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An orchestra contain four sections; brass, strings, percussion and woodwind. These four parts make up what is referred to as an instrumental ensemble. A full size orchestra will contain about 100 players.

The woodwind section of any orchestra contains instruments that make sound via a reed. This reed will cause the instruments resonator to vibrate as air is pushed into the mouthpiece. A reed is usually made out of a very thinly cut piece of plastic or cane. If a woodwind instrument does not create sound with a reed it will have a sharp edge.

Although the name of the orchestral section is woodwind, don’t let that fool you into thinking every instrument in it is made of wind. Although indeed many are made of wood, there are also instruments made of metal and plastic. Instruments in a woodwind section include flutes and reed instruments.

Reed instruments are divided into the categories of single reed and double reed. Single reed instruments use just one reed to create sound and include instruments such as the clarinet and saxophone. Double reed instruments create sound when air is passed through two reeds which come together at the base. There are two subcategories in the double reed section. These subcategories are the exposed double reed instruments, where the reed sits between the player’s lips, and the capped double reed instruments, which requires the player to blow through a hole in a covering cap. Exposed double reed instruments include the oboe and the English horn. Capped double reed instruments include the cornamuse and crumhorn. Other instruments in this section include the bagpipes and accordion.