What is the difference between an oboe and a clarinet?

Question

I've seen both instruments and can't tell how they are different. Can someone please tell me some major differences between an oboe and a clarinet?

I play the clarinet and know what it looks like.

Answer 1

Oboe and clarinet are very different instruments.

Clarinet is bigger and uses a single reed.
Oboe is smaller and uses a double reed.

Clarinet has a larger playing range than oboe.
Oboe can only play about 3 octaves. And most oboe music does not go up that high.

Clarinet does not use vibrato.
Oboe uses vibrato.

Clarinet is a Bb instrument.
Oboe is a C instrument.

Playing clarinet is affordable.
Playing oboe will put you in debt. :)

But if you play oboe on a college and professional level, you will be able to find playing gigs a lot easier.

Playing oboe is a lot harder than playing clarinet. You have to have a very good ear when it comes to pitch and you have to be able to work extremely hard to be good at it. It's not an instrument you can just pick up and play. It's takes a lot of practice and a lot of hard work before you start to sound decent.

Answer 2

Clarinet Vs Oboe

Answer 3

Oboe Vs Clarinet

Answer 4

The other answers summarized it all right-- the oboe uses a "double reed" while a clarinet uses a "single reed" with a mouthpiece.

Sound is created by vibration-- each instrument has its own way of creating vibration, with its unique overtones, to create its unique sound. For example, a string on a violin is bowed; air vibrates through the hole on a flute, a trumpet player's lips vibrate. In woodwind instruments the vibration is caused by a wooden piece called a reed. In a clarinet, this reed vibrates over a hole in the mouthpiece. The pitch is then controlled by keys press down and holes covered along the shaft of the instrument.

With an oboe, two of these wooden reeds are tied together, and their vibration against each other is what starts the sound in motion. Then the pitch is largely controlled as it is with a clarinet.

The result is that the sounds are much different. A clarinet has a much "purer" tone -- I would describe it as "woody" although at the top of the range it can be a little squeaky. An oboe's tone is, well, reedy-- it sounds like what happens when you blow through two tight blades of grass... or like a snake charmer's instrument.

The beginning of "Rhapsody in Blue" by George Gershwin has a great clarinet solo that demonstrate the range of the clarinet.

I believe the Prokoviev piece "Peter and the Wolf" features an oboe.

There are also other differences. For example, the clarinet is "tuned" to B flat, which means that the note you play sounds one step lower than as written on the page. This is done for coordination and range throughout the woodwinds. An oboe is "tuned" to C, like a piano, guitar, flute, or violin. An oboe has a slightly different shape (look at the "bell" of the instrument). Finally, a clarinet is MUCH MUCH easier to play than an oboe. Getting used to the oboe's double reed, and the strength of the mouth muscles needed to play the oboe is much greater than a clarinet.

hope this helps.

Answer 5

An oboe is a double reed instrument, which basically means it has a reed but no mouth piece. A clarinet has a reed and a mouth piece. They also both sound very different. I could be wrong, but I think the oboe is higher in pitch. I think an oboe is a C instrument (which basically means it plays in the same key as a piano, flute, guitar, etc.), since orchestras tune to it. The clarinet is a Bb (B flat) instrument.

Try and see what sites google has. They are probably more helpful

Answer 6

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
What is the difference between an oboe and a clarinet?
I've seen both instruments and can't tell how they are different. Can someone please tell me some major differences between an oboe and a clarinet?

Answer 7

An oboe has no mouthpiece; just a read. A clarinet has a reed and a mouthpiece. I'm not a musician, but this is true. A musician can give you a more technical answer.

Answer 8

I play both instruments and I can tell you that the oboe is played a octave higher than the clarinet and it sounds a bit squeeky, while the clarinet, is much lower and it has a mouthpiece to blow through. The oboe has a double reed (it looks like a thin stick). Both instruments are great to play and are definelty different! :P

Answer 9

An oboe has a double reed that you play on while the clarinet has a single reed placed on a mouthpiece. It's a big technique difference, but this difference isn't very noticable. Also sounds different.

Answer 10

An oboe has a small double reed while a clarinet has a large single reed.