Bassoon in the Media

Bassoon in Literature and Lyrics

meubanks — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 20:38:27 -0400

The word bassoon appears in literary works quite often as a description. There are novels where a character plays the bassoon or contrabassoon too. Most rare is the use of the word bassoon in song lyrics. If you come across any references to bassoon please email us for inclusion in this listing.

Descriptive Bassoon

The Oath

"Jackman filled his large chest with air. He had Glitsky by an inch or two
and thirty pounds and all of it was never more visible than it was now, when
it was clearly so tightly controlled. His voice, when it came, was a deep
bassoon of authority."

The Oath
John Lescroart
Penguin Group 2002

Bassoon in Fiction

The Offshore Pirate

"He worships me because I'm the only man in the world who can play better ragtime than he can. We used to sit together on the wharfs down on the New Your water-front, he with a bassoon and me with an oboe, and we'd blend minor keys in African harmonics a thousand years old until the rats would crawl up the posts and sit around groaning and squeaking like dogs will in front of phonograph."

From a book of short stories by F. Scott Fitzgerald which also includes the Curious Case of Benjamin Button adapted for a movie in 2008.

Before Gatsby (The First Twenty-Six Stories)
F. Scott Fitzgerald
University of South Carolina Press 2001

Children's Bassoon Books

Ralph's Secret Weapon

This is a great story from a book that is no longer in print. You'll have to look for it in the local library or find a used copy. Ralph takes bassoon lessons from the Maestro and enters a competition which he wins. His grandmothers cake and his fine bassooning help save the from a dreaded sea monster. Bassoonist Chris Weait has created a musical version of the story complete with costumes.

Ralph's Secret Weapon
Steven Kellogg
Puffin Pub. 1986

Bassoon in Prose

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Wedding Scene, Gustave Dore Ancient Mariner

One very famous line from literature is in Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner:

"Hear the wedding guest
Beat his breast
For he heard the loud bassoon."

On the Wanted CD by the Bassoon Brothers we do sing those lines as a lyric in the Wedding Guest written by David Carroll.

Bassoon in Lyrics

The Music Man

The 1957 broadway show The Music Man was based on a story by Meredith Willson and Franklin Lacey with music and lyrics by Meredith Willson. Music Man the movie was released in 1962 where you'll see a bassoon in the marching band. (p.s. It's NOT a good idea to march with a bassoon.) In the lyrics for the song 76 Trombones we hear the following:

"There were copper bottom tympani in horse platoons
Thundering, thundering all along the way.
Double bell euphoniums and big bassoons,
Each bassoon having it's big, fat say!"
The Music Man DVD

Bassoon in Literature

An extensive list of the The Bassoon in Literature appears in the IDRS publication The Double Reed.

Bassoon in the Soundtrack

meubanks — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 20:11:57 -0400

These are some of our favorite soundtracks from movies and TV shows:

Movie Soundtracks

Never Cry Wolf
The ultimate bassoon sound track is from Never Cry Wolf. Get it, hear it! See below Movies where you'll see a bassoon for more info.

Bourne Ultimatum
The Bourne movies have the bassoon is the theme music as the opening lead. Best heard in the last one Bourne Ultimatum

March of the Penguins
This movie features the fine bassoon work of Rose Corrigan, LA bassoonist. This is an interesting movie with a sparse soundtrack, so you are going to hear the bassoon well.

Ray Pizzi in the Soundtrack
Ray spent has spent his career in Hollywood working the studios
He can be heard on bassoon in the following:
Star Wars
He's wailing up high in the Cantina Band in the very first Star Wars movie. Now that you know it's a bassoon you'll hear. The player in that band has a pretty strange looking space age bassoon. A doll is available of that dude.
Predator 2
It's a bassoon but Ray makes it sound so creepy you wouldn't know what it is. Scary.
Fandango
Ray gets a few quirky solo licks the theme music. These bring a smile to my face. Purely Pizzi.

Television Themes and Soundtracks

Rumpole
Here's the theme from a long running English show.
Rumpole Theme

Alfred Hitchcock Presents
His TV theme was taken from Gounod's Funeral March of a Marionette. For the 1959 season the theme was played by a bassoon octet (6 bassoons, 2 contrabassoons). The Bassoon Brothers have recorded the original octet version on the Captured CD. On the Wanted CD is a version for quartet with drums.

Alfred Hitchcock Hour
One episode feature an hour long soundtrack of the bassoon octet version most likely in 1960. We are researching this. The show in question had Peter Fonda in the cast.

There are many other TV shows with good bassoon leads too! Let us know any your favorites.

Movies Where You'll See a Bassoon

meubanks — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 02:30:56 -0400

There are movies where you'll see a bassoon, some for just a moment, but others where the bassoonist has a part. If you are looking for a movie to rent or buy, check these out. Let us know your picks to add to our list.

Never Cry Wolf

The bassoon plays a huge role in this one and should be on every bassoonist's shelf. Some will be grossed out by role of rodents in this movie. The soundtrack features Rufus Olivier, Prinicipal Bassoonist with the San Francisco Opera, who plays purely haunting calls and high register pitch bends. Rufus plays a little bassoon recital with piano. The bassoon is also featured as a weapon! Check it out.

Never Cry Wolf (1983)

Topsy-Turvy

This is a movie about the lives of Gilbert and Sullivan. These guys are favorites of the Bassoon Brothers as you can tell from our recordings. The bassoon player is an archetypical Granpapa type with full (huge) beard and gets picked on by the conductor for his mistakes. We just don't get any respect. The movie goes on too long but the scene with the bassoonist is worth the wait--if you're a bassoonist...

Topsy Turvy

The Red Shoes

This 1948 drama about a ballerina and her impresario features a short scene where the maestro is rehearsing with two bassoonists. This is a very fine movie and well worth the effort to find it.
The Red Shoes