<P> The woodwind section of the late 19th - century symphony orchestra ( for instance , in compositions by Wagner , Brahms , Bruckner , Tchaikovsky , and Richard Strauss ) typically includes : flutes ( sometimes with one doubling piccolo ) , oboes ( sometimes with one doubling cor anglais ) , clarinets ( sometimes with one doubling bass clarinet and / or another doubling E-flat clarinet ) , bassoons ( sometimes with one doubling contrabassoon ) . The section might also on occasion be supplemented with saxophones . In the early part of the 20th century the woodwinds ( as well as other sections ) were often considerably expanded . For example , Mahler in his Symphony No. 8 ( 1910 ) employs 2 piccolos , 4 flutes , 4 oboes , cor anglais , 2 E-flat clarinets , 3 B - flat clarinets , bass clarinet , 4 bassoons , and contrabassoon . After World War I , the number of instruments was often reduced , approaching the size of a chamber orchestra , with individual instrument combinations differing for each composition . The change can be illustrated by comparing two works by Stravinsky : The Rite of Spring ( 1911 -- 1913 ) with a large woodwinds section similar to the above and his Histoire du soldat ( 1918 ) , which only utilizes one clarinet and one bassoon . </P>
<P> The woodwind section of the late 19th - century symphony orchestra ( for instance , in compositions by Wagner , Brahms , Bruckner , Tchaikovsky , and Richard Strauss ) typically includes : flutes ( sometimes with one doubling piccolo ) , oboes ( sometimes with one doubling cor anglais ) , clarinets ( sometimes with one doubling bass clarinet and / or another doubling E-flat clarinet ) , bassoons ( sometimes with one doubling contrabassoon ) . The section might also on occasion be supplemented with saxophones . In the early part of the 20th century the woodwinds ( as well as other sections ) were often considerably expanded . For example , Mahler in his Symphony No. 8 ( 1910 ) employs 2 piccolos , 4 flutes , 4 oboes , cor anglais , 2 E-flat clarinets , 3 B - flat clarinets , bass clarinet , 4 bassoons , and contrabassoon . After World War I , the number of instruments was often reduced , approaching the size of a chamber orchestra , with individual instrument combinations differing for each composition . The change can be illustrated by comparing two works by Stravinsky : The Rite of Spring ( 1911 -- 1913 ) with a large woodwinds section similar to the above and his Histoire du soldat ( 1918 ) , which only utilizes one clarinet and one bassoon . </P>
where does the oboe sit in the orchestra
where does the oboe sit in the orchestra
woodwind section
woodwind section