Popular Articles
Finger-hole liners: does my bassoon need them?
March 16th, 2018
Everything you ever wanted to know about bassoon finger hole liners
Am I too old to learn the bassoon?
February 15th, 2018
Why not join the select group of older bassoon learners?
Five reasons to play the bassoon in retirement
July 12th, 2017
You'll soon be dusting off your instrument.
Six Steps to Practicing the Bassoon and Achieving Results Fast
June 21st, 2018
In this guide we outline a method of practice called ‘deliberate practice’, drawing on research conducted by Professor of Psychology K....
Why the mini bassoon may make your child smarter
March 22nd, 2017
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 c...
What is it about pre-war bassoons?
March 8th, 2018
Exploring what makes pre-war bassoons special.
10 Easy Ways to Damage your Bassoon
January 29th, 2021
10 Easy Ways to Damage your Bassoon - Our specialist bassoon technicians have collated the top 10 ways bassoons can be damaged accident...
The bassoon sanctuary
January 11th, 2021
Just like the elephant, the bassoon is long-lived. It accumulates memories of pieces played, owners had, places been and, for some, ju...
Maple bassoon wood - an optical illusion!
December 16th, 2020
Maple bassoon wood sometimes exhibits an astounding optical illusion called chatoyance. In this video we show how this effect can drama...
Can a bassoon be vegan?
December 11th, 2020
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 ...
An eight ft tall contrabassoon!
October 16th, 2020
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...
Re-finishing a Püchner bassoon
July 3rd, 2020
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 w...
The old musician
April 23rd, 2020
We found this label in the case of a pre-war (1920s) Mollenhauer bassoon in our workshop - after translating it we discovered this beau...
Heckel bassoon restoration - before & after!
October 15th, 2019
I'm over 50 - can I learn the bassoon?
September 27th, 2019
Over the years that Double Reed has been providing and restoring bassoons, some of the most inspired and dedicated musicians we have me...
Hear a contra, two bassoons and a mini!
May 31st, 2019
Bassoon quartet: Hear a contrabassoon, two bassoons and a mini bassoon!
Watch: Restoring a Heckel Bassoon
February 19th, 2019
Watch our three part video series showcasing our recent restoration of a stunning Heckel bassoon.
Why did you choose the bassoon?
November 6th, 2018
The answer to this question is always fascinating, so we took to Facebook to ask the bassoon community…
Overhauling a contrabassoon!
March 5th, 2020
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
May 22nd, 2020
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...
2021 – Our 10th Anniversary Year
January 19th, 2021
2021 is our 10th year of trading as a limited company. We established the company formally in September 2011, immediately after Oliver ...
Repairing a rotten bassoon bore!
February 26th, 2021
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 resul...
Bassoons: repair and re-use for a sustainable world
March 12th, 2021
Each year, manufacturing has an enormous impact on our planet – it is one of the world’s biggest contributors to environmental damage. ...
Re-discovering the French bassoon
March 19th, 2021
The fate of the French and German systems of bassoon has, it seems, long been sealed. There is no longer much contest regarding which i...
Seven crucial questions to ask when buying a bassoon
April 1st, 2021
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...
Do you identify as a bassoonist?
April 30th, 2021
Questions of identity are an increasingly important theme in our culture. For those of us who play the bassoon the question of whether ...
Discovered: A 250 year old 'Prudent' bassoon?
October 22nd, 2021
Discovered: A 250 year old 'Prudent' bassoon? Having a great interest in bassoons from all periods, we are very excited to have acquire...
Our first decade
October 8th, 2021
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
November 29th, 2022
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...