The clown of the orchestra. The farting bedpost. Whatever you like to call
it, the bassoon is one of the most intriguing members of the woodwind
family in terms of both its appearance and its sound. It looks like
somebody tried to make a saxophone out of a didgeridoo. As for the sound,
imagine a talented goose singing Barry White covers. Casual music fans are
familiar with the bassoon’s deep, reedy tone — equally adept at melodic
crooning and comedic staccato bursts — even if they don’t know what
instrument produces it. They know it as the grandfather’s theme in “Peter
and the Wolf.” They know it as the crazy counterpoint in the opening lick
from Smokey Robinson’s “Tears of a Clown,” laid down by longtime Detroit
Symphony Orchestra principal bassoonist Charles Sirard. And then there’s
the quirky, lilting melody of the Leave it to Beaver theme song, “The Toy
Parade.” So how did such a bizarre and beautiful musical machine come to
be?
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