Oboe: Two Worlds of Sound — Vienna Symphonic Library
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“Body
The appearance of the two instruments differs in that the French oboe has a long, thin tube of plain design with a gently flaring bell whereas the Viennese oboe still possesses the characteristics of the classical oboe: the shorter, thick-walled tube; the baluster on the upper joint; the widening at the tenon joints and the bell-shaped bell.
Bore
The French oboe has a narrow bore, 4.1 mm at its narrowest. The Viennese oboe’s bore is wider (4.4–4.9 mm) and progresses in two steps. The Viennese model also has a contraction rim in the bell.
Fingering
Viennese oboists use a special fingering from B5 to C6, the so-called “long fingerings”, i.e. the notes are produced with a long air column (many tone holes closed). On the French oboe the same notes are produced with the aid of a speaker key and “short fingerings”, i.e., a short air column.
The fully automatic Viennese oboe offers short fingerings as an alternative to the traditional long fingerings (the notes sound a little thinner).”