Eleven Piper's Piping Trivia Quiz

The oboe is a double-reed woodwind instrument. A double-reed uses the reeds to vibrate against each other to create the sound, whereas a single reed relies on the mouthpiece and the vibrations it produces to create sound.

The oboe was invented sometime in the mid-17th century most likely. It most likely developed from a 12th-century instrument that was similar called a shawm.

Liang Wang, who played with the New York Philharmonic, and Gordon Hunt, who was a British oboist, are two examples of famous oboe players.

The saxophone (or sax as it is often called) is a single-reed woodwind instrument. It was invented by Adolphe Sax sometime around the 1840s.

Two famous saxophone players are Kenny G (whose last name is Gorelick) who became a solo saxist in the late 1980s, and Jane Brunnett a Canadian musician who plays both sax and flute.

The piccolo is half the size of a flute, and is sometimes called a piccolo flute, or a "baby flute." As it is smaller, it produces a higher sound than a flute. It can go a full octave higher than a flute, which is why in Italian it is called "ottavino." The Italian word for eight is "otto."

It is not certain when the piccolo was invented or by whom, but the earliest known use of it is in the 18th century with Jean Philippe Rameau's works.

Some famous piccolo players include Charles le Thiere who was once considered the greatest piccolo player ever, and Jennifer Gunn.

The clarinet is a single-reed woodwind instrument. It is believed that Johann Christoph Denner, a German woodwind instrument maker during the Baroque era invented the clarinet around 1700. He modified an instrument from back then called a chalumeau by adding a register key to raise the pitches of the first register.

Some famous clarinet players include Benny Goodman, an American bandleader, and Anat Cohen, a jazz clarinet player.

Flutes have been around for thousands of years. Also, different cultures all had their own variations of flutes including Germany, China, and the Native people of North America. People who play the flute can be called flutist, flautist or flute players.

Some famous flute players include Jasmine Choi who was the first Korean musician to play in the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, and Ian Anderson, who was once part of the band Jethro Tull.

The English horn (also called the Cor anglais) is a double-reed instrument in the oboe family. It is 1.5 times larger than the oboe, however. It was most likely developed in the 1720s, but the inventor is unknown.

Some famous English horn players include Derek Bell of the Chieftains and Sheona Wade of Brighouse and Rastrick Band.

The bassoon is a double-reed woodwind instrument. It is usually made of wood. Because of its size, it is usually played while sitting with a seat strap or standing with a harness. It was first created in the early 18th century but the inventor is unknown.

Some famous bassoonists are Judith LeClair who once played with the New York Philharmonic as the principal bassoonist, and Sol Schoenbach who was once a principal bassoonist with the Philadelphia Orchestra.

The fife is similar to the piccolo in that it is played on the side and is a very small instrument. A person who plays a fife is called a fifer. The word fife comes from the German word Pfeife, which means pipe. The fife was especially common during the American Civil War with drums. They are also very common in Celtic music and some Caribbean music.

Some famous fifers are Don Francisco who played for Queen Elizabeth II, and Dolph Traymon.

The recorder has been around since at least the Middle Ages.

Some famous recorder players include Maurice Steger who has played with the New Era Orchestra, and Genevieve Lacey who was known as "The Recorder Queen."

The Irish flute is different from a regular flute as it is wooden; (regular flutes are usually metal). This helps give it a different sound from the other flute. While popular in Ireland, and despite its name, it did not originate in Ireland. It may have been invented by Charles Nicholson, Jr. of England but this is not certain.

Some famous Irish flute players are Matt Molloy who at age 17 was the All-Ireland Flute Champion, and Joanie Madden who was the leader of Cherish the Ladies.