Roots of Reeds
Centuries before oboes, clarinets, and saxophones came to America, cultures in the Middle East, Persia, Central and East Asia were inventing and playing a wide variety of reed instruments. As they traveled, they brought along these instruments. Some went farther east in Asia, some south to India and Africa, and others north and west to Europe. Many of our modern instruments are descendants of these early counterparts.
Click here to view or download a map diagram of the migration of reeds created by the Museum of Making Music for their exhibit.
WHAT IS A REED INSTRUMENT?
A reed instrument utilizes a thin strip of material, called a reed, to create sound. Reeds are traditionally made of cane, straw, or resonant metal. Today, there are also synthetics. The majority of reed instruments fall into three main categories based on the placement of the reed within the instrument and how the reed vibrates. They include: free reeds, single fixed reeds, and double reeds.
FREE REEDS
Free reed instruments have one or more fiber or metal reeds placed inside a sound chamber. Chinese historical documents date the existence of free reed mouth organs to 1500 B.C., but there are references to these instruments dating much earlier.
Free reed instruments traveled along the Silk Road trade route and eventually wound up in Western Europe. By the 18th century, European instrument makers began creating a flurry of their own free reed instruments, ultimately resulting in the development of the harmonica, concertina, and accordion.
SINGLE FIXED REEDS
Saxophones and clarinets are two familiar examples of modern single fixed reed instruments. They are defined by a reed that is attached to a hardened surface (a mouthpiece) with an opening through which air can pass into a wind chamber.
Ancient texts suggest single reed instruments originated in North Africa, then migrated throughout the Middle East to Asia. The instruments then moved northwest to Europe, where they would influence the development of the clarinet family and other modern reed instruments.
DOUBLE REEDS
Double reed instruments incorporate two reeds that vibrate against one another to produce sound. Double reed instruments are typically divided into two families: conical and tubular.
Conical instruments have a small double reed or multiple reeds placed on a tapered tube that attaches to a cone-shaped body ending in a flare or bell. These instruments are believed to have originated in Persia or North Africa, and then spread through India, Africa, Tibet, and farther outward to East Asia and Europe. The modern oboe and bassoon families are descendants of these early conical instruments.
Tubular instruments utilize a large double reed placed in the end of a tube-shaped body without a flare or bell. These instruments originated in the southern Mediterranean region and were found in what is present-day Iraq, Georgia, Armenia, and surrounding areas.
