The bassoon is the bass of the woodwind section, with a range of more than three octaves. Its low register is rich and reedy, and its top is a thin, strained sound that composers use on purpose.
Bassoon registers
| Register | Range | How it sounds |
|---|---|---|
| Low | B♭1 to F2 | Rich, reedy and full. A strong bass for the woodwinds and good doubling for cellos. |
| Middle | F2 to F4 | Agile and expressive, with the staccato that gives the bassoon its comic reputation. |
| High | F4 to C5 | Thin, plaintive and slightly strained. Read in tenor clef. |
| Top | Above C5 | Virtuoso territory. Some sources run to G5. |
Writing for the bassoon
- Write in bass clef, with tenor clef for the upper register. The bassoon does not transpose.
- Bassoons sit in the 200 to 400Hz band where cellos, horns and room reverb already crowd, so they disappear easily in a full texture.
- A high, exposed bassoon solo is a famous colour, but it is tiring. Keep it short.
The bassoon in sample libraries
Sampled bassoons usually sound strongest in the middle and evenly loud everywhere else. In a dense mix, the real instrument would be covered more easily than the samples suggest.
The full range is every note a professional can produce. The practical range is narrower on purpose, leaving out the notes only strong players produce reliably. The figures here are cross-checked between orchestration references, and where they disagree the practical range takes the more conservative one.
Other woodwinds ranges
- Piccolo range: D5 to C8
- Flute range: C4 to D7
- Oboe range: B♭3 to G6
- Clarinet range: D3 to B♭6
See every instrument on one chart, or check a whole MIDI file against these ranges, in the instrument range chart.