The Woodwind Choir

1
The Woodwind Choir

• Reed Aerophones

2
Woodwinds

• Many of the instruments of the family are no
  longer made of wood.
• The saxophone was always made of brass.
• Issues of tuning and blending within the ensemble.

3
Woodwinds

• Unlike the strings, a conical or cylindrical tube
  does not require amplification because the
  vibrating column of air sounds at the desired
  amplitude.
• The construction and mode of producing sound for
  each instrument effects the timbre, range,
  registral characteristics, agility, etc.

4
Woodwinds

• The holes in the tube must be cut to exact
  mathematical requirements in order to produce all
  the semitones between the fundamental and the
  first overtone.
• Early primitive mechanisms compensated somewhat
  for the fact that these holes were often too far
  apart for the hand to cover them.

5
Woodwinds

• Real advances in woodwind construction did not
  occur until the nineteenth century.
• Theobald Boehm (1794 - 1881) invented a
  mechanical system of interlocking keys and levers
  which made it possible to reach all the notes.

6
Classification of Woodwinds

• Woodwinds can be classified by
• families
• the kind of reed
• the shape of the pipe
• the interval the instrument overblows
• whether or not the instrument transposes.

7
Classification by Family

• The flute family piccolo, flute, alto flute,
  bass flute.
• The oboe family oboe, oboe damore, English
  horn, heckelphone, bassoon, contrabassoon.
• The clarinet family C, D, E -flat, B-flat, and A
  clarinets, alto clarinet, bass clarinet,
  contrabass clarinet, bassett horn.
• Saxophone family sopranino, soprano, alto,
  tenor, baritone, and bass saxophones.

8
Classification by Reed

• Nonreed woodwinds all flutes.
• Single reed all clarinets and saxophones.
• Double reed oboes and bassoons.

9
Classification by Pipe

• Cylindrical tube
• Flutes are considered an open cylindrical tube
  since the embouchure hole is so near the closed
  end.
• Clarinets are considered closed since the
  mouthpiece closes the tube at one end.
• Conical tube oboes, bassoons, saxophones.

10
Classification by Overblowing

• All conical pipe instruments and flutes overblow
  at the octave.
• All clarinets overblow at the twelfth.

11
Classification by Transposition

• Nontransposing flute, oboe, bassoon.
• Transposing
• Instruments that keep the same transposition
  piccolo, alto and bass flute, oboe damore,
  English horn, alto and contrabass clarinets,
  saxophones.
• Instruments that change the interval of
  transposition clarinet and bass clarinet.

12
The Principle of Transposition

• Transposing instruments sound a pitch different
  that what is notated.
• It is up to the orchestrator to transpose the
  part.
• Most scores have the parts transposed unless
  otherwise noted on the score.
• When a transposing instrument reads a C it will
  sound the pitch in its name (table of
  transpositions pg. 169).

13
Playing Techniques

• Vibrato is produced by starting a rapid pulsation
  of the air column.
• The performer will naturally use vibrato so there
  is no need to indicate this on the score.
• If it is desired to have a passage played without
  vibrato use the indication senza vibrato, non
  vibrato, or white tone.
• The markings con vibrato or normale indicate to
  return to a normal mode of playing.

14
Playing Techniques

• Articulation is effected by tonguing (tuh or
  duh).
• A slurred passage is performed in one breath --
  legato.
• Not all passages performed in one breath are
  legato.
• A dot, staccato, above the note indicates very
  short, separated notes.

15
Playing Techniques

• Soft tonguing is indicated with a slur placed
  over notes with dots, similar to louré on
  strings.
• For very fast passages a player will use double
  or triple tonguing (te-ke).
• Flutter tongue (flatterzunge frullato) is a
  special effect accomplished by a long rolled r.
• While there are no mutes made for the woodwinds,
  this effect can be accomplished by stuffing a
  cloth in the bell (except flute).

16
Special Effects

• Multiphonics are multiple pitches at once. The
  player emphasizes one or more partials above the
  fundamental pitch.
• Microtones are quarter tones and special shadings
  of a pitch (difficult to control).
• Portamento is most successful on the clarinet and
  saxophone in an upward direction.

17
Special Effects

• Key Clicking is merely percussively slapping down
  the keys without blowing through the instrument
  -- a very soft effect.
• Flutists are sometimes asked to produce a
  shrieking kind of sound called a whistle tone.
  The instrument is turned slightly away from the
  face and blown across instead of into the
  instrument.
• ALWAYS check with a performer BEFORE using these
  effects to see how difficult or appropriate they
  are for a passage.

18
The Classical Section

• Up to and including early Beethoven, the
  classical woodwind section included
• 2 Flutes
• 2 Oboes
• 2 Clarinets (key depended on the composition)
• 2 Bassoons
• Haydn did use an English horn in a few
  symphonies.
• Piccolo was used in some early stage works.

19
The 19th Century Section

• After Beethoven the woodwind section consisted
  of
• Piccolo
• 2 Flutes
• 2 Oboes
• English Horn
• 2 Clarinets
• Bass Clarinet
• 2 Bassoons
• Contrabassoon

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Late 19th/Early 20th Century

• In large orchestras (Mahler, Strauss) the
  woodwind section consisted of
• Piccolo, sometimes two with one doubling alto
  flute
• 3 Flutes
• 3 Oboes
• English Horn
• C, D, or E-flat Clarinets
• 2 or 3 Clarinets in B-flat or A
• Bass Clarinet, sometimes two or a Basset Horn
• 3 Bassoons
• Contrabassoon

21
Late 19th/Early 20th Century

• When saxophones are used they appear in range
  order from soprano on top to the bass.
• They are placed between clarinets and bassoons on
  the score page.

22
Scoring for Woodwinds

• Be familiar with the technical and aural
  limitations of each register of the instruments.
• Be aware of the relative ease that certain
  passages can be played by the instrument or the
  player.
• Take into account that breath control varies from
  instrument to instrument.

23
Scoring for Woodwinds

• First and second parts of identical instruments
  are written on one staff.
• If differences in rhythm and general complexity
  of the parts makes it confusing, then use
  separate staves.
• When there are three parts, the first and second
  are written on one staff with the third place in
  a staff below.
• If the second and third parts are more alike than
  the first and second, then place the first part
  in its own staff with second and third parts
  combined in a staff below.

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Scoring for Woodwinds

• When first and second parts are to play in
  unison, the marking a2 is used a3 for three
  players in unison.
• To indicate either the first or second to play a
  part, 1., 1, or 2., or 2 is used.
• When first and second parts are different and
  notated on the same staff, stems up for the first
  part and stems down for the second

25
Scoring for Woodwinds

• The term divisi is never used in wind or brass
  parts.
• The string section plays two on a part woodwind
  players all get their own part.
• Solo is a term used to emphasize that a
  particular line is the most important event at
  the moment.