My band teacher is saying that i would be really good at the oboe. i already play the flute and have been for the past 4 years. but im not sure if ill have time to play both things and do homework. . . please i really need your guys help! i like the noise the oboe makes and the fact that it is different but is it hard to play?

hey

you are not alone. i am playing flute for about 2 years. and i am thinking of trying oboe as a side instrument. i also love the sound. you should rent an oboe and try it out. i`m going to do that.

i switched from the Clarinet to the oboe two years ago, it was the best decison of my life. First off, YES it is hard to play, but it is worth it. If you do rent first, remeber that it will sound bad at the begining and it takes time. If you have the patience then definatly try the oboe

I started playing the oboe three years ago. It isn`t very hard to play at all. The only hard part is getting used to the double reed and learning how to tongue it w/o breaking it. The sound is beautiful and it is a wonderful and fun instrument to play. By all means take it up. Its one of the best things to do. Many people who play the oboe or bassoon play flute also. You can never have too little time for music anyways. Am I right? I hope you play it. Its the best thing I`ve ever done.

i`ve been playing the clarinet for 3 years and my band director decided that i play the oboe as a replacement for the senior oboist.
i`ve been playing for at least half a year now and its the best experience i`ve ever had. its a must try instrument. but make sure you get a teacher or somehow a good player to give you the basics or it`ll be hard to start.

Okay, for those of you saying the oboe isn`t hard to play *coughcorrinecough* you are dang wrong. If you have a bad sound and don`t focus on the correct aspects of oboe playing, i guess you could say it is easy, but if you are truly looking to become a accomplished oboist it is going to take A LOT of work. Oboe is definetely not a "side instrument," it is a instrument that is going to take a lot of practice, and most of all, PATIENCE. It is also very vital that you have a private teacher to become good. Once again, i am talking about what it takes to be a good oboist (like the best HS player in the state, not just any random oboist). I took all AP classes in HS, but anytime i wasn`t doing hw i was practicing, focusing on air support, an open throat and correct posture. Making my sound refined and notably pure. And it all pays off, because i had 5 schools offer me full scholarships, tution, room and board and food. I am paying nothing to go to school, and it is all because of this wonderful instrument. SO IT ALL COMES DOWN TO if you want to work, and never stop improving, you`ll be able to play considerably the hardest and most complex instruments, not to mention one of the best sounds ever, the oboe.

I completely agree with Adam Parnell. There is a lot of technique involved in playing the oboe that sometimes just comes with experience. I`ve been playing the oboe for about a year and a half(switched over from clarinet), and have progressed incredibly with all of the new opportunities that have been given to me- DCYO, DCYO woodwind quintet, ect. The more you play, the more you learn, and there is always something new to learn with the oboe.

Hello everyone

I`ve been playing piano for foursyear now and have been considering a second instrument, something more portable. I had a few things in mind; Tenor Sax, Clarinet, or Oboe.

The Oboe is my first choice, it has a brilliant sound to it and I was amazed after hering Mozart`s Oboe Comcerto. But I`m wondering how hard it is to play, I have chunky fingers and they keywork looks very complex.
Is it similar in terms of playing (breathing, blowing) to a clarinet?
I`ve borrowed a clarinet from college and I can breathe ok but have fingering trouble.

Clarinet would be my second choice but as I said I`m having finger trouble.

Failing that I#d go with Tenor sax.


Mike xx

The oboe is not an easy instument to learn. It is quite fun though. But to be good at it you will need to practice constantly to become a top notch player. I have played clarinet for four years and have switched to oboe. I enjoy it the hardest thing is to find a good reed that works for you and is in tune. I have never cracked a reed by tounging it. I have never herd of such a thing. The only thing I have done is crack a couple with my top teeth. But I would swith and still play the flute. They are both beautiful instuments to play. But you have a better chance to be accomplished on the oboe because there are far less people that play oboe then flute or clarinet. I prefer the oboe over the clarinet. I am very good at the clarinet and am in the symphonic band and the community band. I do performances at talent shows solo and ensemble festivals as soloist and duets and with full bands. Today I did a duet at ECU (Eastern Carolina University) and got a superior rating, again.

Well...there are gd AND bad points about oboe...when you first start out,you will find it very difficult to play,becoz you arent familar with the instrument.But after a few weeks or months of practising,you will find it much more easier.You lpay the flute?Cool!I wanted to play the flute when i first started out...but the instructor say i hav lips which are gd for playing double reeds so i was placed in bassoon,then oboe...

Hi! I have been playing the xylophone\percussion for about five and a half years now and I have been considering the oboe as my second instrument. I know that it is going to be very difficult because I have been a percussionist for all these years and I`m not used to instruments that reguire fingerings and blowing air through them. But I know that if I work hard at both that I will have many oppertunities in life. I love music and you can tell because I play in the Louisville Youth Orchestra, my school band, take private lessons, and I participate in all the solo and ensemble festivals, all state\all district, etc. But what I want to know is that...is the oboe really going to work out for someone who has played percussion for so long. I just rented an oboe and it is very difficult, but it`s fun having such a big challenge.

The only way to find out if the oboe is the right instrument for you, is to give it a go! I`ve been playing the oboe for the last 6 years here in Norway, and it has become my passion - I dream about it, I have nightmares about my oboe and reeds cracking, but it was the best desicion I ever made when I switched from the clarinet. Good luck!

Thanks Lena!!

Yes, ur right very ive been playing 4 two years and its very hard but if uve been playing the flute and are good at it thendont swich!

I started playing the oboe yesterday. It was my first class. I got the oboe from my teacher, and, unfortunatley, I was forced to buy it, because although I`m American, I don`t live in the US. You can`t rent them where I live. Well, anyhow, my practices were to be with one friend of mine who`s in my class and a younger girl. The first class went so-so. They had already been playing for one day before me, so I was very new to this instrument and had to have time to get used to it. The classes are 3 hours long. Believe me, these classes go by super fast if you`re really enjoying yourself and everything, but VERY slow if you`re not. Well, the second class was today. The younger girl didn`t show up, but she will be back tomorrow. While we were practicing, the teacher always kept going to the next practice line, without repeating the last one, almost as if he had no patience! I was the slowest of course, because I was one day behind, and he insisted on going to the next line. Occasionally he would stop to repeat one so that I could do it solo. I did, but, of course it took me a lot of time...i was just getting used to the instrument! He seemed irritated...even ANNOYED! Well, maybe this was just my opinion, so i didn`t let it get to me. Then, when the long 3 hours were finally over...I was continuously looking at my watch because I felt as if I wasn`t learning anything, so the class seemed longer than usual. He said to my friend "You are going so fast, if you choose to take this path in life, you`ll become famous and get into college for free" stuff like "you`re bound to become famous" This discouraged me. I`m strong. I didn`t let it get to me a whole lot. Then he turned to me and said "Good job today, Ellie" As if it was sarcastic, as if it was just to say something so I wouldn`t start crying!!! I went home. Now I`m scared to go to my next class. Fear of not learning anything and fear of being yelled at. Also fear of the pain that my thumb will make, but that`s a different story. My oboe is practically an antique. It takes a WHOLE LOT of breath and PATIENCE...which, unfortuantley, my teacher doesn`t have. I will not be a loser. I could quit if I wanted to. But I won`t. I`m strong.