double reed
- noun
- /ˈdʌbəl rid/
- Specialized
:
doble lengüeta
- The oboe player, who was still learning to master that difficult double-reed instrument, kept making mistakes.
- double-reed call
- double-reed instrument
Examples
-
Teaches the double-reed instruments at the University of Alabama music school.
Fiction book (1993) -
On the morning of the 14th, a Mien band playing a double-reed oboe, drum, gong, and cymbals went out along the road to receive the guests and to bring them in the direction of the house.
Academic text (2004) -
In two of his bands, clarinets, flutes, saxophones, double reeds, trumpets/percussion, and low brass/horns submit tapes on a weekly basis.
Academic text (1999) -
The musician explained how the double reed of the oboe creates its unique sound.
-
She chose a double reed for her bassoon to achieve a richer tone during the performance.
-
Learning to play the double reed instrument requires patience and practice.
Synonyms
A thin stiff strip that makes sound when air moves through it in instruments like clarinets
Surface Forms
Morphology
The term is a literal combination of 'double' (twofold) + 'reed' (a vibrating strip), so it directly denotes two reeds joined together for sound production. This straightforward noun-noun compounding is predictable and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the meaning.
Etymology
The noun double reed comes from the simple picture of two thin pieces of reed joined together, because the word double means two. When air is blown between the two reeds, they move quickly against each other to make a strong 'sound', so instruments like the 'oboe' and 'bassoon' that use a double reed have that special tone.
