Popular Articles
Finger-hole liners: does my bassoon need them?
Everything you ever wanted to know about bassoon finger hole liners
Am I too old to learn the bassoon?
Why not join the select group of older bassoon learners?
Five reasons to play the bassoon in retirement
You'll soon be dusting off your instrument.
Six Steps to Practicing the Bassoon and Achieving Results Fast
In this guide we outline a method of practice called ‘deliberate practice’, drawing on research conducted by Professor of Psychology K. Anders Ericsson.
Why the mini bassoon may make your child smarter
Playing an instrument from a young age is proven to improve brain power. Here's why the mini bassoon is the ideal instrument for your child's mind.
What is it about pre-war bassoons?
Exploring what makes pre-war bassoons special.
10 Easy Ways to Damage your Bassoon
10 Easy Ways to Damage your Bassoon - Our specialist bassoon technicians have collated the top 10 ways bassoons can be damaged accidentally, based on years of servicing, repairing and restoring bassoons in our workshop. Read on to find out how not to damage your bassoon!
The bassoon sanctuary
Just like the elephant, the bassoon is long-lived. It accumulates memories of pieces played, owners had, places been and, for some, just like the elephant, that may include a difficult period where it is no longer wanted or needed. Or, more happily, it may just need some loving care and attention from time to time during its well-lived life, to help it on its way. A Bassoon Sanctuary is open to all – old and young, neglected and cherished, hardly used, and those with the accumulated marks of life.
Maple bassoon wood - an optical illusion!
Maple bassoon wood sometimes exhibits an astounding optical illusion called chatoyance. In this video we show how this effect can dramatically change how the bassoon looks, depending on which angle you view it from.
Can a bassoon be vegan?
How often do we, as musicians, think about how our bassoons impact the lives of animals? What is my bell ring made of? What glue is under my corks? What material is on my pads? When you stop to think about it, ethical dilemmas jump out from under every key.
An eight ft tall contrabassoon!
An eight ft tall contrabassoon! When this almost eight ft tall (235 cm) contrabassoon was brought to us at Double Reed, it was known as the ‘unnamed contra’ - its maker was unknown, and there were no easily discernible markings that could be used to identify it. After some careful investigation in our workshop, however, we were finally able to reveal a hidden stamp: ‘J. Higham, England, Manchester, T.C. Camdens’.
Re-finishing a Püchner bassoon
The Püchner bassoon in the photo has been with its current owner for 50 years. During these last 50 years, as you would expect from a well-loved, well-played instrument, the varnish and colour had naturally worn, to an extent which could have caused harm to the wood if it were not restored. In order to preserve the bassoon, the owner asked us to re-finish it.
The old musician
We found this label in the case of a pre-war (1920s) Mollenhauer bassoon in our workshop - after translating it we discovered this beautiful poem about a man and his bassoon...
Heckel bassoon restoration - before & after!
I'm over 50 - can I learn the bassoon?
Over the years that Double Reed has been providing and restoring bassoons, some of the most inspired and dedicated musicians we have met have been in their 50s, 60s, 70s and older.
Hear a contra, two bassoons and a mini!
Bassoon quartet: Hear a contrabassoon, two bassoons and a mini bassoon!
Watch: Restoring a Heckel Bassoon
Watch our three part video series showcasing our recent restoration of a stunning Heckel bassoon.
Why did you choose the bassoon?
The answer to this question is always fascinating, so we took to Facebook to ask the bassoon community…
Overhauling a contrabassoon!
Over 16 feet of maple and metal contrabassoon tubing being overhauled in the Double Reed Ltd. bassoon workshop!
Five reasons why re-padding a bassoon is so complicated
Modern bassoons have one of the widest ranges in the orchestra, from B♭1 (below the bass staff) and go up to about G5 (above the treble staff). Plenty of instruments have mechanisms which allow the player to open and close all of its toneholes, but with the bassoon this is true in the extreme. In total, the average bassoon has 40 pieces of keywork, which if lined up end to end would stretch almost 5 metres! Here are five reasons why re-padding a bassoon is so complicated...
2021 – Our 10th Anniversary Year
2021 is our 10th year of trading as a limited company. We established the company formally in September 2011, immediately after Oliver Ludlow graduated from Cardiff University and decided to turn a hobby of trading in bassoons during his student years into a career. We will be holding some celebrations later in the year, but for now it is worth just reflecting on those years.
Repairing a rotten bassoon bore!
This repair is carried out on a bassoon with severe rot in the unlined boot joint bore. It is done only in extreme cases, but the results are astounding, restoring the bore back to its original dimensions. The new section will last as long as the instrument itself, and the boot joint is newly protected against future rot.
Bassoons: repair and re-use for a sustainable world
Each year, manufacturing has an enormous impact on our planet – it is one of the world’s biggest contributors to environmental damage. By far the most sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to throwing products away, is to repair and re-use them, or refurbish them and sell them on to be enjoyed by somebody else. The more we do this, the more we break the manufacturing cycle.
Re-discovering the French bassoon
The fate of the French and German systems of bassoon has, it seems, long been sealed. There is no longer much contest regarding which is more popular – the German bassoon has been dominant for several decades. But, in our bassoon workshop, we have just finished overhauling a Hawkes and Son French system bassoon for a customer. It is a beautiful instrument, made of rosewood, with a simple yet elegant design. In fact, we see these French system bassoons quite often, and enjoy bringing them back to playing standard – they have an otherworldly, historic charm to their sound.
Seven crucial questions to ask when buying a bassoon
So you need a bassoon – but where do you start? How to decide what to buy, where to buy from, how much to spend and how to avoid buying a dud?
Do you identify as a bassoonist?
Questions of identity are an increasingly important theme in our culture. For those of us who play the bassoon the question of whether we do, or should, identify as bassoonists can be very important to how we think of ourselves.
Discovered: A 250 year old 'Prudent' bassoon?
Discovered: A 250 year old 'Prudent' bassoon? Having a great interest in bassoons from all periods, we are very excited to have acquired an old bassoon which may well be only the 12th Prudent bassoon to be identified.
Our first decade
Over 10 years we have built up a few memories and experienced a few notable events, so thought we would share a few here.
Discovered: first edition Galliard print published in 1733
Are you both a Bibliophile and a Bassoonophile? If so, you will be fascinated by a book in our collection – a first edition plate-print of Johann Ernst Galliard’s Six Sonatas for the Bassoon or Violoncello with a Thorough Bass for the Harpsicord published in 1733.