choose the oboe, so bands and orchestras are glad to have one.

A private teacher helps a great deal in the first year, because of the reeds.

Things to do together

Straw reed. Flatten one end of a straw. Snip the corners to make a point. Put the point between your lips and blow hard until it buzzes. The two flaps work the way an oboe reed does.

Be the duck. Play the duck’s music from Peter and the Wolf and waddle.

Hear the tuning. Watch the first minute of a concert video. Listen for the one oboe note and the wave of sound as the others join.

Oboe or clarinet? Play the duck and then the cat. The oboe is the thinner, more nasal one.

Print and play

Tick the woodwinds on the instrument families listening chart. For the rest of the family, read woodwind instruments for kids. For all four families, see instruments of the orchestra for kids.